Michigan State Basketball: 3 takeaways from season-opening win over EMU

2. Foster Loyer looks vastly improved

The coaching staff raved about the improvement of Foster Loyer this offseason and when Tom Izzo said he didn’t know who would start at point, everyone assumed it was just coachspeak.

It turns out he was being serious.

Loyer looked like a completely different player in the first game of the season, getting the start at point and putting up a career-high 20 points on 6-for-10 shooting. He was better on the defensive end of the floor and wasn’t a liability in any aspect. He was smart with his passes, made good decisions and shot with confidence.

Last year, we saw Loyer hesitate to shoot open shots way too often and that led to a decrease in confidence and it’s easy to feel like less of a player when you’re playing behind one of the best point guards in program history.

The offense ran much smoother with Loyer at the point and if he continues playing with confidence and shooting at a high clip, this offense is going to be scary.