Tom Izzo wasn’t about to let his own student section turn a preseason game into a full-blown roast.
During UConn’s Oct. 20 exhibition at Breslin Center, Dan Hurley was jawing with an official in a first-half stoppage when fans in the Izzone started chanting “F- Dan Hurley.” Izzo then made his way down the court during a timeout and signaled for the crowd to stop.
The scene came in a top-10 exhibition that UConn won 78-70, with No. 5 UConn outlasting No. 6 Michigan State despite the Spartans giving up 14 offensive rebounds and shooting just 3-for-20 from 3-point range.
Hurley, who has built a reputation for fiery arguments with referees, was right in his element again. His track record of animated exchanges includes the memorable headbutt - really, forehead-to-forehead staredown - with referee Roger Ayers in last season’s Elite Eight.
“Obviously, the fans turned on me at different points in the game, and rightfully so,” Hurley said. “It was their first time seeing the antics, but as much as they were mean to me, I root for them.”
Izzo, who has faced Hurley before in both regular season and postseason settings, had plenty of respect for the UConn coach even as his team dealt with the loss. Michigan State beat UConn 64-60 in the Battle 4 Atlantis on Nov. 25, 2021, and then fell 67-63 to the Huskies in the Sweet 16 of last year's NCAA Tournament March 27, 2026. But Hurley’s teams have also taken both ends of the exhibition series, including last season in Hartford and again Tuesday in East Lansing.
Before tipoff, the two coaches shared a hug and some backslaps, and Hurley made it clear how much the setting meant to him. He praised Izzo afterward by calling him “your coach’s favorite coach” and said it had long been his dream to coach at Breslin Center after watching now-Alabama coach Nate Oats coach Romulus High in the MHSAA state championship there while recruiting Detroit’s own E.C.
Matthews to Rhode Island in the early 2010s. He also said he roots for the Spartans when they aren’t facing his team.
Izzo, for his part, didn’t hide his admiration either.
“He's a good coach, and he's done a good job,” Izzo said. “They're tough.”
He added later: “This was the best game we could have played in the country,” Izzo said. “We couldn’t have played a better team, better coach, better offense than they run.”
Hurley agreed with the spirit of that assessment.
“For us as a program, when we go and play a lot of places, we feel like we go in with a culture advantage,” Hurley said. “We go in with a toughness advantage.
And we tried to make it clear to the players that there’s no culture advantage when you play Michigan State. Their culture … I mean, those guys are soldiers.”
In Other News...
Jeremy Fears Jr. Just Gave Michigan State Fans A New Worry
Michigan States exhibition against UConn ended with a familiar preseason mix of promise and concern, as the Spartans fell 78-70 at Breslin Center but still got a strong performance from Jeremy Fears Jr. The guard paced the team with 23 points and eight assists, helping keep Michigan State in the game against a UConn frontcourt that controlled stretches of the night and made life difficult on the glass.
The bigger worry for the Spartans came in the second half, when Fears gave the fan base a scare after appearing to deal with an ankle issue. Even in a game that did not count in the standings, his health matters to a team trying to sort out its backcourt and tighten up before another exhibition against Marquette, especially with UConns rebounding edge serving as a reminder of how quickly preseason games can expose issues. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State May Have A Bigger Jeremy Fears Jr. Story Brewing
Michigan States exhibition loss to No. 4 UConn still gave the Spartans a useful look at where things stand early, and Jeremy Fears Jr. made sure he stayed at the center of it. The sophomore guard led Michigan State with 23 points and eight assists, and he looked more explosive than he did a year ago, punctuating the night with a one-handed dunk that stood out even in a game the Spartans ultimately dropped 78-70.
The bigger takeaway, though, may be how much Fears can shape everything around him if this version sticks. Michigan State also got 11 points from freshman guard Jasiah Jervis, while the starting center spot remains unsettled after Jesse McCulloch played well enough to challenge the expected starter Anton Bonke. For a team still sorting out its rotation, Fears jump is the kind of development that can change the ceiling in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan States Final Tune-Up Raised Two Concerns Izzo Still Has
The final exhibition before the season opener gave Tom Izzo a useful look at where Michigan State stands, and it came with a couple of familiar October warning signs. The Spartans had trouble finding any offensive rhythm against UConn in the first half, shot poorly, and never managed to get much going in transition, the kind of issues that can make even a talented team look disjointed when the schedule starts to tighten.
Izzo pointed to the mix of lineup changes and a still-developing center rotation as part of the reason the offense never fully settled in. Michigan State did shoot it better after halftime, and there were positive moments from Jeremy Fears and Jasiah Jervis, but UConns hot shooting kept the Spartans from ever quite making the game tilt their way, leaving Izzo with a clearer sense of what still needs cleaning up before the results start counting. [Read more 🡒]