Four days after a stunning loss in round one of the NCAA tournament, Spartan fans are still digesting the fact that their team won't make a run to the final four.
"I wouldn't have done anything much differently than I did. So that's what I should be criticized for," said Coach Tom Izzo Tuesday of the loss to Middle Tennessee State Friday afternoon.
"We got beat by a team that played better than us that night," Izzo said.
He mentioned one of the hardest parts for him was going from winning the Big 10 championship, to losing to a 15 seeded team only five days later.
The team that won that championship, he said, wasn't the same team that showed up Friday. And the Spartans couldn't stop the Blue Raiders.
"They made shots. They made three point shots, they made three point plays," Izzo said. "We didn't defend them as well as I think we've been defending."
Izzo told reporters he's gotten emails and letters from upset fans, but hopes they will lay the blame on him, and not the players, because until Friday, he says it was a record-breaking year.
"What I don't want to do is diminish the accomplishments of the records this team has set, individually and as a team," Izzo said.
But after such a shocking loss, he says he needs time before looking to next year.
"If you ask me what would I do next year to make sure that this doesn't happen, I couldn't give you an answer," Izzo said.
