WATCH: Everything Michigan State Coach Tom Izzo Said After Comeback Win Over Oregon
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- No. 9 Michigan State did what it needed to do on Saturday, and that was end its brief, two-game skid.
It did just that, but it was far from easy.
In fact, it looked like a third consecutive loss may have been looming as the Spartans found themselves down 14 at halftime. But an incredible second-half performance would propel them to a 12-point victory, keeping them undefeated on their home floor.
Michigan State earned the win in front of the 2000 national championship team. Among those in attendance, of course, was Jason Richardson, who got to watch his son, Jase, drop a career-high 29 points in his first collegiate start.
Spartans coach Tom Izzo discussed it all in his postgame press conference. You can watch below:
Below is a partial transcript from Izzo's 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."
Michigan State will return on Tuesday to host Indiana. Tip-off is set for 9 p.m.
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