Grizzled hard court veterans like Aloysius Anagonye aren't giddy about scoring a No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Like the senior forward says, "It's tournament time."

MSU (19-12) will face No. 10 seed Colorado in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday in Tampa Bay, Fla.

"Some of us clapped," Anagonye said of his team's reaction, but spirits among other players remained dampened after Saturday's 55-54 loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.

MSU's seeding proved that tough schedules are a factor in the postseason setup, head coach Tom Izzo said.

"We're excited and glad to be a seven seed," Izzo said. "What I'm most excited about is we've played 13 or 14 games against the field, so our schedule is just as good as I thought it was."

In their sixth-straight tournament appearance, the Spartans will square off against Colorado (20-11) of the Big 12 conference.

If MSU knocks off the Buffalos, a Sunday matchup with the winner of the No. 2 Florida vs. No. 15 Sam Houston State game awaits.

"We know we've played against some of the best," Izzo said, referring to close games against Kentucky, Oklahoma, Syracuse and Illinois.

"If we get to the second game and get to play Florida, that's great.

"This team can play with anybody."

The Spartans moved off the tournament bubble by winning their last four regular-season contests. MSU arguably improved its seeding with the 54-42 win over Purdue in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.

Despite a heartbreaking loss to Ohio State - in which the Spartans trailed by as much as 19 points - sophomore guard Chris Hill said MSU's confidence is still high.

"Obviously, (Saturday) was a tough loss," Hill said. "But the last five or six games, we've played well except for one half. We're a very good team and still capable of doing things.

"We're just excited to get another opportunity do better than we did last year."

Chris Mackinder can be reached at Mackind8@msu.edu.