Happy tip-off day, everyone. Michigan State basketball is back Monday night against Quinnipiac, and the Spartans are staring at one goal and one goal only: a national title.
With the season getting underway, it’s time to lean into the bold stuff. And there’s plenty of it for Tom Izzo, Jeremy Fears Jr., and this Michigan State group.
Jeremy Fears Jr. is the engine of the whole operation, and by the end of the season he’s being talked about as the national player of the year. That would make him the first Michigan State player to win the Naismith Award since it debuted in 1969.
Fears may start the year a little slow on offense, but he finds his rhythm by mid-November and carries it the rest of the way. The junior point guard is projected to average 18 points, 9.5 assists, 1.2 steals, and shoot 36 percent from three.
He becomes the player who sets the tone for everything MSU does and helps push the Spartans toward a No. 1 seed in March.
That kind of season from Fears would be helped by a breakout freshman class, and Ethan Taylor is the first name to watch. With Anton Bonke struggling, Taylor steps into the center role early and doesn’t give it back.
Bonke is expected to improve and settle in as a solid role player, but Taylor takes control inside and earns a spot on the All-Big Ten Freshman team. The numbers: eight points, seven rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game, all while bringing plus defense and nonstop energy.
Another freshman, Jasiah Jervis, goes even bigger. He wins Big Ten Freshman of the Year and becomes the latest Spartan to claim that honor, following Gary Harris, who was Michigan State’s first-ever winner in 2013.
Jervis has already looked like a rising star in the exhibition games, and he is expected to lock down a starting spot before long. By season’s end, he’s putting together the best freshman campaign for a Spartan since Jaren Jackson Jr. in 2017-18, ending a nine-year drought for Michigan State in that award race.
The non-conference schedule is where Michigan State really gets tested. Duke, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Gonzaga all loom as major matchups, and after the Spartans’ struggles against UConn and Marquette, the concern around those games has grown.
Still, the prediction here is a 3-1 run through that stretch. Michigan State is expected to beat Arkansas and Gonzaga in close, tense games, while splitting the Duke and Tennessee matchups.
The lone loss comes against Duke, with Izzo’s history against the Blue Devils and their loaded roster tipping the scales. Even so, the Spartans would come out of that run with three wins over teams that could feel like Final Four previews.
From there, the resume keeps building. Michigan State is projected to finish one game behind Illinois in the Big Ten race, with that gap coming down to the matchup that Brad Underwood and the Illini take. Even without the regular-season crown, the Spartans are expected to have one of the strongest résumés in the country and land a 1-seed alongside Illinois, Duke, and UConn.
And then comes the run to Detroit. Michigan State is predicted to reach the title game there and get another crack at Duke.
The game is expected to stay close, with the Spartans trailing by four to six points for most of the night before tying it with a minute left. But the Blue Devils answer with the game-winning three, leaving Michigan State fans stunned and heartbroken.
Izzo then says he’ll be back for another title push in 2027-28, with Fears right there with him.
In Other News...
Michigan State Opens With Pressure On Its New-Look Frontcourt
Michigan State opens its basketball season Tuesday night at the Breslin Center against Quinnipiac, with the Spartans carrying the weight that comes with a No. 6 preseason ranking and the familiar expectations that follow a Tom Izzo team. It is Izzos 32nd season in East Lansing, and this opener offers the first real look at how a reshaped frontcourt fits into the bigger picture, especially with the kind of lineup questions that tend to matter early before the rotation settles.
Quinnipiac arrives with Tom Pecora on the sideline and enough structure to make the matchup more than a routine tune-up, even if the Spartans are supposed to have the deeper and more talented roster. The projected lineups, team updates and strengths-and-weaknesses breakdown suggest Michigan State has clear advantages, but also a few areas worth watching as the season begins and the new-look front line gets tested in a game that should reveal plenty about where this team stands. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State Opener Puts Two Early Rotation Concerns Under The Spotlight
Michigan States season opener against Quinnipiac arrives with a couple of early rotation questions already hanging over Tom Izzos team. Coen Carr remains one of the most intriguing pieces on the roster, but his role still comes with a familiar caveat: the Spartans need more from his jump shot and his work on the glass if he is going to take the next step. The opener should offer an early look at how much progress he has made, and how Izzo wants to use him in a lineup that is still taking shape.
Anton Bonke is another name worth watching after seeing limited minutes in the exhibition games, while Kaleb Glenns return from injury adds another layer to the frontcourt picture. Izzo has already signaled that player development and lineup flexibility will matter as the Spartans sort out their best combinations, and the first game of the season is often where those plans start to become clearer. For a team trying to establish its identity right away, the early rotation choices could say as much as the final score. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State Opens With Pressure To Look Like A Contender
Michigan State opens its regular season against Quinnipiac with the kind of early test that can tell you a lot about where a team stands before the calendar really gets going. The Spartans are favored by statistical models, and they bring back much of last seasons core while also adding a strong recruiting class, which is exactly the sort of combination that tends to raise expectations in East Lansing.
Quinnipiac has shown in the past that it can hang around against high-major opponents, so this is not the sort of opener Michigan State can treat casually. The game will be available on B1G+ and on various radio stations, giving fans their first real look at whether the Spartans can start looking like the contender their roster suggests they should be. [Read more 🡒]