Michigan State-Wisconsin Postgame Quotes
1/12/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 12, 2002
MSU Head Coach Tom Izzo:
" First things first, (official) Tom Rucker made the right call. I knew it when it happened, there was no question. We told KT (Kelvin Torbert) before the play that all he could do was lob it up with one hand because you can't grab it with two hands and he did. It was a hell of a play, it was a great pass but it was the right call. So, if anybody is trying to stick up for us-don't.
"To be honest, we got just about what we deserved. We had a 10-point lead and were playing very well. We just did a miserable job of taking care of the ball and we took some bad shots. Wisconsin's points off turnovers were ridiculous. We turned it over and they went down and got lay-ups. They pounded the ball inside and as soon as Al (Anagonye) got his third foul we struggled to check after that.
"The better team won today. They deserved to win, they bounced back. It's disheartening because a great streak has come to an end. All good things should end sometime. We are going to have to regroup, play a lot harder, smarter, better if we want to win in this league."
Wisconsin Head Coach Bo Ryan
"You don't get wins like that very often. The players roughed me up in the locker room, that's all I can say. We didn't get a chance on the floor to get excited. It was a one-point game, so the shot either counts or it doesn't. So there was no reason for our guys to be out there. Our guys were pretty happy.
"Before the game, the media kept talking about the winning streak, and I said, 'Guys, I'm not going to talk about it.' We live in the precious present, so take care of the now. These guys played for the moment and that's all. It was a nice moment."
On the last play: "It was a heck of a play and a heck of a pass, and I'll remember to do that play when there's four-tenths of a second on the clock. They made a heck of a play, but it was just in his hands for too long."