WATCH: Michigan State's Szymon Zapala Speaks After Win Over UNM

CLEVELAND, Ohio-- Michigan State did not have an easy weekend. The Spartans were again faced with an early deficit they had to overcome.

The 10-seeded New Mexico Lobos got off to a hot start and took the fight to the Spartans. In the second half, Michigan State was able to fight back, eventually pulling away to secure a 71-63 victory over the Richard Pitino-led Lobos.

Senior big man Szymon Zapala spoke to the media following the game.

You can watch some of his media availability below:

Below is a transcript of Michigan State coach Tom Izzo's opening statement from his postgame press conference.

Izzo: "We're going to Atlanta, and all the meals are on you, right, guys?

"Well, opening statement is another team that really, I thought, played well. The first half of that game, that was as good of a barrage as we've had hit us. It wasn't that we were down a lot, 10 points, but it just seemed like we weren't guarding, and they were making shots. Give them credit.

"I thought from about the 9-minute mark on, we did a better job in the first half, and I thought the second half, even though they shot a pretty good percentage, I think -- yeah, 48 percent, I'm not sure anybody has shot that against us.

"They're talented. They're good. They had a kid [Mustapha] Amzil played out of his mind. I thought he had 12 at halftime. He's making 3s; he's doing everything. I thought Jeremy [Fears Jr.] and Jaden [Akins] and Tre [Holloman] all did a good job on [Donovan] Dent, and Dent is a hell of a player.

"But I thought we got our break going when we got our defense going, and we rebounded the ball pretty well.

"I don't know what the final total was, by six, but that's a talented, well-coached team, and I'm just happy we got the win. I'm happy we showed a little character after we got down and weren't playing very well."

The Spartans will take on Ole Miss in Atlanta at 7:09 p.m. on Friday.

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Michigan State moves on to Tom Izzo's 16th Sweet 16 to play 6-seeded Ole Miss. It will play at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia for a chance to play in the Elite Eight. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:09 p.m.