Michael Conroy / AP

Butler coach Brad Stevens, 33, says 'age has no factor on how our team plays.'

Then there’s Michigan State’s Tom Izzo, in the Final Four for the sixth time in 12 years with the Spartans. He can give his career a different level of validation with a second NCAA championship. He may have the most to gain here, but he still carries himself with so much humility.

“It’s easier for me because I’ve had someone to look at and how he’s done it,” Izzo said of Krzyzewski. “I’ve read his books and watched him. I think what’s most incredible is he’s done it in recruiting, he’s done it on the court, he’s done it in the classroom, he’s done it with class.

“I can only say that I feel very fortunate and lucky that we’ve gone to the six. Some of it’s been with good teams. Some of it’s we’ve gotten lucky in the tournament.”

It’s enough to make you wonder if Izzo, Huggins and Krzyzewski envy Stevens. The Butler coach has to face Izzo on Saturday. If the Bulldogs when that one, then it would Stevens vs. Huggy or Coach K. But don’t expect Stevens to look rattled. He’s always calm, cool and collected — and so damn young looking.

Stevens was asked Friday if he stays as calm inside as he looks outside. He was asked where the calmness comes from. He talked about returning from the recruiting period in July two years ago. His flight from Orlando encountered a great deal of turbulence.

“We were probably on [the plane] with 30 kids who had all been to Disney World,” Stevens said. “I swear to you, 20 of them just raised theirs hands in the air and screamed like they were on a rollercoaster. It was a quick reminder to me that attitude is everything, outlook is everything and move on to the next play. Every time I’ve hit turbulence since then, I’ve been pretty excited.”

“When I first got the job at Butler, one of the best pieces of advice I got was from Sean Miller, who now is the head coach at Arizona. He said it’s hard when you take over a program that has always been successful because you’re always thinking about ways that is has to be done. He said, ‘The most important thing you can do is be yourself.’

“So, I am who I am. My age is what it is. My age has no factor on how our team plays. My job is just to try to get them to play as well as we can.”

Pretty wise advice from the Boy Wonder. It’s enough to make you think he’s been here before.

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