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INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Mateen Cleaves was quite a sight.
He needed crutches so he could stand and some help from his dad
with the championship trophy. One of the nets was wrapped around
his neck and tears rolled down his cheeks.
"This is what I came back here for," he said Monday night
after leading Michigan State to its second national championship
with an 89-76 victory over Florida.
|  | | Mateen Cleaves signals the Spartans are No. 1 after defeating Florida 89-76 to win the NCAA title. |
Many thought Cleaves would be playing in the NBA this season.
Instead, he led the Spartans to their first title since 1979.
He was impressive in the first half, breaking Florida's press as
Michigan State built a 43-32 lead. In the second half, he was their
limping leader after rolling his right ankle.
"This is as storybook as it gets for Mateen," Michigan State
coach Tom Izzo said. "He gave up a lot of money, a lot of things
to be back here."
Michigan State's first title was memorable because of Magic. Its
second will be remembered because of Mateen.
It was 21 years ago that the championship game between Michigan
State and Indiana State -- Magic vs. Larry Bird -- changed the landscape of
college basketball.
This one may not have had the magnitude, but it had the drama
thanks to Cleaves.
"He has the heart of a lion. He has done it for four years, not
just one," Izzo said. "That's why you love him. He's what our
program embodies."
Johnson watched the victory from the stands of the RCA Dome and
was on the court to celebrate with the current Spartans.
"I knew they were going to win, especially when Mateen came
back this year," he said. "It's been tough waiting these 21
years. But they've been great the last couple of years, and I knew
they were going to win it all."
Cleaves, the Final Four's most outstanding player, rolled his
ankle early in the second half and had to go to the locker room to
have it taped. He had helped the Spartans build the 11-point
halftime lead by scoring 13 points, including going 3-for-3 from
3-point range, and negated Florida's vaunted full-court pressure
with his ballhandling and passing.
"I told them he'll be back. Let's not get our heads down,"
Izzo said. "I just knew."
He was right, of course.
"I told the trainer they'd have to amputate it to keep me out
of this one," Cleaves said.
When he left with 16:18 to play the Spartans led 50-44. His
teammates got the lead to 58-50 by the time he returned 4:29 later.
But the senior guard who missed the first 13 games of the season
while recovering from a stress fracture in his right foot, was
again the team's emotional leader.
Cleaves' long pass to Morris Peterson for a layup made it 60-50.
He was leveled while setting a screen a few minutes later, but it
was enough to spring A.J. Granger for a 3-pointer that started a
16-6 run that made it 84-66 and put the game away.
"Mateen Cleaves is a great point guard. He showed it tonight,"
Florida's Mike Miller said. "Senior leader, been through a lot of
things. I think he did a good job of running his team and he
knocked down shots."
Michigan State had been on a mission since losing to Duke in the
Final Four last season. Anything short of a national championship
would have been a disappointment.
"We made some promises. We answered the promises," Izzo said.
Cleaves certainly didn't beat Florida by himself.
Peterson finished with 21 points on 7-for-14 shooting and
Granger had 19 and was 7-for-11 from the field.
Cleaves was 7-for-11 from the field -- all the shots coming
before he was injured -- and had 18 points and four assists.
The Spartans (32-7), the only top-seeded team to reach the Final
Four, finished 33-for-59 from the field (56 percent), the best
against Florida's frantic pace by far in the tournament. The
previous best was 43 percent by top-ranked Duke in the regional
semifinals.
Michigan State never seemed fazed by the pressure, beating it
early with long passes. The Spartans were their usual efficient
selves when they did run their halfcourt game, getting good looks
and crashing the boards when they missed.
"I think we attacked the press well and passed off very well,"
Izzo said.
Florida coach Billy Donovan said his team's style was a gamble
against Michigan State.
"We watched a lot of tape. I did not see one team press them
all year long," he said. "Probably, obviously, for a good reason
teams didn't press them."
The Michigan State bench was considered a key to any chance the
Spartans had. Florida's reserves had outscored it 175-45 in the
tournament, but Jason Richardson had nine points as the Spartans'
backups came up big.
Udonis Haslem had a season-high 27 points for the fifth-seeded
Gators (28-8), while Brent Wright added 13 points and 10 rebounds.
"It's been a great season. You hate it to end like this,"
Haslem said. "If we look back on all the good times we
accomplished a lot. We came together as a family and made this run
to the championship."
The 1979 final is still the highest-rated telecast of an NCAA
basketball game -- the one that hooked the nation on the NCAA
Tournament.
Michigan State, which beat Wisconsin 53-41 in an ugly all-Big
Ten national semifinal, won all six games in its title run by at
least 11 points.
The Spartans closed the season with 11 straight wins and are the
first Big Ten team to win it all since Michigan in 1989.
Florida, looking to become the fourth straight Southeastern
Conference team to win the national championship in an
even-numbered year, was making its first appearance in a
championship game.
The Gators had seven freshmen and sophomores in their 10-man
rotation and this was the first game in the tournament that their
lack of experience showed.
"Not too many freshmen get to play in a national championship
game," said Kenyan Weaks, Florida's only senior. "This is a great
experience for them. I hope they learn from it. Hopefully, they can
be back here next year."
Cleaves had two 3-pointers in the 14-3 run that gave the
Spartans a 33-20 lead with 6:51 to play, but a three-point play by
Haslem and a basket by Donnell Harvey got the Gators within 35-29
with 4:05 left.
Charlie Bell and Cleaves sandwiched 3s around a layup by Haslem
and the Spartans had a 43-32 halftime lead.
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ALSO SEE
Mens College Basketball Scoreboard
Florida NCAA Team Report
Michigan State NCAA Team Report
Chat: NCAA Tourney
NCAA title game ratings worst ever for CBS
Frozen moment: Cleaves' courage
Katz: Versatility the new trend
Vitale: Cleaves comes through
Florida beat at its own game
Daily Word: A friend indeed
Michigan State fans celebrate championship
Peterson picked up his game in second half
Granger was Spartans' ace in the hole
Youth, poor shooting strand Gators
Miller says he'll listen to Donovan about future
Notebook: Seniors carried Spartans
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Michigan State coach Tom Izzo talks with ESPN's Digger Phelps, Chris Fowler, and Dick Vitale.
RealVideo: | 28.8
Michigan State celebrates winning the NCAA National Championship.
RealVideo: | 28.8
 Mateen Cleaves talks about being injured in the second half of the game.
wav: 110 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Tom Izzo knows Mateen Cleaves doesn't fake injuries.
wav: 128 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Billy Donovan discusses how the Spartans punished the Gators' defense.
wav: 55 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
ESPN's Dick Vitale salutes Mateen Cleaves.
wav: 305 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
NCAA title game breakdown from Digger Phelps, Chris Fowler, and Dick Vitale.
wav: 1154 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Mateen Cleaves says Tom Izzo is a tough competitor
wav: 181 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Udonis Haslem says the Spartans had the will to win.
wav: 50 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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