Michigan State’s exhibition against UConn looked a lot less like a tune-up and a lot more like a stress test.
In East Lansing on Wednesday, Oct. 21, the No. 6 Spartans ran into the No.
4 Huskies and walked away with a 78-70 loss, a game that showed exactly where the cracks are for Tom Izzo’s group before the season starts. For a team trying to figure out its new pieces, the timing of the matchup was about as revealing as it gets.
Jeremy Fears Jr. said the goal never changes, even in a preseason game.
“Obviously, we’re here to play, to compete, to win every game, so you know the goal is obviously to win anytime you get to put on this Spartan jersey,” point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. said. “But at the same time, you kind of have to understand that we have a lot of guys who’ve never been in this position. So we want to make sure those guys are prepped and understand how we do things, and just trying to get those guys caught up to speed.”
That group of newcomers is at the center of the Spartans’ early-season questions. Senior transfer Anton Bonke is carrying especially heavy expectations, with the job of helping replace four-year Spartans Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper. So far, the exhibitions have been rough on him, and against UConn he sat the second half.
“I just felt like I could tell that Anton was nervous as hell,” Izzo said. “I mean, he went into the second time for a minute.
He just got tired immediately, and he’s in pretty good shape. It was a frustrating thing as a coach, but it just shows you that that was a hell of a crowd, that was a Sweet 16 game, just better because you’re home.”
Bonke isn’t the only new Spartan getting a baptism by fire. Freshmen Carlos Medlock Jr. and Jasiah Jervis are also learning what it feels like when the stakes and the speed jump at once. For Medlock, the biggest adjustment is staying under control when the game starts flying.
“You can really see how fast the game begins,” Medlock Jr. said. “It’s just learning how to control the game after coming in, especially coming in after a guy like Fears. It’s learning how to control the game sustainably, and if we’re down, just trying to be that sparkplug.”
Facing UConn, fresh off a national championship game appearance, only sharpens that lesson. Medlock said a game like this matters because it mimics the kind of pressure the Spartans will see again.
“It was good that we played them,” Medlock Jr. said. “We’re going to have multiple games like that playing in one of the hardest conferences. You don’t have many games like that, so it’s just being ready for that moment and being ready for the game”
The burden of getting the newcomers settled doesn’t sit only with Izzo. It also falls to the veterans, and Fears knows he has a role beyond just running the offense. UConn’s early runs rattled Michigan State, and Fears described the value of learning how to survive those stretches.
“It’s hard,” Fears said. “Obviously you don’t really know much about it until you’ve been in a big run.
So I think the best thing about that is just going through it. I think once you understand and you play through a big run, then maybe you finally get your own couple big runs.
You start to understand the difference in the vibe and the feel of how valuable a good shot is, a bad shot is, or a foul, and how that can change the trajectory of the game.”
The good news for Michigan State is that none of this has to be solved in one night. The season still hasn’t started, and the Spartans have one more exhibition left to keep ironing things out.
They go to Marquette on Sunday, Oct. 25, before opening the season at home against Quinnipiac on Monday, Nov. 2.
In Other News...
Michigan State Suddenly Has A Jeremy Fears Jr. Concern Before Marquette
Jeremy Fears Jr. gave Michigan State a brief scare when he landed awkwardly in a recent game, the kind of moment that can change a game plan in a hurry. He returned, kept playing and finished without any apparent issues, which is why the Spartans are not treating the situation like a long-term concern heading into their matchup with Marquette.
Still, Tom Izzo is not brushing past it completely. Fears and the coach both expect him to play, but Izzo said he will remain cautious based on medical advice, and that leaves a small layer of uncertainty around the Spartans backcourt. If Fears is limited or unavailable, freshman Carlos Medlock Jr. would be in line to handle point guard duties, giving Michigan State at least one clear fallback if the game takes an unexpected turn. [Read more 🡒]
No. 5 Michigan State Now Faces A Frustrating Big Ten Test
A rough Big Ten night in East Lansing left Michigan State chasing from the start after Penn State struck twice early and forced the Spartans into a comeback mode they could never fully escape. Paige Kalal and Aubrey Kulpa put the visitors in front before Kayla Briggs got Michigan State on the board in the 55th minute, giving the Spartans a lifeline and a chance to turn the match back in their direction.
Michigan State did generate pressure after halftime and outshot Penn State in the second half, but the equalizer never came in a 2-1 loss that will sting in a conference race where little gets handed out easily. For a team still carrying a No. 5 ranking, this was the kind of frustrating test that can linger, especially when the chances are there but the finish is not. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State Just Made A Front-Office Hire Fans Will Scrutinize
Michigan State has turned to a familiar name in college athletics circles for one of its most important off-field jobs, officially hiring Mike Polisky as the new CEO of Spartan Ventures and deputy athletics director. Polisky brings experience from Northwestern, where he served as deputy athletics director for external affairs, and he has also spent time in executive roles outside college sports since leaving that post.
At Michigan State, Polisky will be expected to help push athletic department revenue higher while taking on oversight of both football and mens golf. It is the kind of hire that can quietly shape a departments direction, and in East Lansing it is likely to draw close attention not just for what Polisky has done before, but for how Michigan State uses this new structure moving forward. [Read more 🡒]