Tom Izzo and Jeremy Fears Jr. are in lockstep with each other in seemingly every aspect of the game. Both guys want to win more than anything and losing makes them sick, both guys are fiery and passionate, and both have one goal in mind: a national title.
Oh, and both have already made vows to get back to the big stage after losing to UConn.
Izzo spoke pretty candidly after the UConn loss about how he’s not even considering retirement right now and that the Spartans are going to get back to the top.
Fears echoed a similar sentiment, vowing to use the Sweet 16 loss as fuel.
"The brotherhood, the love... You won't find this anywhere else."
— Ben Shockley (@BenShockley_) March 28, 2026
Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. on the season-ending loss to UConn, using it as motivation moving forward, and what makes MSU special.@Owen_Oszust @wilxTV pic.twitter.com/knicaTWMlg
Fears didn’t sound like a guy who’s planning on going anywhere this offseason, but that’s a new worry regarding every single player on the roster every year because of unchecked NIL and the transfer portal. He also admitted that this is going to be fuel for next year.
Those are the types of quotes that I think college basketball has missed. Guys vowing to use a loss as fuel for a run the following season. With so much roster uncertainty, it’s nice to hear that from a star player.
Fears is likely going to begin the season as a projected first-team All-American and he’ll be one of the favorites for Big Ten Player of the Year.
Another offseason of improvement and another year of learning under Izzo is going to do wonders for Fears. Adding a consistent jumper is going to be the difference between him being a second-team All-American and a national player of the year candidate. It’s also the difference between a Sweet 16 exit and a national title run.
Michigan State’s ceiling is unlimited in 2026-27
Although the loss is still fresh and it hurts to even think about next season when this season just ended less than 24 hours ago, but Michigan State’s ceiling is going to be unlimited.
The Spartans should bring back an All-American (Fears), a potential All-Big Ten wing (Coen Carr), a sophomore who started half the games of his freshman year (Jordan Scott), an aggressive and talented forward (Cam Ward), a rising guard who improved his shot a ton (Divine Ugochukwu), a sharpshooter (Kur Teng), a promising big who can stretch the floor (Jesse McCulloch), and a veteran wing who can shoot and drive to the basket (Kaleb Glenn).
On top of all that, I expect Izzo to hit the transfer portal for a big man to add to his top-five freshman class headlined by Jasiah Jervis, Ethan Taylor, Carlos Medlock Jr., and Julius Avent.
For anyone who thinks the team is going to take a step back, think again.