For the last three seasons, the MSU men's basketball team has come up short in the Big Ten title race. For three years, three players have seen their seasons come and go, without a single title to show for their efforts.

Seniors Alan Anderson, Chris Hill and Kelvin Torbert have been so close, but never tasted the glory of a Big Ten title.

"We know how it feels to get there, we just don't know how it feels at the end," Anderson said. "We know the feelings we don't want to have, so now we want to have the opposite side of it and see what we can do with that."

Last season ended with a series of disappointments. First, MSU lost to Wisconsin in its final home game, costing them a share of the Big Ten title. That was followed by another loss to Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament.

Finally, MSU suffered an upset loss to Nevada in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Head coach Tom Izzo said his team was mentally drained at the end of the season, due in part to the constant pressure brought on by a tough nonconference schedule and MSU's surprising Elite Eight finish a year earlier.

"We put so much into those early games and fought back, I'm just not sure we had enough left in the end," Izzo said. "Physically, we did, I'm not sure mentally we did."

This season, the team is focused on improving with each game, on top of facing the usual expectations Izzo and the Spartans face every year - a Big Ten title and an NCAA Tournament appearance.

"We want to win everything," junior guard Maurice Ager said. "We want to win the Big Ten. Any championship that's out there, we want to win it."

Any type of title run begins 8 p.m. today at Breslin Center with No. 13 MSU's first regular-season game against Florida A&M. The Rattlers lost to Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament last season.

MSU's nonconference schedule isn't quite as challenging as last season's, but the Spartans still have tough nonconference matchups against No. 11 Duke, Stanford, UCLA and possibly No. 15 Maryland.

Florida A&M finished 15-17 last season, but Izzo said the Rattlers' tournament experience makes them a formidable opponent.

"We're concerned about every game and I say that because here we are starting out with a team that won an NCAA game last year and if you watch the Kentucky film, you'd be concerned."

Florida A&M beat Lehigh in the NCAA Tournament play-in game last season, earning a spot in the field of 64.

The Spartans hope to finish better in the NCAA Tournament this year, and one hole in last year's team has been plugged.

The point guard question, which plagued MSU throughout the season, has seemingly been put to rest, as Hill will start and freshman Drew Neitzel will back him up. Anderson can start at the power forward spot and move to the wing, never having to play point guard unless needed.

"Adding Drew (Neitzel) into that mix really gives us that point guard that can distribute and do some of the ball handing and things," Hill said. "That's going to be key for us. We do have the same nucleus and we should be able to use that to our advantage."

Part of that nucleus are the six players MSU head coach Tom Izzo talks about as his "starting six."

Similar to the 2000 season, when Morris Peterson came off the bench, Izzo and the team are completely comfortable with whoever might come off the bench. And while Izzo hasn't decided who that will be, Torbert - a Flint-native in his senior season, just like Peterson - seems to be the guy he is leaning toward.

However, it might be the other players in the 2004-05 Spartans nucleus - junior center Paul Davis, sophomore guard Shannon Brown and junior guard Maurice Ager - which help to push this team over the top.

But, one way or another, it will come back to the three seniors.

"I don't sit there and worry if my seniors are the best players," Izzo said. "I worry if our seniors can bring the experience to the younger kids."