March Madness is here. The Iowa State Cyclones will battle Tennessee State in the 2/11 matchup in the Midwest Region. This contest tips off around 2:50 pm Eastern Time on Friday.

In a recent exclusive interview with DJ Siddiqi, Indiana Pacers star point guard and former Cyclone Tyrese Haliburton gave a long and heartfelt message to his former program as the team heads into the NCAA Tournament. He also talked about the appreciation he has for being on the court after being out for so long with an Achilles injury.

“No question,” Haliburton said. “I think what this has taught me more than anything is just to live in the moment and really enjoy it. That’s kind of what I’ve been talking about with some of these college kids that I’ve talked to about this tournament. Just live in the moment. You don’t know when you get this opportunity again. That’s something that I really value from my run and the year we had last year.  “It’s definitely something that I’ve talked to with a couple of guys from Iowa State (his alma mater) about just as they get into this tournament, to really just live in the moment,” Haliburton continued to say.

“Enjoy this moment and have fun with it. Because you never know when it will happen again. I think that’s a big message I would share with anybody going through anything is just to enjoy the moment, enjoy where you are at the time.”

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“Every day I have a greater appreciation,” Haliburton said. “A greater appreciation for every day. A greater appreciation for every game, every moment I get to play. I just don’t want to take any time or anything for granted. No question that’s been on my mind, something I think about all the time. Like I said earlier, I talked to these college kids about it as they get into this tournament — don’t take this for granted, this moment. This is a very special time to be playing basketball. Something I talk about it to people ad nauseam.”
In a recent exclusive interview with ClutchPoints, Haliburton dropped a hot take about March Madness brackets.