Izzo prepares to face Smith's Golden Gophers

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Tom Izzo said he was as excited as anybody when his old friend Tubby Smith was hired to revitalize the Minnesota men’s basketball program three years ago.

This week, the MSU head coach wish it wasn’t so.

The two tenured coaches will meet for the first time this season when the Golden Gophers (12-4 overall, 3-1 Big Ten) present a challenge at 6:30 p.m. tonight for the No. 7 Spartans (13-3, 3-0) at Breslin Center.

“He’s good for our league because he brought credibility to our league,” Izzo said. “We were floundering there a little bit when we lost so many great coaches in a short period of time, and we had a lot of new coaches that were good, but a guy like Tubby Smith brings credibility and he brings respect. I told him the day he got the job I was as excited as anybody in the league, but I told him I knew I’d probably get my brains beat in a few times because his teams are going to play so hard.”

After the Gophers finished 10th in the Big Ten under Dan Monson in 2005-06 and ninth in 2006-07 under Jim Molinari, Smith was brought in after spending 10 seasons at Kentucky, where he led the Wildcats in some epic battles against MSU.

Izzo said he expected Smith to reinvigorate the Minnesota program, but he is surprised at its rapid rate of ascension.

“He’s done everything I thought he would do already,” Izzo said. “And I think he’s done it in a pretty quick turnaround time.”

The Gophers began the season ranked No. 25, but three losses to Portland, Texas A&M and Miami (Fla.) by a combined score of 11 points were the reason for the team’s downfall. Recently, the Gophers have been plagued by the loss of Ralph Sampson III because of an ankle injury.

With his return, the Gophers will be closer to full strength, allowing them to disrupt offenses in such a way that has Izzo concerned.

“We’re making some progress, but the turnovers are probably the one basketball thing that has been mind-boggling, and now we’re playing a team that does it as well as any team in the country,” Izzo said. “They create a lot of discomfort with their aggressive style. It’s going to be a very important step that we need to take in improving in that area.”

The Gophers lead the conference in steals (11.19 per game) and blocks (6.38), and are second in turnover margin ( 6.2).

“When you talk about any team, you have to talk about up the middle,” Smith said in a teleconference. “I think it starts with our point of attack — Al Nolen and Damian Johnson are very outstanding defenders. We anchor it with good shot-blockers, good post defenders, guys that defend the basket in Ralph Sampson and Colton Iverson. We always try to extend our defense. We feel like we’re not that offensively gifted, so we need to create more offense with our defense.”

The game also marks the first of three straight home games for the Green and White, who are 21-2 at Breslin Center in the last two seasons.

“We’re very excited, but you just can’t expect to win just because you’re at home,” sophomore forward Draymond Green said. “Last year, we let two of them slip at home so we have to come in with the mindset just like we’re going on the road and just come out and play every game.”

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