DETROIT -- There's keeping it real, and then there's keeping it reel.
Busy as a graduate assistant for the Michigan State basketball team, Bryan Tibaldi doesn't get to do much of the former, but the latter is another thing.
In his second year as an assistant for the Spartans, Tibaldi is an integral part of MSU's scouting, putting together videos of the opposition, noticing tendencies, putting together scouting reports and running the scout team in practice.
The former Traverse City West standout and Spartan walk-on is currently in Detroit with the team, keeping busy as he helps prepare the team for Connecticut in today's Final Four matchup.
"I haven't slept more than four or five hours (a night)," Tibaldi said of the tournament run.
That lack of sleep could pay off for the Spartans. Tibaldi's work helps spot weaknesses and vulnerable spots in the opposition's offense and defense.
Michigan State can surely use any advantage it can get against the No. 1-seeded Huskies.
"Like (Goran) Suton in the Louisville game, when you look at their 2-3 zone and the way their guards extended out on our guards, you could see the middle is wide open," Tibaldi said. "You can show the guys that on film ... so when Suton flashes in there, he's going to be wide open and get some good looks."
Coming in with an average of 10 points a game, Suton went off for 19 points and 10 rebounds in that game.
One of Tibaldi's responsibilities is to have the scout team ready to duplicate the opponent's plays in practice so the starters are ready for what they'll see in game action.
"They're maybe going to run a few new things that they haven't run all year," Tibaldi said, "but for the most part, we aren't going to be surprised. You want to prepare your guys to the point where they can just go out and play."
Case in point: Travis Walton against Southern California.
Walton -- who averages just over five points a game and hadn't scored more than four in his previous five games -- broke out with an 18-point effort on 8-for-13 shooting to lead the Spartans to a 74-69 second-round victory as Suton struggled with a 1-for-10 day from the floor.
"We call that playing like a senior," Tibaldi said. "We knew USC might throw some gimmick defense at us, whether it was a triangle and two or a box and one, so we were prepared for that. So if that's the case, someone's going to be open. Travis happened to be the guy, but he recognized the situation."
The Spartans' video program gives Tibaldi a lot to work with. The team has satellite and cable television feeds recording every college basketball game in the country. If it's on TV, it's probably on a DVD somewhere in the MSU basketball offices.
And there's a decent chance it's been watched by Tibaldi.
"We're on par with a lot of NBA team as far as video," Tibaldi said. "It's a big part of what coach (Tom Izzo) does. He watches a ton of film. I know some programs aren't as in to that as we are, but it's big part of what we do."
Tibaldi isn't anywhere in the media guide or listed on the athletic department staff directory, but he's there on the bench for every regular-season contest.
In the tournament, he sits one row behind the bench, as the NCAA limits how many personnel team can have on the bench.
But the value of the experience far outweighs not getting his name in the media guide.
"It's an experience you can't duplicate," Tibaldi said. "That's something that will come with time. I'm just more concerned with the experience I'm getting here will prepare me to be a successful coach. There's no better place to be. I wouldn't trade that for anything."
Working with Izzo just adds to that.
"If he's not the best coach in the country, he got to be right up there. I don't think there's anybody that works any harder than he does."
Working for a guy like that is exactly why Tibaldi is still at Michigan State while he finishes up his Masters' degree in athletic administration.
"There's been a long line of guys who have done this and gone on to be successful coaches," Tibaldi said. "It's like a two-year internship. There's a lot of people who have gone on from (Izzo's) coaching tree.
"I think that's going to continue. We have a couple of assistant coaches who I think will go on to be great head coaches."
Tibaldi hopes to put some roots down in college basketball himself.
"It might mean starting as a video guy somewhere, or maybe being an assistant at a smaller Division I or Division II school," Tibaldi said. "I've been thinking about it a bit lately, but with each win you feel a little bit better about where you'll be and the prospects of getting a job. Hopefully, that will shake out in the next couple weeks."
Tibaldi played in a handful of games for the Spartans, and ironically, one of those was a 2007 NCAA tournament loss to fellow Final Four entry North Carolina his senior year.
Michigan State aims to avoid a similar ouster this year after being knocked out in the Sweet 16 last season.
"The focus on that the last month has been ratcheted up a notch," Tibaldi said. "The guys have been focused and we've been playing our best basketball at the right time of the year. That's something coach Izzo is a master at. When I've watched our guys, it's almost like the things we've been saying to them all year that wasn't clicking, then in the game against Louisville, they are getting it and buying into what we've been preaching all year."
Connecticut -- ranked No. 1 during the season -- will put that to the test.
"There aren't a lot of teams that we've played this year that concerns us about rebounding the ball because we've been No. 1 or 2 in rebounding margin all year," Tibaldi said. "But Connecticut is the one team that worries us, because they are as good, if not better, rebounding team than us because of the size and athleticism in their front line."
Tibaldi isn't into predictions -- so much so that he doesn't enter in NCAA pools, even though he could because he isn't a paid employee of the university.
"I get a million people calling for advice because of how much film I watch," Tibaldi said. "But I don't even get involved in that. I tell them I don't like thinking about the other games. I have enough to worry about with us."
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