2 weeks Ago
Oakland head men’s basketball coach Greg Kampe was puffing his chest out while working as a celebrity bartender at Buffalo Wild Wings in Rochester Hills on Friday night, during Michigan State’s 73-70 victory over Ole Miss. By night’s end, all eight of Kampe’s original predictions (made on TV this month) had made the Elite Eight. Related Articles Sampson, Barnes and Izzo still love coaching in NIL era even after many of their peers have retired Auburn’s Pettiford, Michigan State’s Richardson renew AAU rivalry in Elite Eight of March Madness Switch mode: Michigan’s Rayshaun Benny making the switch with jersey number, mentality In front of hometown crowd, Coen Carr vital in Michigan State’s Sweet 16 victory New Oakland University women’s basketball coach Keisha Newell sees untapped potential in program That includes Michigan State and Auburn, the top seeds in the South Regional who will square off Sunday night in Atlanta, with a spot in the Final Four on the line.
The News caught up with Kampe on Saturday, to preview what lies ahead for No. 1 Auburn and No. 2 MSU.
➤ Question: OK, early impressions of this game. ➤ Answer: My biggest concern is how poorly Auburn played last night (Friday against Michigan). The first 25 minutes of that basketball game were just God awful, and then Michigan started playing well, got a 10-point lead, and then Auburn played great.
I don’t know. That’s my biggest concern (for Michigan State), can they play that poorly again? They were playing bad, then they righted the ship, and that’s a scary thing, because of the confidence coming in. The one thing that I think Michigan State has to do is make the game a grind game and take the 3 away and rebound.
Don’t let their great player (All-American Johni Broome) dominate the offensive glass. If (MSU) can grind it out, make it a slow place, make every possession a war, then I think they win. If the game gets athletic and up and down and firing uncontested 3’s in transition, then I think MIchigan State’s in trouble.
➤ Question: You know both of these coaches very well, Auburn’s Bruce Pearl and MSU’s Tom Izzo. How would you break down that matchup? ➤ Answer: I think Tom Izzo is the best coach in college basketball, so he’s always going to win that (argument). I think Bruce Pearl is a very good coach who, I think, has his team ready to play.
And it’s not like the coaching is going to be the significant difference, that it could alter the outcome. I think both teams are well-coached. (Ole Miss’) Chris Beard coached a magnificent game (against MSU in the Sweet 16).
Magnificent. And his team still lost. And I think the same thing could happen to Bruce.
I’ve told you before that I think Michigan State has three things that are elite: elite defense, elite rebounding and elite coaching. I think that wins out. ➤ Question: Everyone knows Izzo is excellent in the second game of a weekend session in the NCAA Tournament, with the quick turnaround.
Why is that? ➤ Answer: One of things that makes him an elite coach is his game preparation. He is consistent. The word is consistent.
He never wavers. They prepare the same way over and over and over again. They never get lulled into believing they’re playing good, we’re going to win this game.
They prep for every game like it is the NCAA Championship Game, and that’s why they’re so good in Tournament play, because they prep. ..
. He got back to the hotel (Friday night/Saturday morning), and they didn’t sleep. And it wasn’t just him.
It was his staff that didn’t sleep, and they prepared. ..
. They will be ultra prepared and ready, and that’s why (Izzo’s) record is what it is. ➤ Question: People like us don’t get to see the behind the scenes.
We just see the games. How much practice and preparation goes into a single game? ➤ Answer: For every two hours of a game, you put 40 hours of work in easily. In games where you only have 48 hours in between, you’re probably putting 26 of those hours in the prep.
➤ Question: Jase Richardson was back making plays for MSU on Friday. Is it Jase or bust for MSU against Auburn? ➤ Answer: There can’t be any my-bads, you know what I mean? There can’t. At this time of the year in that game, there can’t be any my-bads.
Everybody’s gotta be good. Everybody’s gotta be at peak performance. This is winner-take-all to go to the Final Four.
This is what you’ve practiced for over and over, repetition after repetition after repetition, it’s all for this moment. There can’t by any my-bads. ➤ Question: So if it’s low scoring, MSU wins? And if it’s high-scoring, Auburn wins? ➤ Answer: I don’t think the score is what’s important.
I think it’s the amount of possessions. If it’s a rock right, Michigan State wins. If it’s a pickup game, Auburn wins.
➤ Question: So, then, who wins? ➤ Answer: The bracket I did on Channel 4, I got all eight teams (in the Elite Eight). ➤ Question: Well, Greg, to be fair, lot of people did. It’s been a chalk year.
➤ Answer: Well, I thought that was pretty impressive. You’re telling me it is now. But I’m sticking with my Final Four ― Michigan State, Duke, Florida and Tennessee.
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