Big Ten Tournament: #6 Minnesota Defeats #11 Penn State, 76-55. Minnesota advances to face #3 Michigan State Today at Approximately 9:30 p.m. ET Coach Smith and Players Talk MSU.
 Q. Can you guys talk about Michigan
State and what this game did for your
confidence? I know Penn State played them
pretty well before. Do you think you can pull
off the upset?
DEVOE JOSEPH: Well, this game
definitely gave us confidence, and I think we were
playing good basketball lately. Last time we
played Michigan State we lost by one point, and
we made a lot of mistakes in the last four minutes,
so I definitely think we can pull off the upset.
They're a good team, and we're definitely going to
need to come and play real good basketball to
beat them.
Q. If both of you could just elaborate
on how it's been two months but if that taste is
still fresh in your mouth from Kalin Lucas
hitting that game winning shot in Minneapolis
against you guys.
COLTON IVERSON: Yeah, it was
obviously a disappointing loss at home. We felt
like we had the game, and we just kind of slipped
at the end. It was just something that we can't let
happen again. We've got to come ready to play
tomorrow and just get it done.
DEVOE JOSEPH: Kalin Lucas, he's a
good player and made a tough shot. A lot of the
players made tough shots down the stretch, so
we've just got to get closer to our men down the
stretch this time and stay with our defensive
principles.
Q. Colton, can you talk about the
difference between this game and the last two
times you guys have played Penn State in
those last two games were very close? What
was the difference today in your opinion?
COLTON IVERSON: I think we just came
with a lot more intensity for this game. We know
there's a lot on the line. We can't let anything slip
away anymore. This is our last chance to get to
our goal, to get to the tournament, so we've just
got to come ready to play every game from here on
out?
Q. How much does it help for the sake
of you guys' momentum? Obviously you had a
great shooting night tonight, and you're
playing tomorrow night. How much does that
help in terms of sustaining momentum?
DEVOE JOSEPH: Well, it helps. If you
make shots the night before, you come to the next
game with a lot more confidence I feel, so I think it
definitely helps.
Q. Did it fire you guys up at all that
some people were picking the upset, Penn
State?
COLTON IVERSON: Yeah, I saw that
some people picked us to get upset in the first
round. You can't listen to that stuff. You've just
got to come here to play, give them respect, and
you've got to -- you know they're a good team, and
they played a lot of teams close. Like you said,
they just lost to Michigan State at home, and they
were in it the whole game, probably should have
had it. We knew they were a good team, just had
to come prepared and not let anything slip us up.
Q. Can you talk about those early
turnovers that you all forced and how that kind
of seemed to set the tone for the game?
COACH SMITH: Well, yeah, again, I think
these guys came with -- they were very active, had
a lot of quickness. Again, making shots makes you
a little more -- keeps you ready. I thought one of
the keys was putting Lawrence Westbrook on Talor
Battle, because I thought he did a good job of
making Talor work at both ends of the court. It sort
of took something away a little bit from Lawrence's
offensive game, but I liked his attitude, and he kind
of -- when you see your leader stepping up and
taking on that challenge, then I think it invigorates
and inspires the other players to play harder.
Q. How much can you use motivation
to your players knowing that you guys are on
the bubble? Of course if you win this
tournament, you're in for sure, but have you
been able to use that at all, hey, if we win one,
two, three, games, we're probably going to get
in?
COACH SMITH: Well, not really. They
see and read. They're intelligent kids. We don't
really talk about -- I try to concentrate on a single
day. It might sound corny, it might sound cliché,
but that's the only way I think I can coach. We
know that the only thing that can -- there's only one
certain, and that's if you win, if you play the right
way, and I think when you get into a singleelimination
type tournament like this, it's all or
nothing, do or die, you've got to come ready to
play.
We still, as I mentioned, have an
opportunity to reach one of the goals we had set
for ourselves this year, and this group has been
very good about staying focused. We've lost some
tough games, but I think it's solidified us and united
us in a way that's been very beneficial.
Q. Obviously Michigan State is a very
physical team and they're a great rebounding
team. The way that Colton played today and
Ralph didn't score as many points, but he was
able to rebound pretty well, can you talk about
just what those two big guys are going to mean
for you?
COACH SMITH: Well, any time a coach
coaches a team, they're always one of the top
rebounding teams in the nation. Certainly we'll
have to do a better job than we did today. We've
got to really find a way for all of our players to help
out. It's not just up to Colton and Ralph and the
post players. We need to get our perimeter guys
involved, and I thought today they did in the
second half. You know, guys that didn't have any
rebounds in the first half got rebounds in the
second half, Lawrence Westbrook, Blake
Hoffarber, and a couple other guys. They've got to
step up and do that tomorrow. But I like the way
Colton and Ralph have been rebounding the ball
all year long. It may be a situation where we might
have them both in the game, if we're not able to
play with them on the boards.
Q. Knowing Chris Allen won't play
tomorrow for Michigan State, how does that
impact your game plan against the Spartans?
COACH SMITH: Well, they've got a lot of
good players, so nothing -- Chris is a pretty
talented player, and certainly I know any time you
lose a player as a starter that has the talent he
has, it's going to affect you. But they have a lot of
depth, and that's why their team is always -- he
plays a lot of players, so I'm not sure -- I don't think
it will affect how we will approach the game and
how we will prepare for the game.
Q. Seems like Devoe Joseph is getting
more and more comfortable with his role. Talk
about what he was able to do early for your
team and what you need him to do going
forward in this tournament?
COACH SMITH: Yeah, he's learning how
to control the tempo and the pace of the game and
the flow, and you know, he has that ability to knock
down the open shot. That's something that we
really -- that's taken time for him to appreciate and
grow into this -- into being the leader, the point
guard on the team, but he's done an excellent job.
And going forward, it's something that we've --
we're getting that from Justin, as well. So we'll see
how he continues to grow, and again, it adds -- I
like the way he's been defending, and he's got the
total package.
Q. You've coached in a lot of NCAA
games. They're thinking about changing the
format a little bit and raising the 32 teams to 96.
What's your thoughts about them changing the
way the thing is going to be run?
COACH SMITH: I think it would be a great
idea. I'd certainly love to see -- I've been on the
NABC board, and it's one of the things we've
promoted and talked about for years with the
NCAA. I think it's a -- especially with the increase
in the number of Division I teams now, why not?
When I first got in the business years ago
in 1978, '79, there might have been 100 Division I
teams. Now there's 347. Just like football. When
they increased, they increased the number of bowl
games, so why not increase the opportunities for
these student-athletes to participate and enjoy and
be a part of this March Madness? I think it's long
overdue, to be honest with you.
Thank you.
