WATCH: Michigan State Legend Mateen Cleaves Speaks at Halftime of MSU-Oregon

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Moments after addressing the crowd while he and his 2000 national title teammates were honored at halftime of Michigan State's home game against Oregon on Saturday, Mateen Cleaves spoke to media members, discussing Saturday's reunion, the 25th anniversary of that legendary Spartan team and Tom Izzo's current squad.

At the time, Michigan State was trailing by 14, on the verge of losing its third game in a row. But Michigan State dug deep and turned things around in the second half, ultimately defeating Oregon, 86-74, in an effort led by Jase Richardson, the son of Cleaves' former teammate, Jason Richardson.

Cleaves was the 2000 NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player, a three-time consensus All-American, a two-time Big Ten Player of the Year and three-time All-Big Ten honoree.

You can watch some of his media availability from Saturday below:

Izzo addressed the media after the Spartans' come-from-behind win on Saturday. Below is a partial transcript from his opening statement:

Izzo: "Well, part of me feels sorry for Dana [Altman]. They played so well the first half. Unbelievable; they hit nine or 10 3s in the first half and none in the second. Points off of turnovers were 21-2 in the first half. There was not any magical things said at halftime. I thought our players decided that they weren't guarding well enough. We were getting beat on dribble drives and everything else. And our crowd was unbelievable. And when that happens, get on a little run, we cut it down to single digits at the 16-minute mark. I think we were down to 2 at that time. That was a big difference. Tre [Holloman] didn't play very well the first half and starts out with that big 3 the second half and had one turnover and, I think, five assists. And first half, we had many turnovers and didn't play well. We got a lot of play out of a lot of different guys. And of course, Jase had a career night. When he got that block late, it was a hell of a block. And all the guys were sitting behind me, and I turned to Jason and said, 'Jason who?' It was Jase's night. And how exciting for him and for them and his family, but for us, too."

Don’t forget to follow the official Spartan Nation Page on Facebook Spartan Nation WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE, and be a part of our vibrant community group Go Green Go White as well WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.