Tom Izzo probably didn’t think he would be in this position this early on in the 2026-27 season, but there’s a chance that he may have to game plan for Michigan State vs. Marquette without a healthy Jeremy Fears Jr.
Both Izzo and Fears said after practice on Thursday that they expected him to play against Marquette on Sunday, but the Hall of Fame head coach did allude to the fact that they’re going to be careful with him in the event that this is an injury that’s at risk of lingering if it’s not fully healed.
For those who don’t own a BTN+ subscription and didn’t get to watch Tuesday’s game against UConn, Fears landed awkwardly on a UConn defender after a layup and had a heavy limp on his way to the bench.
Fears would ultimately return and finish the game, but he wasn’t available to the media afterward which usually means that a player is getting treatment or further evaluated.
On Thursday, however, Fears said that he felt “a million times better” which couldn’t be better news heading into the final exhibition before the regular season starts at the beginning of November. Still, Izzo could opt to hold him out for precautionary reasons and no one would blame him. Unfortunately, after Divine Ugochukwu’s transfer, there’s only one true point guard option behind Fears.
Carlos Medlock Jr. is the lone backup and the true freshman could very well be thrust into the starting lineup on Sunday. If he is, he’s going to need a backup or he’ll have to play 40 minutes.
So who is that third option? Well, Izzo mentioned last week that Medlock missed a couple of days after a fall and Jordan Scott filled in for him.
Izzo says CJ Medlock missed a couple days after a fall, which allowed MSU to use Jordan Scott some at PG.
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) October 15, 2026
So there it is. There’s your answer. Scott would be the emergency option in the case that Fears can’t go and Medlock needs a breather. The same would go for if Medlock missed any time. Now if all three somehow get injured at the same time (knock on wood right now so this doesn’t happen), that’s when things will get dicey. We’d likely see Jasiah Jervis at that point.
Michigan State’s point guard depth being tested early
This seemingly minor injury that Fears suffered against UConn couldn’t have happened at a more perfect time. Obviously a more perfect time would be never, but if it did have to happen, it’s good that it comes before the regular season and Izzo could decide to run with Medlock and Scott as the 1-2 options against Marquette just to test their readiness.
Izzo doesn’t want to lose to Marquette — that goes without saying — but he’s more than willing to take a risk now when the wins and losses don’t count rather than in Big Ten play.
Getting Medlock comfortable with running the offense with the ones and seeing what Scott can do with the ball in his hands will go a long way in March if there’s foul trouble or injuries or whatever the case may be. Scott has emerged as that emergency third point guard.
Jervis feels like a pretty good option, too, as he looked confident with the ball in his hands against UConn.
So if Fears can’t go, it’ll be Medlock, Scott, and then Jervis at the point.
Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.
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