Final Four notebook: Gators’ Miller could be heading for NBA

Steve Addy

Monday, April 3, 2000 | 10:37 a.m.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Win or lose, Florida forward Mike Miller could be bidding goodbye to the Gators after tonight's NCAA championship game at the RCA Dome.

Miller, a 6-foot-8 sophomore and MVP of the East Regional, isn't denying he might give up his final two years of eligibility and put his name in the NBA draft. Sources close to Miller have told one college basketball Internet site that he will definitely leave.

Miller's 14.3 scoring average led the Gators in the regular season and he's leading them in the tournament with 13.8 points and 8.6 rebounds. He was an all-SEC first team pick by the media.

"Our team is definitely on a roller coaster ride now," Miller said. "If I think about the NBA and leaving this team, I might fall off. If I do, I might pull the rest of the team with me.

"When the season is over, of course, I'll think about (going pro). My whole life, I've dreamed of playing in the NBA. To say I have a legitimate shot to play in the NBA, it makes it tough not to think about it. And now, to keep people away from you, it's impossible."

Miller's last comment was a vague reference to unregistered agent Andy Miller (no relation). It was revealed by The New York Times last week that the agent has made at least 45 phone calls to the player since September, possibly breaking Florida law that prohibits such contact.

Though university officials say Mike Miller did not compromise his eligibility by speaking with the agent, the NCAA is likely to look deeper into the matter in the off-season. That many phone calls (made or accepted) might constitute a "relationship" that the NCAA finds troubling.

* LIVING DANGEROUSLY: The Gators would be advised to run up a big second-half cushion tonight, because late spurts have been Michigan State's saving grace in the tournament.

The Spartans have outscored their five NCAA opponents by a whopping 203-130 in the second half, an average of 14.6 points per team. In the Midwest Regional at Auburn Hills, Mich., they put on huge rallies to defeat Syracuse and Iowa State. They outscored Syracuse 17-0 in the final 5:55, breaking away from a 58-58 tie after trailing by 14, and closed out Iowa State with a 23-5 run.

"You can't let good teams stick around," MSU guard Mateen Cleaves said. "Once you get a team down in the second half, you have to put them away. If you miss a few shots and they make a few 3s, they're right back in it. We have to play with a sense of urgency."

In Saturday's 53-41 semifinal win over Wisconsin, the Spartans fiddled around late in the first half and let the Badgers get within 19-17 at the break, but MSU gradually pulled away.

"We understand that we had some bad first halves, but our second half will almost always be our best one," Charlie Bell said. "I guess there comes a point when it hits home to everyone that the game is coming to an end, and if we don't pick it up, we're going to lose."

* HE'S NO WEST: Freshman guard Brett Nelson led Florida with 13 points against North Carolina, boosting his tournament average to 11.4, well above his 7.9 in the regular season. But he's not getting carried away with his success, despite being widely regarded the best prospect out of West Virginia since Jerry West.

"Being compared to him, that's ridiculous," Nelson said. "He is one of the top 50 players of all-time. I mean, c'mon."

Gators coach Billy Donovan said, "Jerry West is the logo for the NBA right now. Brett Nelson is not. The pressure of living up to (the comparison) has been difficult on Brett."

* FELLOW FLINTSTONE: Michigan State doesn't have the market cornered on Flint products. Gators guard Teddy Dupay spent much of his childhood in the Michigan basketball hotbed, which produced three MSU starters: Cleaves, Bell and Morris Peterson.

"They make a big deal out of those guys from Flint. I lived in Flint for six years -- up until the third grade on Welch Blvd.," Dupay said. "Ask them. They'll know where that is."

* DOME DISASTER: The four semifinalists combined to shoot only 36 percent, leading to the same tired queries about whether playing in a wide-open dome affects shooting. To their credit, most of the participants merely blamed themselves.

"It was just that we were taking some bad shots," Nelson said.

"I don't think we can have any excuses. We (won) two games in the Carrier Dome in Syracuse and we shot pretty well there," Donovan said.

Michigan State's 34.8 percent against Wisconsin was the lowest of the four teams.

"It was just a matter of nerves," MSU forward A.J. Granger said.

Peterson said, "Sometimes in big games, you get excited and your adrenaline starts pumping too hard."

* BOWL REMATCH: Tonight's game is a rematch between the schools that played in the Florida Citrus Bowl on New Year's Day in Orlando. Michigan State won 37-34 on a last-second field goal. "Hopefully none of (the Spartans) will play like Plaxico (Burress)," Miller said, referring to MSU's wide receiver, who dominated the game. "At least neither of (the teams) will be wearing pads."

* EXIT POLL: Wisconsin guard Travon Davis, reduced to a bystander after his team's loss to the Spartans, gives the edge to MSU. "They're probably the best team we've played," he said. "If I were allowed to bet on it, I'd bet on Michigan State."