Alan Anderson, Chris Hill and Kelvin Torbert were getting ready for their respective high school proms when MSU appeared in its last Final Four.
The three junior players entered MSU in 2001, two seasons after Mateen Cleaves led the Spartans to the 2000 NCAA National Championship. In the two seasons all three have played at the Breslin Center, they have won a combined 41 games, but, unlike so many former Spartans, they have yet to raise a banner.
This past summer, head coach Tom Izzo said he would take the three upstairs in the basketball complex to look at the trophy and rings to remind them that they haven't won one.
"No one's going to remember you if you don't win a ring or raise a banner," Izzo said.
Hill, a preseason John. R Wooden All-American, said now is the time for his classmates to pick up where those before them left off.
"The last few years," Hill said, "this is definitely the most urgency that we've had."
One of those former players, Cleaves, spoke with Hill over the summer about what the team needs to do to win its own first championship. Cleaves told him that he and his teammates must "stay behind each other."
After falling one game short of the Final Four in the spring, the Spartans have set their aim high for the upcoming season.
Anderson, a swingman who will be seeing time at the point again, said the pressure is on him and his classmates to lead the team to glory. Extra pressure will be brought on, because opponents will be viewing them as a top team and they have to be ready to play them so as not to be upset, Anderson said.
"There's a lot of pressure, because there's not too many guys who have come into the program and left without a ring," Anderson said. "We've only got two years left."
Izzo called Anderson the team's vocal leader, a trait the swingman picked up recently.
"I wasn't as vocal coming in as I am now," Anderson said.
The talent, experience and depth of the Spartans very well could allow the juniors to reach their goals and ease some of the pressure.
One of the players who will help with the pressure is sophomore guard Maurice Ager.
"It's not going to be three people who are going to be singled out; it's a team effort," Ager said.
Hill agreed, saying he and the other juniors have high expectations on themselves, but everyone is expected to win.
"I think there's a lot of pressure, not only on myself, but on the entire team," Hill said.
Izzo said his team might not be the most dominant in the nation heading into the season, but he knows it's prepared to compete for that title.
"I think our team is ready, but I don't think we're the best team in the country right now," Izzo said.
Torbert, a highly touted recruit who some critics have questioned for his lack of production in his first two years at MSU, said the team must remain patient.
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"Our goal is to win game by game, not to rush anything," said Torbert, who was named Michigan's Mr. Basketball in 2001.
Torbert did acknowledge that the wealth of talent surrounding and supporting him and the other juniors makes the upcoming season their best chance for success.
"Now's the time for us to live up to what we can do - this is the best team since I've been here," Torbert said.
Anderson also said the team is full of good players, but their motivation and aggression will be the ultimate deciding factors.
"We have a lot of talent," Anderson said. "It's just going to be a matter of are we going to use it to our ability and work hard with it.
"The sky's the limit for us; it depends how bad we want it."
2003 Men's basketball schedule
Date |
Opponent |
Location |
Time |
Nov. 2 |
Harlem Globetrotters (exhibition) |
East Lansing |
2:30 p.m. |
Nov. 13 |
Nike Elite (exhibition) |
East Lansing |
7:00 p.m. |
Nov. 21 |
Bucknell |
East Lansing |
7:00 p.m. |
Nov. 25 |
Kansas |
Lawrence, Kan. |
9:00 p.m. |
Nov. 29 |
Coca-Cola Classic (Penn) |
East Lansing |
2:00 p.m. |
Nov. 30 |
Coca-Cola Classic (consolation) |
East Lansing |
2:00 p.m. |
Nov. 30 |
Coca-Cola Classic (championship) |
East Lansing |
4:00 p.m. |
Dec. 3 |
Duke (ACC/Big Ten Challenge) |
East Lansing |
9:00 p.m. |
Dec. 6 |
Oklahoma |
Auburn Hills |
12:00 p.m. |
Dec. 13 |
Kentucky |
Detroit |
4:00 p.m. |
Dec. 16 |
South Florida |
East Lansing |
8:00 p.m. |
Dec. 20 |
UCLA |
Los Angeles |
6:30 p.m. |
Dec. 30 |
Coppin State |
East Lansing |
7:00 p.m. |
Jan. 3 |
Syracuse |
Syracuse, N.Y. |
12:00 p.m. |
Jan. 10 |
Wisconsin |
Madison, Wis. |
12:00 p.m. |
Jan. 14 |
Penn State |
East Lansing |
8:00 p.m. |
Jan. 17 |
Michigan |
East Lansing |
3:45 p.m. |
Jan. 21 |
Northwestern |
Evanston, Ill. |
7:00 p.m. |
Jan. 25 |
Purdue |
West Lafayette, Ind. |
2:00 p.m. |
Jan. 28 |
Minnesota |
Minneapolis |
9:00 p.m. |
Jan. 31 |
Indiana |
East Lansing |
8:00 p.m. |
Feb. 4 |
Iowa |
East Lansing |
8:00 p.m. |
Feb. 7 |
Ohio State |
Columbus, Ohio |
12:00 p.m. |
Feb. 10 |
Illinois |
Urbana-Champaign, Ill. |
9:00 p.m. |
Feb. 14 |
Minnesota |
East Lansing |
12:17 p.m. |
Feb. 17 |
Purdue |
East Lansing |
7:00 p.m. |
Feb. 21 |
Northwestern |
East Lansing |
12:17 p.m. |
Feb. 24 |
Michigan |
Ann Arbor, Mich. |
7:00 p.m. |
Feb. 28 |
Penn State |
State College, Pa. |
12:17 p.m. |
Mar. 2 |
Wisconsin |
East Lansing |
7:00 p.m. |
Mar. 11-14 |
Big Ten Tournament |
Indianapolis, Ind. |
TBA |
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