ATLANTA – Bruce Pearl had an interesting framing for overall No. 1 seed Auburn’s matchup with Michigan State on Sunday for a spot in the Final Four.
And by interesting, we mean utterly nonsensical.
“We’re a team made up of only one five-star (recruit),” Pearl said Saturday. “One of the things I reminded my guys of, there are several guys on the Michigan State roster that are McDonald’s All-Americans. I have one, and that’s Tahaad Pettiford. He’s pretty good.
“Most of our guys are guys that were mid-major (transfers) or junior college or Division II. I’m not going to let Michigan State play the underdog card even though we’re the No. 1 seed and they’re the No. 2 seed. No, they’re Michigan State. They’re Kansas, they’re Duke, they’re North Carolina, and we’re Auburn. We know our place.”
These blatant mind games are disingenuous on multiple levels, but that’s no surprise. We are talking about Pearl, after all, who has been the sport’s preeminent carnival barker (in addition, of course, to being a great coach) since he hit the big time 20 years ago.
Still, it’s worth pointing out that Auburn is rated higher than Michigan State in the predictive metrics like KenPom.com (No. 4 versus No. 7) and the Torvik ratings (No. 3 versus No. 12). The oddsmakers have made Auburn a 4½-point favorite. And as far as the McDonald’s All-American hit, he’s wrong about that one, too.
The Spartans have two former Burger Boys on the roster, and one of them – Xavier Booker – averages 12.8 minutes and didn’t even play in their Sweet 16 victory over Ole Miss.
And while it’s true that Auburn’s roster is heavily influenced by transfers from places like Morehead State (Johni Broome), Florida International (Denver Jones) and Alabama-Huntsville (Chaney Johnson), Pearl can’t exactly play the poverty card when it comes to recruiting. Since 2020, he’s had five former McDonald’s All-Americans in his program while Izzo has had just three.
So the idea that Auburn, a team that stands at 31-5 and mowed down arguably the toughest regular season schedule in the history of the sport, has now flipped to underdog status is ridiculous on its face. And in response, Izzo brought out an old story from his time as a 28-year old assistant when former Spartans great Kevin Willis was trying to get out of class.
“I remember (then-MSU coach Jud Heathcote) saying, ‘Kevin, I’ve been conned by the very best in the world. So don’t try it.’”
One of the great things about Izzo is that, even if he can come off at times as a whiny old guy lamenting how much better things used to be in college basketball, he’ll always give it to you straight.
And he’s secure enough in who he is as a coach that he doesn’t need to lower himself to engage in head games or misdirection. Because it’s all baloney.
“Listen, Bruce and I are friends,” Izzo said. “We’ve been friends since he was (a young assistant) at Iowa. He’s done an incredible job there. I’ve been through so many of these, I’ve been the 2 seed got beat by a 15. I’ve been a No. 1 seed that hasn’t gotten out of the first weekend. So I don’t buy any of that stuff. But if it makes him feel better, I’ll be the favorite. Whatever they want me to be, I’ll be, but the game will be won by the players. Not the bettors, not the media, not even the coaches. The game will be won by the players who play the ...
