DES MOINES, Iowa _ In a perfect world, teams aren't playing a conference opponent in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
This isn't a perfect world.
Instead, Minnesota was assigned to what essentially amounted to a home game in Des Moines and beat Louisville, so the Spartans will play the Gophers on Saturday for the opportunity to make the Sweet 16. They handled Minnesota, 79-55, in their lone meeting back on Feb. 9.
"I don't know if I'm excited to play another Big Ten team," Tom Izzo said during his Friday news conference. "We just did it for 20 games and then three games in the tournament."
Izzo is seeking his 14th Sweet 16 as head coach of Michigan State, and his first since 2015.
During his presser, Izzo addressed national reaction to the way he shouted at freshman Aaron Henry in the second half of the Bradley game.
He said he doesn't put weight into that reaction, and that he appreciated the many calls he received last night from former players and colleagues who were giving him support.
"There's a 10-second sound bite in a two-year relationship (with Henry)," Izzy said. "To me, it was ridiculous the way it blew up. I just would publicly thank the many, many people that saw it as ridiculous."
