By ADAM ZAGORIA
NEW YORK — When a reporter asked Miles Bridges a question about his name appearing in the recent Yahoo report related to the FBI investigation of bribery in college basketball, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo quickly stepped in and reiterated this his players won’t be discussing that topic during their weekend stay here in the Big Apple.
“Sorry, but we’re not talking about any of that stuff,” Izzo said following his team’s 63-60 win over Wisconsin, their 13th straight victory, that sent them into the Big Ten Tournament semifinals on Saturday against the Michigan-Nebraska winner. “I made that perfectly clear and I apologize. I don’t blame you for asking, but we got enough to deal with.”
Bridges was briefly ruled ineligible in the wake of the Yahoo report, but then Michigan State applied for reinstatement and Bridges was reinstated on Saturday on the condition he pay $40 (the value of a dinner) to a charity of his choice.
After the press conference on Friday, Bridges returned to the Knicks locker room at the Garden, where he dressed at Lance Thomas’ locker. Soon enough, Bridges himself will be an NBA player. ESPN currently projects him as going No. 11 to the Charlotte Hornets. Bridges also told me before the season he wouldn’t mind playing here at the Garden for the Knicks.
For now, Bridges is focused on winning the Big Ten Tournament title. And after that, going deep into March. That is a big part of why he opted to return to campus for his sophomore season instead of leaving after a one-and-done season a year ago.
“Yeah for sure, this is definitely what I saw when I came back,” Bridges told me in the locker room after going for 20 points and 9 rebounds in front of a slew of NBA personnel. “I didn’t know we’ll be a 1 seed, but I definitely knew we’ll be contending for a title.”
Former NBA star Grant Hill said it was a “good decision” for Bridges to come back and that he can benefit from it going forward.
“I think it’s a little unusual,” Hill told me. “It’s refreshing. I think it speaks a lot about him and a lot about this program. The kind of season he’s had and the kind of future he can have, I think it shows it’s a good decision.”
Wisconsin coach Greg Gard will probably be glad to see Bridges go, but he, too, agrees Bridges has expanded his game in the last year.
“As I’ve said before, when we played him his addition to the 3-point shot to his game has changed it,” Gard said when I asked how Bridges has evolved. “And it not only helps him, it helps [Nick] Ward inside and other guys inside, [Jaren] Jackson inside, because now you’ve got to stretch the floor. You’ve got to stay with [Cassius] Winston and [Joshua] Langford and [Matt] McQuaid. And it gives those guys inside a little more room to operate.
“And then he’s added some play-making ability. His ability to change direction with the ball, some of the things he’s done not only today but in other games, in the past he’s been primarily a straight-line driver. And he was able to change direction.
“So he’s becoming a much more complete player. And obviously at his size he’s a matchup problem too at 6’8″ with his ability to play inside and outside. And he’s evolved as you would expect him to.”
Bridges agrees his game has evolved.
“Oh year for sure, I didn’t want to be settling for threes and getting dunks all the time,” he said. “I wanted to be an all-around player, get some mid-range in there. And be a great defensive player, too.”
Bridges now has at least one more day here in New York — and potentially two — to showcase his all-around game and try to lead the Spartans to the Big Ten Tournament title.
Whenever their run here ends, Michigan State will have nearly two weeks off before the NCAA Tournament begins March 15. Izzo said he’s uncertain what he’ll do with his team during the break.
“We’re definitely excited that we get to play here at the Mecca of basketball,” Bridges said.
Asked if it was weird playing the Big Ten Tournament a week early to play at the Garden, Bridges said, “It’s not that weird, we played in the PK 80 [in November]. We just have to stay focused throughout the whole tournament.”
This is why Miles Bridges returned to school: for another shot at Big Ten and NCAA Tournament hardware.
The stage is his, and he won’t be answering any questions about the FBI or Yahoo in the coming days as he pursues those goals.
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