MSU's opponent, Bryant, is coached by Phil Martelli Jr., the son of legendary college basketball coach Phil Martelli, who is also a good friend of Tom Izzo. On Sunday, after Martelli spoke on his relationship with Izzo, he talked about the Spartans team as a whole, giving a slight preview on the matchup between the Bulldogs and Spartans.

This is the first time Martelli, son of the Big 5 coaching great with the same name has qualified for the NCAA Tournament as a head coach. This will be Bryant's second time in the last three seasons.