Defense, rebounding points of emphasis for Spartans

Oct. 13, 2004

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Tom Izzo wants to get back to basics with his Michigan State basketball program.

That means an emphasis on defense and rebounding, two characteristics that made the Spartans a national powerhouse in recent years but were sometimes lacking last season in East Lansing.

"Don't forget where you came from. Don't forget how you got there," Izzo said Wednesday during Michigan State's preseason media day. "We are going to defend and rebound this year if it's the last thing we do."

The first Associated Press Top 25 poll won't be released until early November, but Michigan State is ranked in the Top 10 in several preseason publications.

The Spartans return their top six scorers from last season's 18-12 team, which shined on offense. Michigan State was the only team in the nation to rank in the Top 10 for field-goal percentage, 3-point field-goal percentage and free-throw percentage in 2003-04.

But Spartans players and coaches alike said that isn't enough to be where they want to be -- consistent contenders for Big Ten and NCAA titles.

"We want to win championships, and that means we have to get back to defense and rebounding," senior guard/forward Alan Anderson said.

Michigan State averaged 30.3 rebounds last season, just 1.7 rebounds per game more than their opponents, ranking in the bottom half of the Big Ten. Izzo's best teams have consistently ranked among the conference and national leaders in rebounding margin.

Michigan State has been one of the nation's top programs the past seven years. But the Spartans haven't won a share of a Big Ten regular season title or reached the NCAA Final Four since the 2000-01 season.

Many expected Michigan State to be among the nation's best last season, but it didn't happen. The Spartans never fully recovered from playing one of the toughest early season schedules in NCAA history and lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to Nevada.

This season's schedule includes some tough games, including a Nov. 30 trip to Duke and games with Stanford at the Palace of Auburn Hills and UCLA at the Breslin Center. A matchup with Maryland is also a possibility in a preseason tournament, but it's not quite the monster schedule that Michigan State played last season with one ranked team coming after another.

"We still have a very strong schedule, but it's spaced out a bit," Izzo said.

Michigan State's hopes hinge to a large degree on 6-foot-11 junior center Paul Davis, who led the Spartans in scoring (15.8 points per game) and rebounding (6.2 per game) last season.

A trio of talented seniors -- Chris Hill, Alan Anderson and Kelvin Torbert -- return for their fourth season in East Lansing. Hill and Torbert are guards; Anderson can play guard or small forward.

Freshman Drew Neitzel could give Michigan State the true point guard it has lacked in recent years. Hill and Neitzel likely will handle most of the point guard duties, Izzo said.

"He's going to play a lot," Izzo said of Neitzel.

Teammates said Neitzel has displayed good ballhandling skills and a solid grasp of controlling tempo in preseason workouts.

Sophomore Shannon Brown, junior Maurice Ager and senior Tim Bograkos each made key contributions to the backcourt last season and return for the Spartans.

Frontcourt help is expected from sophomore forward Delco Rowley, freshman forward Marquise Gray and sophomore center Drew Naymick.

The Spartans lost only one player with significant playing time last season, reserve forward/center Jason Andreas.

Michigan State hosts Florida A&M in its regular-season opener Nov. 19.