DREW SHARP

Sharp: Valentine is the glue of close-knit Spartans

Drew Sharp
Detroit Free Press Columnist

SYRACUSE, N. Y. – Sleep didn't come easily for Denzel Valentine early Saturday morning. It was a little after 2 a.m. when he finally got to his hotel room bed. Adrenaline still pumping, the Michigan State junior couldn't let go of what just happened a few hours earlier, as well as what stood within the Spartans' reach a day later.

Michigan State's Denzel Valentine celebrates after his three pointer against Oklahoma during the second half of the NCAA East Regional semifinals on Friday, March 27,2015 at Carrier Dome in Syracuse N.Y.

He didn't get to sleep until around 3:30.

"It's a little crazy," he said Saturday afternoon, "but how can you not love this, man? This is great. You got a late game and now you've got a quick turnover to get ready for a chance to get to the Final Four. But you're excited about getting back to work. There's no time for being tired when you've got the chance for something special."

Valentine isn't merely reciting from the Book of Izzo. It's genuine. He truly loves the insomnia that comes with long tournament runs.

And it's why Valentine's the rightful heir to a Michigan State basketball legacy of impassioned locker-room leadership under Tom Izzo, ably filling the huge footprints left by Mateen Cleaves, Travis Walton and Draymond Green.

Valentine conceded that the moment briefly got the better of him in the early minutes of the Sweet 16 game against Oklahoma. He said it felt as though it was his first time playing basketball. But he smacked the floor with his hands, snapping himself out of his haze.

He certainly was wide awake in the locker room at halftime, strongly challenging his teammates to step up their efforts in the second half.

Valentine's the biggest reason why this has become one of Izzo's closer teams. He has become the conduit between the coach and the locker room, responsible for gauging the pulse of the team. Valentine's not bashful about approaching Izzo with suggestions, frequently calling him.

And, contrary to popular perception, Izzo isn't a totalitarian. He always has preached about players — not coaches — taking ownership of the team. That's the only way a team can maximize its potential.

This Michigan State team has obliterated its ceiling. A Final Four would establish a legacy ranking just below the 2000 national championship team.

This would be a bigger accomplishment than the 2010 Final Four, achieved a week after the Spartans lost reigning Big Ten player of the year Kalin Lucas to a ruptured Achilles tendon. Bigger than the fifth-seeded 2005 team that gave Izzo his only win over Duke and Mike Krzyzewski in the Sweet 16 on its way to another unlikely Final Four.

But it's the history, respecting the legacies of those that came before them, that's making this special for Izzo. He knows that as badly as these Spartans want a Final Four for themselves, they also want it just as badly for Adreian Payne and Keith Appling — the only four-year players in Izzo's 20 years in East Lansing who didn't advance to a Final Four.

Valentine's constantly reminding everyone about the somber mood in their Madison Square Garden locker room following the Spartans' loss to No. 7 seed Connecticut in the 2014 East Regional final.

"We remember how devastating it was for Adreian and Keith to not get that chance and breaking the streak that we had," he said. "Yeah, we would like to get this for them because they're still playing a big part in how we've gotten to this point."

Michigan State Spartans guard Denzel Valentine stretches during practice for the semifinals of the midwest regional of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Carrier Dome on March 26, 2015.

Valentine's a showman with the ball, often controlling it as though it were a yo-yo. He has grudgingly learned that sleight of hand might get you an ESPN nomination for SportsCenter Top 10 Plays of the Day, but it's usually the boringly smart decision that wins the biggest games.

He didn't learn that until his crucial turnover in the closing seconds against Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament championship game. It devastated Valentine. And as is occasionally the case, destruction spawns new, stronger growth.

"He was the absolutely the right kid to have that happen to," said Izzo, "because he has such an incredibly high basketball intelligence that it's easier for them to see the mistakes that they make, learn from them and quickly correct them."

It still grates Valentine that it took a heartbreaking loss to get that lesson. But he reluctantly appreciates how this magical run might not have been possible had he not made that ill-advised pass with 15 seconds remaining against the Badgers.

It made him smarter. It made him tougher. Perhaps, more important, it made him more respectful of the importance of every extra minute afforded him in March.

Even if costs him a little sleep.

Contact Drew Sharp: dsharp@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @drewsharp.