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USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Five questions facing Michigan State basketball heading into 2025-26 season
Five questions facing Michigan State basketball heading into 2025-26 season Michigan State basketball just came off one of their best seasons in recent memory, winning their first Big Ten Championship since the days of Cassius Winston and Xavier Tillman before going on to make the Elite 8 in the NCAA Tournament. However, the Spartans lost multiple key players this summer, with Jaden Akins, Jase Richardson, and Tre Holloman all moving on. Now, Tom Izzo and his staff will need to answer a lot of questions this summer and next season. We outlined five questions that his staff will need to tackle, among others, if they want to sustain the success we saw last year: 1. Will Jeremy Fears Jr. become a double-digit per game scorer? Jeremy Fears Jr. is the classic Tom Izzo point guard. He defends, he gets out and runs in transition every chance he gets, and he's ostensibly a pass-first player. That was perfect last year, but now, MSU will need to replace their top two scorers last year, and I think for this team to replace that production, Fears will need to average double-digits in scoring. Fears is kind of a mystery box at this point. He missed most of his first year after being shot in the leg. That also cost him a summer of development. We know that he has not looked very comfortable shooting the ball thus far in his career, but could that change with a full summer of training under his belt for the first time as a college player? If not, there are other ways to become more of a scoring threat, and he will need to find a few weapons on that end to keep defenses honest. 2. Is Coen Carr a legitimate two-way star? The development of Coen Carr was possibly the biggest storyline of last season for the Spartans. Carr went from being a rotation player to being arguably the best player on the team. The biggest development last year was on the defensive end, where Carr seemed to finally unlock his athleticism and how to use it to frustrate some of the top scorers in the country. The next step he will look to take is on the offensive end. He has shown some skill as a driver, which could be where his offense comes from next year, but what would really throw gas on the fire is if he can develop himself into a reliable three-point shooter. If he can even get to about 35-percent from three, I am expecting him to be a lottery pick next year, he's just that good. 3. How ready is Cam Ward? When I wrote an article about which players on this year's roster have the most NBA potential, I had Cam Ward all the way at No. 2, just behind Coen Carr. Now, will he show that potential this year? We have no idea, but it's one of the most interesting questions going into the season. In another article where I tried to project the rotation for next year, I hypothesized that Cam Ward will end up getting minutes this year. I think his talent will be too undeniable to keep on the bench. But how ready will he be? Will we just see him get a few minutes here or there when MSU has a sizable lead? Or, will he be someone who helps actually drive winning? We should start to hear some whispers about how he's doing soon. 4. Does Jaxon Kohler have another leap in him? Jaxon Kohler was sneakily the Spartans' second-best three-point shooter last year, hitting 37.3-percent of his shots from distance. That's a very encouraging sign, because MSU has seemed insistent on playing Kohler, who is a bit of a 'tweener', at the four spot instead of at center. If he's going to remain in that role, he will need to keep hitting those shots. Kohler jumped all the way from two points per game in 2023-24 to just under eight points per game in 2024-25. Does he have another leap in him? Or, will he lose some ground to the aforementioned Cam Ward and incoming transfer Kaleb Glenn? Like Fears, the Spartans really need to get double-digit scoring out of that position to replace what they are losing, and Kohler, as an offensive-minded big, theoretically should be able to increase his production. 5. Will this team be able to match last year's defensive output? Last year, in my opinion, we saw one of Tom Izzo's best defensive teams ever. We saw them shut down multiple teams and they were in the top-50 for scoring defense. However, MSU is losing some of their best defenders in Jaden Akins and Tre Holloman. Even Jase Richardson was a positive on that end as well. Tom Izzo is replacing them with Kaleb Glenn and Trey Fort, and Glenn has not been known for his defensive acumen. They are also losing Szymon Zapala and those minutes should go to Jesse McCulloch, a player who recently converted to center. I personally think the defense will take a step back this year, but you just hope it's not a major step back if they want to try and make another deep run. Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Andrew Brewster on Twitter @IAmBrewster.
USA Today
23-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Watch highlights of offseason improvements from MSU star forward Coen Carr
Watch highlights of offseason improvements from MSU star forward Coen Carr A recent highlights tape of Michigan State forward Coen Carr shows continued growth in his all around game. We are in the midst of the offseason so finding nuggets of information on progression from the Spartans is always exciting -- even if you have to take it with a grain of salt. That is the case here with Carr, thanks to a recently published video from Greenlight Media. Greenlight Media posted a minute-long highlights video of Carr from a pickup game during this offseason. In the video, we see Carr throwing down some impressive dunks (shocker), but more importantly it looks like he has even further developed his outside shooting and also some improved ball-handling skills. Check out the Carr highlights in the video below: Carr elevated his game this past season, improving from 3.1 points per game to 8.1. He also doubled his rebounds per game numbers from 1.8 to 3.6, and also shot 33.3% from three-point range and 70.1% from the free throw line. Carr will be leaned on even more next season as one of the top returning players for a Michigan State team that should once again be in the mix for a Big Ten title and deep NCAA Tournament run. As I said before, you can't take a ton out of this short highlights clip. But it still is exciting to see Carr developing the rest of his game and furthers the growing expectations for a big year out of his next season. Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
USA Today
08-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Watch MSU forward Coen Carr break rim, shatter backboard with incredible dunk
Watch MSU forward Coen Carr break rim, shatter backboard with incredible dunk Even in the offseason, Coen Carr is unleashing viral highlight dunks Coen Carr always impresses when the ball is in his hands, and that even happens during the offseason. Carr is known for his incredible dunking ability, and he put that on display in a recent pickup game where he threw down a dunk that broke the rim. Yes, that's right. Carr broke the rim and shattered the backboard with a ferocious dunk. Check out the impressive dunk from Carr in the video below -- courtesy of Overtime: The pure dunking power of Carr has always been impressive but this is taking it to a whole new level. Rarely do you see a player do something like this. Carr will be entering his junior season next year for the Spartans and is expected to play a more significant role for Michigan State. His game has already expanded from just his dunking ability this past season, but we should never lose sight of how truly impressive he is at that part of his game too. Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
Yahoo
29-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Former New Mexico guard Donovan Dent headed to UCLA. St. John's star RJ Luis Jr. declares for draft
Former New Mexico guard Donovan Dent headed to UCLA. St. John's star RJ Luis Jr. declares for draft St. John's guard RJ Luis Jr. (12) sits on the bench while trailing Arkansas late in the second half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Steven Senne) Michigan State forward Coen Carr, left; and center Carson Cooper, center; defend New Mexico guard Donovan Dent (2) during the second half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday, March 23, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Richard) Michigan State forward Coen Carr, left; and center Carson Cooper, center; defend New Mexico guard Donovan Dent (2) during the second half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday, March 23, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Richard) St. John's guard RJ Luis Jr. (12) sits on the bench while trailing Arkansas late in the second half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Steven Senne) Michigan State forward Coen Carr, left; and center Carson Cooper, center; defend New Mexico guard Donovan Dent (2) during the second half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday, March 23, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Richard) UCLA has landed former New Mexico guard Donovan Dent, one of the most sought-after players in the transfer portal. Dent announced his decision to play at Westwood on Instagram on Friday, less than a week after opting to enter the transfer portal. Advertisement St. John's second-team All-American RJ Luis Jr. is declaring for the NBA draft while retaining his eligibility and entering the transfer portal, his agent told ESPN. ESPN also reported Kansas big man Flory Bidunga will enter the portal as well. Dent was the Mountain West Conference player of the year after averaging 20.4 points and 6.5 assists per game. The 6-foot-2 guard is expected to fill the hole left at UCLA by Dylan Andrews, who also is in the transfer portal. Dent played three seasons under Richard Pitino, who became Xavier's head coach after leading the Lobos to the NCAA Tournament the past two years. Advertisement Luis was the Big East player of the year after averaging 18.2 points and 7.2 rebounds. The 6-7 forward was the Big East Tournament most outstanding player and helped St. John's earn a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. But he was on the bench late in the Red Storm's 75-66 loss to Arkansas in the second round. Luis finished 3 for 17 from the floor without an assist, scoring nine points in 30 minutes. He was removed by coach Rick Pitino with 4:56 remaining in a two-point game and didn't return. The 6-9 Bidunga averaged 5.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks while providing a spark off the bench behind All-American Hunter Dickinson. ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here.
USA Today
29-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Relive MSU basketball's NCAA Tournament win over Ole Miss in this highlights video
Relive MSU basketball's NCAA Tournament win over Ole Miss in this highlights video Michigan State moves on to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament following Friday's win over Ole Miss Michigan State basketball is one step closer to another trip to the Final Four. The Spartans once again overcame a double-digit deficit to knock off Ole Miss in the Sweet 16 on Friday night. Michigan State didn't get its first lead of the game until midway through the second half, and needed some key plays from a variety of players down the stretch to get the win over the Rebels. Michigan State got big scoring performances from Jase Richardson (20 points) and Coen Carr (15 points) to earn the victory. Jaden Akins (13 points) and Tre Holloman (10 points) also reached double-digits in scoring. Michigan State will now move on to face top overall seed Auburn in the Elite Eight on Sunday. That matchup between the Spartans and Tigers is scheduled to start at 5:05 p.m. ET on Sunday. Before we turn our focus to the Tigers, let's take a look at the highlights from Michigan State's victory over Ole Miss in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. This video is courtesy of March Madness Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
