Michigan State basketball picked up its third win of the season on Thursday night, beating San Jose State 79-60 after holding a 23-point lead at halftime.
The win was never in doubt, but Michigan State let San Jose State hang around a little too long, resulting in a trimmed lead to just 10 points with under four minutes left. Some big 3-pointers by Jeremy Fears Jr. and a ferocious alley-oop to Coen Carr seal the game, but Tom Izzo was not happy about the second-half effort.
The Spartans would go on to extend that lead back to 19 by the time the final horn sounded, but the game was decided well before that anyway.
It wasn’t the best win, by any means, but some guys played really well.
Here’s the post-San Jose State win report card for each Spartan who played.
Jeremy Fears Jr. — A-
I was actually really impressed with the way Fears played until the final whistle, hitting some big shots down the stretch when San Jose State was making its run. He was solid defensively, scored 15 points on 3-for-5 shooting from deep, and had nine assists and five rebounds. I would like to see him drive more, but this was a strong showing.
Coen Carr — B+
It definitely wasn’t Carr’s best game, but he stuffed the stat sheet even when he didn’t have a huge offensive night. He scored just eight points on 4-of-7 shooting, but he also dished five assists, grabbed four rebounds, blocked two shots, and recorded a steal. Even when Carr isn’t hunting his own shots, he’s impacting the team in a positive way.
Jaxon Kohler — A
Do I love the fact that Jaxon Kohler was just 1-for-5 from deep? Not really, but he’s still improving in that regard. However, he was a menace on the glass, grabbing a career-high 18 rebounds to go along with 17 points and two blocks. He was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line, which was huge, and he made defenders look silly on several instances. If MSU gets this Kohler for the rest of the year, watch out.
Carson Cooper — A-
Carson Cooper also had a solid game, but he gets an A- because of that free throw shooting. He tied for the team lead in scoring (17) with Kohler, and grabbed seven boards of his own, but he shot just 5-for-10 from the line. As an improved free throw shooter, that’s a disaster. Cooper did have four steals, a block, and two assists, making his presence felt on both ends.
Kur Teng — B
Folks, I think we have some life at the two-guard spot — for now. Kur Teng didn’t get the start, but he played more minutes than Trey Fort, and finished with a career-high 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting. His two 3-pointers brought the Izzone to life, and he looked comfortable and confident shooting the ball. That has to carry over into the Kentucky game.
Trey Fort — C-
It’s been a back-and-forth battle between Teng and Fort to see if one of the two will finally separate himself as the clear starter. Well, Fort didn’t have a great showing on Thursday, shooting 1-for-6 from the floor and netting just two points. He did have two rebounds and a block, showing that he can get it done on the defensive end.
Cam Ward — B
It’s tough for a true freshman to replicate a career performance in less than a week, but Cam Ward had himself a solid outing against San Jose State. He finished with seven points, four rebounds, and an assist, but his three fouls really limited him — he played just 15 minutes. Still, putting up seven and four in 15 minutes for a true freshman is really solid.
Jordan Scott — C
This was easily Jordan Scott’s quietest game in a Spartan uniform, going scoreless on two shots with just an assist and a steal in 12 minutes. He didn’t play poorly, he just didn’t have much of an impact.
Divine Ugochukwu — C+
This was probably Divine Ugochukwu’s best game as a Spartan, but that’s not saying a ton seeing as he hadn’t scored a single point yet. He finished with three points and two assists and the major positive was his zero turnovers.
Jesse McCulloch, Dunham Wojcik, Nick Sanders — Incomplete
It’s not quite fair to give grades to guys who played six minutes or fewer, but there were positives from each player. Jesse McCulloch had a rebound and a steal, but missed his only shot in six minutes, Dunham Wojcik had a rebound and an assist in three minutes, and Nick Sanders had an assist in his only minute of action.