How to beat Michigan State
By Bill Self
Special to ESPN.com
Editor's note: Throughout the Final Four, Tulsa coach Bill Self will be acting as a special guest analyst for ESPN.com.
Forget the seven losses, Michigan State is the best team in America. In a backhanded way, the loss of Mateen Cleaves for two months earlier this season helped the team. Charlie Bell became more of a leader and gained experience as a secondary floor leader should Cleaves get into foul trouble.
|  | | Florida needs a strong effort from Donnell Harvey inside. |
The time Bell spent running the team will be very important against Florida's press because the Spartans will need a secondary ball-handler. With that, they'll be able to attack the press better.
What's most impressive about Michigan State is its confidence. We played the Spartans last year in Hawaii, and we knew then they were the toughest team in America. Their will is so tough that nothing bothers them.
No matter what a game's momentum is, the Spartans feel they can turn it. To beat them, somehow you have to control the boards. That won't be easy. You might want to send two players to block off a certain guy, or have everybody stay in tight -- whatever you choose, you have to do it every shot.
It's imperative for Florida to block out on the offensive boards. That can be tough in transition because it's harder to rotate properly to help on the boards. Udonis Haslem and Donnell Harvey have to play huge to neutralize Michigan State's bigs on the glass and cut down on their chances. They need to
match MSU's ruggedness. If I'm Florida, I'd want to establish inside with them and then look for 3-pointers, which the Gators will have to hit to win tonight. And Mike Miller needs to have a huge game.
Florida's press probably won't frustrate Michigan State as much as Wisconsin's slow-down tactics did. Michigan State wants to run, and can finish well. It's a lot easier to slow a team down when they want to play fast rather than speed up a slow team. There will be much more offensive flow and rhythm tonight, which will help both teams.
Michigan State won't beat you with jumpshots. But let the Spartans get out on the break or allow too many second shots, and you'll be buried. You must attack the offensive glass to slow down their break. Make them play five-on-five in the halfcourt, not four-on-two out in transition.
Michigan State doesn't have a real weakness, because the styles of play are so similar. Attacking Cleaves in the hopes of getting him frustrated doesn't always work. When we played him, he just seemed to be unfazed by that stuff. Even if he doesn't look pretty doing what he does, the bottom line is the Spartans end up getting it done.
You'll likely see stretches of bad play from Cleaves against the press, but it won't frustrate him. The only thing that will frustrate him is if Florida has more points. The Gators need their press to be working for that to happen.
I love the way the Spartans rebound as a group and score as a group -- if Cleaves rushes a few shots, or Morris Peterson isn't getting open, other guys can hurt you. The Andre Hutsons, A.J. Grangers and Jason Richardsons are athletic and give you good numbers. You have to stop all five guys on the floor.
But even if you frustrate them and make them play from behind, that might not be enough. You have to put the Spartans in a position where they're pressing, thinking on every possession rather than playing on instinct, and talking to each other between possessions. That shred of doubt is vital. That could come by switching defenses, which Florida might very well do.
Stopping Peterson might be more important than frustrating Cleaves. Florida should limit his touches in the scoring area. At Tulsa, we would try to pressure him to the point where we dictated to him how he would score, preferably from tough angles and away from the basket.. He's so good at going backdoor -- like against Iowa State on that lob dunk -- that it can defuse ball-denial pressure.
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