Sports Analysis
The Michigan State University Spartans have dominated the Big Ten conference, claiming the regular season championship title and a No. 2 seed in the DI NCAA men’s tournament. With new additions to the roster, the Spartans turned the Big Ten on its head and became a powerhouse that deserves respect from all corners of the country.
Michigan State’s team consists of talent ranging from first years to graduate students who all add individual talent to the lineup. Redshirt first-year Jeremy Fears Jr. and true-first year starter Jase Richardson lead the first-year Spartans with consistent playing time and point averages to support head coach Tom Izzo’s decision to play them. Richardson averages 50.2% in field goals with 42% in three-point shots, while Fears Jr. averages 40% in field goals and 34.2% in three-point shooting in their first years on the team.
For the Sophomores, Xavier Booker and Coen Carr hold their stance on the court. Booker has a 78.6% free-throw average and a 41.7% field goal shooting average to make him a standout Spartan in the lineup, while Carr has a 61.7% field goal percentage and a 69.5% free-throw average.
In the junior class, Tre Holloman, Carson Cooper, Nick Sanders and Jaxon Kohler hold down the lineup in dominating fashion. Holloman shoots 85.1% from the free-throw line, while Cooper shoots 59.8% in field goals and 74.4% in free-throw shooting. Sanders also adds to the lineup, although he doesn’t see the court much, with a 57.1% field goal shooting average. Kohler rounds out the bunch with an impressive 82.1 free-throw percentage.
Lastly, Jaden Akins, Frankie Fidler and Szymon Zapala mentor as the seniors on the team. Akins started all 37 games for the Spartans and had a 76.2 free throw percentage, while Fidler had an 86.1% free throw percentage. Zapala started 36 games for the crew and has a 65.6 field goal percentage and 65.9% free throw accuracy.
The 30-6 team worked its way to the top of the Big Ten with a 17-3 conference record, with notable wins against the University of Oregon and the University of Maryland. The team fell to the University of Southern California and the University of California Los Angeles in the conference and lost to teams such as the University of Kansas outside of conference play. Although the Spartans fell to the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the conference tournament, the team still picked up a No. 2 seed in the March Madness tournament that would start just days later.
In the NCAA Tournament, the Spartans started their possible championship run against the Bryant University Bulldogs in Cleveland, Ohio, when the team won 87-62 thanks to a 15-point game from Richardson and 11-point games from Akins and Fears Jr.
In the second round of gameplay, MSU faced off against the University of New Mexico Lobos in a close game that also resulted in a 71-63 win for the Spartans.
For the third game of the Sweet Sixteen round of the tournament, the Spartans traveled to Atlanta, GA., to take on Ole Miss for a chance in the Elite Eight. Ole Miss gave MSU a run for its money but ultimately lost 73-70 to the Spartans. With this win, the Spartans would advance to the hardest round of gameplay yet to face off against the Auburn University Tigers for a chance in the Final Four.
In the Elite Eight game for the Spartans, the team played the No. 1 seed Auburn Tigers in the State Farm Arena in Georgia. The Spartans were outshot in the first half 33-24 before outscoring the Tigers 40-37 in the second half. Unfortunately for MSU, the Tigers won 70-64 and would advance to the Final Four, leaving the Spartans at a season-ending loss.
“For the 30th year, I am not sure I’ve been prouder in a team, and there’s so much coach speak and things that go on in programs all over, but these guys gave me everything they had and drained them of everything,” Coach Izzo said in an interview with the Detroit Free Press after the loss.
The team will now bid a final farewell to its seniors and look ahead towards the 2025-26 season while looking back at the 30-7 run that proved Spartan strength to the conference and nation.
This photo is courtesy of Breslincenter, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia.
