Michigan State Basketball: Player grades for comfortable win over Michigan

Starters

The Spartans’ bench wasn’t overly productive, but we saw some bright spots from Kyle Ahrens, Rocket Watts and Malik Hall. Even Julius Marble had a decent game in limited action.

Rocket Watts: B+

We got a glimpse of what to expect from Rocket Watts when he finally gets back to full-strength with confidence on his side. He hit a couple of 3-pointers late and his shot looks much better than it did a month ago. Eight points may not seem like a breakout performance, but for a kid coming back from an injury early in his freshman season, shooting 3-for-4 was a huge win.

Malik Hall: B

I do believe Malik Hall will be a special player at Michigan State but I was also pleasantly surprised at his performance on Sunday. I know he can be a good contributor off the bench, but I wasn’t expecting six points against Michigan. He was 2-for-3 from the floor and made both free throw attempts while also grabbing two rebounds with an assist. This is the type of showing that can help MSU’s bench production big-time. He needs to cut those silly fouls out, though.

Kyle Ahrens: B

Kyle Ahrens made a couple of really long twos which looked like 3-pointers when he shot them and that resulted in four points in 11 minutes. He also had a steal and an assist but Michigan State needs his shooting ability off the bench.

Julius Marble: B-

We saw more of Julius Marble probably than Tom Izzo expected because of Thomas Kithier’s foul trouble and Marcus Bingham Jr.’s conditioning issues. He played nine minutes and had two fouls of his own to go along with three rebounds. His defense wasn’t bad but it was a small sample size. He held his own and I think it’s a sign of things to come.

Thomas Kithier: C

It was a forgettable afternoon outside of one incredible assist for Thomas Kithier on a fast-break pass from Cassius Winston. He picked up a foul within the first minute of him getting on the floor every time, it seemed and he didn’t even attempt a shot in six minutes.

Foster Loyer: C-

After a solid stretch of games for Foster Loyer, he faded back into a small role where he didn’t do much in four minutes. In fact, his only statistic was a foul.