Following the Michigan State basketball upset by Iowa, 78-71, we were able to listen in on two veterans post-game.
After a game where it felt like Michigan State basketball was out of gas for the majority of the game, there is one word that could be used to describe the locker room: deflated. We got to listen to parts of two different interviews following the tough loss.
Post-game, we had time to hear from both Malik Hall and AJ Hoggard.
AJ Hoggard: “I hate losing.”
AJ had a Jekyll and Hyde type of game. He was stone-cold in the first half. This was despite saying that he felt that the pregame shoot-around “felt really good.” He was quick to put down any thoughts that the team had any bad vibes going into the game despite what Tom Izzo heard from Davis Smith before the game. Smith also repeated that to Izzo at halftime. He also discussed how the team did look at this game as a big game and that it felt “terrible especially because we are a veteran group.”
AJ Hoggard: “We knew how big this game was.”
In response to a question about dealing with this loss, Hoggard said that he wants to see everyone respond by “coming with their hard hats and being ready to work.” He also added that this loss hurt more “when a team like that does what they want with you on your home court.” AJ did do his best to get the team going in the second half. He went off for 15 points in the second half and helped the team close the gap. The lack of defense though was too much to overcome.
AJ Hoggard: “I’m confident in this group.”
Discussing further implications of this game in the final stretch of the season, Hoggard made it clear that he believes that this team can still make things happen. Though he was frustrated by the loss, he made it clear that the veteran leadership is tested and ready to bounce back after a day off tomorrow. Hoggard also said that even though everyone is getting the day off tomorrow, he will “be working on layups in the gym.” Considering the issues that he had in the first half, it could only improve the team as they go against Ohio State on Sunday.
Malik Hall: “We created some problems for ourselves.”
Hall had a good night offensively but like the rest of the team struggled to tighten up defensively against the Iowa offense. When asked if this game against Iowa was tougher than the team had originally imagined, Hall agreed and said that the team “had trouble in the post.” When you look at his +/- stats from the first half, this was clear. Hall ended the first half with -16 which mostly happened on the big 21-6 Iowa run to end the half. He also mentioned that the Iowa shooters caused them a lot of issues. Due to the defensive looks they were receiving, at times it looked as though Iowa could not miss a shot. Despite this, he said that he believes that this team will pick it up because they need to.
Overall thoughts
While there was a somber tone to the locker room interviews tonight, it’s clear that this team is still going to fight back. It seems that this happens almost every year. An Izzo team rides a hot streak into a dud of a game and then comes back even stronger. This is how Tom Izzo has built his teams for nearly 30 years, and while you want to win them all, sometimes you have one of those nights. That is what this felt like. The important thing will be to see how this team responds on Sunday against Ohio State. Michigan State basketball is much better than what was shown tonight, and thankfully they know it.
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