Jeremy Fears Jr. was the center of yet another controversy on Sunday afternoon as his leg kick after being shoved in the back by Elliot Cadeau looked way worse than it probably was.
Fears tried to sell the foul by Cadeau by swinging his leg and it unfortunately made contact with the Michigan point guard and it was reviewed and called a technical. It was one of those plays that had Spartan fans shaking their heads and Michigan fans calling for his head.
Tom Izzo and Fears both admitted that the play looked bad, but it wasn’t intentional.
The sophomore point guard spoke to the media and addressed the situation at length for the first time since that loss to the Wolverines, admitting that he needs to be smarter and plays like this hurt the team.
He was also asked if he was planning on reaching out to Cadeau to clear the air.
Fears’ answer? Nope.
This is what Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. had to say about the incident with Elliot Cadeau on Sunday against Michigan. @wilxTV pic.twitter.com/ucl9pnKEKm
— Owen Oszust (@Owen_Oszust) March 10, 2026
I don’t see why he would need to reach out to Cadeau if it was addressed at the time and handled on the floor. Nothing changes if he reaches out to the rival point guard, especially since Fears said that it was accidental and he’s not the kind of player who is out there to hurt anyone.
Fears addressed the situation, said that he believes these mistakes hurt the team, and he acknowledged that he needs to be smarter. Now we just have to let him prove himself.
Tom Izzo was right — again
After hearing this question to Fears about speaking to Cadeau, I just have to wonder if the media is treating Aday Mara of Michigan the same way after two more dirty plays on Sunday.
Izzo voiced his frustration with the fact that Mara isn’t getting treated the same way as Fears despite there being several examples of the Michigan big man mucking things up with some extracurricular stuff — a shove on Carson Cooper mid-air and grabbing Fears’ shoulder on a breakaway were prime examples.
The Michigan media will never question Dusty May about that, so until they start doing so, Izzo is going to handle the Fears situation privately — as he should.