Spartan Guard Denzel Valentine Had A Lot To Say as Spartans Prepare to Face The Michigan Wolverines

Valentine DOES HIS UNIQUE RELATIONSHIP WITH UM COACH BEILEIN CHANGE THIS GAME? “He is a great coach and I respect their program, but it’s a

Valentine

DOES HIS UNIQUE RELATIONSHIP WITH UM COACH BEILEIN CHANGE THIS GAME?

“He is a great coach and I respect their program, but it’s a Michigan-Michigan State game. It is what it is.”

HOW CLOSE WERE YOU TO PICKING MICHIGAN?

“They treated me well and they attacked me in the recruiting process. They were probably one of my top three, but I couldn’t go there.��€

WHAT WOULD YOUR DAD HAVE DONE?

“He actually liked how they treated me and he pretty much said it was up. It was pretty much my choice really.”

WHAT IS YOUR DAD LIKE WITH YOU AS IT PERTAINS TO THIS RIVALRY?

“He doesn’t really talk about it. I am surprised. He just talks about every game the same. It is more like Mo Cleaves, Day Day or AP. Those guys. Recent guys.”

HOW CRITICAL TO END THE LOSING SKID AT CRISLER?

“It’s a tough environment and they always splay well when they play us. Me and Matt are tied now in our games, so this is a big game. This is a big game. We want to go up in our series so we’ve got to win a down there.”

DO YOU ENJOY A HOSTILE CROWD?

“It’s really cool to go out there an play against a hostile crowd like that when everyone is against you.”

DID YOU CELEBRATE AFTER OSU WIN OR JUST GO RIGHT TO UM PREPERATION?

“It was just kind of a relief. We’ve been struggling and we really haven’t won a big game like that. You got to celebrate that a little bit and we did. The next morning we were r=back at focusing on Michigan.”

ARE YOU SICK OF ALL THE VALENTINE DAY PUNS?

“I got a lot of comments and people telling me about it.”

ARE YOU GOING TO MAKING ADJUSTING TO NEW WRINKLES FROM UM PART OF YOUR GAME PLAN?

“No not really. Just play them honest. Give everybody the same respect we give everyone else. Go out there and play with high energy and play hard and I think we have a good chance of winning.”

ONE COMMON DENOMINATOR IN THE MSU LOSSES THIS YEAR IS YOUR FOUL TROUBLE. HOW CRITICAL IS AVOIDING THAT?

“Coach wants me to focus on that. I try to the best I can, but I just get a little too aggressive at times, especially on the defensive end. I just got to find that fine line between being too aggressive and being aggressive. Just watching film and listening to coach and feeling the game out I should be able to figure it out.”

UM HAS RUN OUT OF STEAM BECAUSE OF SO MANY INJURES LATE IN GAMES. CAN YOU ATTACK THAT?

“They had some problems with injuries and they can’t control that. We can’t think about that. We have to play our game and do what we do. I haven’t really thought about that stuff. If we go out and play with high energy and focus on us we don’t have to worry about that.”

WHAT IS IT LIKE PLAYING AT CRISLER?

“They have a good crowd and they get pretty loud over there. Definitely top three road games. Hostile environments. It’s fun playing there. I like the gym; I like the environment and everything about it. “

YOU SAY CRISLER IS #3 BEST CROWD SO WHAT ARE #1 AND #2?

“I would say Minnesota my freshman year was pretty good and Iowa is always good at Iowa.”

IS PLAYING FOR THE NCAA TOURNAMENT STREAK EVEN BIGGER THAN PLAYING THIS RIVALRY GAME?

“It’s a rivalry game and it really hasn’t hit me. It’s going to hit me as soon as you get to the arena and see their fans and you get some boos and your adrenaline picks up a little bit. That is always in the back of your mind and I would say that it’s a rivalry game at the end of the day and that’s a bigger motivation I think.”

IS THIS TEAM RIGHT NOW AT IT’S HIGHEST POINT ALL SEASON AS IT PERTAINS TO CONFIDENCE?

“Actually I think we are starting to come along. Everybody is getting more comfortable. We just have to get a couple more people stepping up and giving us a little more. Then I think we are on the right track as far as our goals this season.”