Frozen moment: Cleaves' courageous comeback
By Andy Katz
ESPN.com
INDIANAPOLIS -- A collision between Mateen Cleaves and Florida's Teddy Dupay left the Michigan State point guard in a heap on the floor and the Spartan faithful holding their breath.
Michigan State held a precarious 50-44 lead less than four minutes into the
second half when Cleaves was helped to the locker room after landing awkwardly on his right ankle.
|  | | Cleaves grimaced in pain for several minutes after spraining his ankle. |
"I had a lot of pain in my foot," Cleaves said. "I tried to walk on it, but I couldn't put any pressure down."
The next possession was critical. Michigan State had to regain the momentum after seeing its 11-point halftime deficit whittled to six. In stepped Mike Chappell, who buried a 3-pointer at the top of the key with 15:56 left in the game. That swung the tide back to the Spartans, who went on to win the national title with a 89-76 victory Monday night, the Spartans' first national championship since 1979 and second in their history.
Chappell, the Duke transfer who had to watch last year's Final Four appearance back home in East Lansing, Mich., as he sat out a season, came off the bench to give the Spartans their needed lift.
"The play is called 'One,' " Chappell said. "It's designed for Charlie (Bell) to get the ball and me to come off a double screen. The play was called for me. They did a great job of screening my man and gave me a great look."
Cleaves had scored 18 points, hitting 7 of 11 shots, before the injury. When Cleaves went down, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo railed into both Dupay and official David Hall. Dupay went to the bench, but Izzo was still fuming, thinking there should have been a foul.
"We got tangled up," Dupay said. "We're both competitors, and I'm not going to back down
from him and he's not going to back down from me. We got wrapped up in the
heat of the game. I talked to Izzo and I told him it wasn't intentional, and to
tell Mateen it wasn't intentional.
"He (Izzo) was pretty upset at the time. He said you would have done the same
thing. I did it myself. In no means is he upset with me. It was a bad play
in the game. I would have felt bad if Cleaves would have been out the rest of the game."
When Chappell hit the 3-pointer, Izzo pumped his fist so hard that his coat nearly flew off. He was nearly as excited when Chappell later tipped in a shot, giving the Spartans a 55-44 lead.
After the injury, Cleaves went back to the locker room -- where he admitted shedding a few tears -- to get more tape and a brace put on the ankle. But no mere ankle sprain was going to keep him out of the biggest game of his life.
"I told the trainer that they were going to have to amputate my leg to keep me out of this one," Cleaves said.
When Cleaves stepped back on the floor at the 11:51 mark, the Spartans were up 58-50 and eventually led by as many as 20.
"Once Mateen went down, we rallied together and turned up the momentum," Chappell said. "It was slipping away from us."
During the first half, Cleaves showed he wouldn't end his college career without taking his best shots. He came off a screen at the top of the perimeter, caught the ball and launched a 3-pointer that snapped through the net.
Cleaves then turned to the crowd and signaled that his game needs to be taken seriously. He didn't have to add anything to the moment -- the shot said loud and clear that Cleaves' offensive game was tuned up Monday night.
The 3-pointer, his second of the first half, gave the Spartans a 29-20 lead. Cleaves finished the first half with another trey, pushing the Spartans ahead by 11 at the half.
Cleaves' offensive display allowed the Spartans to feel
more at ease playing up-tempo. The Spartans outplayed the Gators at their own game, and it was Cleaves leading the pack.
To keep the Gators off-guard, he shot quickly in the offense. He
also ran the break effectively enough to keep Florida off-balance on the wings.
Cleaves said Sunday that he believed he would be more free playing full-court, up-tempo basketball. He said the Spartans feel more comfortable at that pace. He also made sure that this was his moment to cherish. By coming out shooting, making those shots early in the game, and then playing through the pain of a sprained ankle, he ensured this final was all his.
Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com.
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