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Tom Izzo responds to Bruce Pearl labeling Auburn as an underdog in Elite Eight matchup
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Tom Izzo put his stamp on a storyline that Bruce Pearl created leading up to the South Region Final showdown on Sunday between their teams in Atlanta.
On Saturday, Pearl flatly stated that his Auburn team was the underdog in the fight to get to San Antonio, despite the fact that his Tigers are the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament and the SEC regular-season champion. Auburn is obviously the top seed in the South, but Michigan State is the 2-seed and under Izzo has been to this exact spot countless times — 11, to be exact.
Pearl’s point was that Auburn has only been to the Elite Eight 3 times as a program, so the Tigers should be labeled as the underdog despite being the favorite, according to ESPN Bet and ESPN’s matchup predictor.
Izzo had his own theory on the whole matter in Saturday’s press conference.
“I don’t know. Every team’s different. Bruce has done a helluva job at a couple different SEC schools, Tennessee and, of course, Auburn. I’m just grateful for who I have and what I have,” explained Izzo. “We’re different teams in a lot of different ways, we’re similar teams in a lot of different ways. I don’t know what’s an underdog. You get to this point, and there are no underdogs. If (he) wants to make us a favorite, I’m cool with that. If he wants to make us an underdog, I’ve been in that role before, too.”
Izzo called on his own personal tournament history:
“I think that’s the advantage of being where I’ve been. We’ve been a 1-seed and gotten to the Final Four. We’ve been a 7-seed and gotten to the Final Four. I don’t know if the seed matters. I don’t know if the underdog matters. I think the players matter and how they play the game. Coaches get credit, the players play the game,” said Izzo.
Whoever wants to be the underdog or not, the 2 behemoths will square off at a little after 5 p.m. ET on Sunday for the right to get to the Final Four.