No. 22 Michigan State opened exhibition play with a 75-66 win against Bowling Green on Thursday night at the Breslin Center.
Here are quick takeaways and observations from the game:
- Now twice in less than a full year, the Falcons presented a real challenge in East Lansing. They led most of the way in a regular-season matchup last season before Michigan State used an 18-0 finish for a deceptive 86-72 victory.
In the exhibition rematch, Bowling Green kept pace again and the game was tied midway through the second half before the Spartans pulled away. With both teams marching out new-look lineups, that was a decent test from a motivated MAC squad.
Unlike last year when Michigan State had a trio of games during a summer trip to Spain to get a feel, Thursday was the first live action. The next test won't officially count either but will be much tougher when the Spartans close exhibition play at UConn on Tuesday.
- After losing seven scholarship players, including the top three scorers from a Big Ten championship squad that reached the Elite Eight last year, Michigan State debuted a fresh look. The starting five and overall playing time was basically as expected, but that comes with the backdrop of coach Tom Izzo regularly allowing media members to watch practice.
Based on what was previously observed and said, there was no surprise in who took the floor for the opening tip with the four team captains - point guard Jeremy Fears, wing Coen Carr, forward Jaxon Kohler and center Carson Cooper - joined by sophomore shooting guard Kur Teng. The backcourt spot opposite Fears was the most competitive battle coming out of the offseason with Izzo pushing for better defense from Teng and transfer Trey Fort, now at his sixth school in as many years.
As Izzo predicted, the Spartans went 11 deep and the first subs made sense - freshman Cam Ward for Kohler, redshirt freshman Jesse McCulloch for Cooper, Fort for Teng, Divine Ugochukwu for Fears and freshman Jordan Scott for Carr. Guard Denham Wojcik, son of assistant Doug Wojcik, was last in the rotation.
There was a lot of tinkering with the lineups - that's what exhibition games are for - and Izzo, in hindsight, didn't like a few of them. It was just a starting point in a long season ahead.
- With no Jaden Akins, Jase Richardson or Tre Holloman, Michigan State needs to replace the bulk of its scoring and almost all 3-point shooting. Carr, a freak athlete expected to build on a breakout sophomore season, put together a very impressive debut. He finished with a team-high 17 points to go with five rebounds, five blocks, four assists and a steal.
Carr took a big step last season showing he was at least a shooting threat outside the paint and did more creating off the dribble on Thursday. Just one example - during the first half, he found the soft spot in the Bowling Green zone and elevated for a jumper in the middle of the lane. That drew the rim protector so Carr adjusted in the air to find Kohler for a score and foul.
Kohler put together a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds and Fears scored 12 to go with nine assists while smoothly stepping into a pair of triples. Teng finished just 3-for-10 from the floor but it was only one night for who Izzo believes is the team's best shooter.
- Defense is Izzo's main concern heading into the season and that was validated. For starters, Bowling Green forward Sam Towns finished 8-for-10 from the floor with four triples for game highs of 20 points and 12 rebounds. Izzo said they couldn't guard him "with a fishnet" and gave up too much dribble penetration, leading to losing 42-41 on the boards.
- Michigan State's five newcomers available (transfer forward Kaleb Glenn is out for the season due to a knee injury) put together varying debuts. Fort knocked down a trio of triples to lead the portal group while Ugochukwu, a Miami transfer, recorded two points, four assists, two blocks and a steal.
McCulloch, who didn't play while taking a redshirt last year, looks like he can make a dent. He's got size - 6-foot-10 and 240 pounds - and confident range while finishing 1-for-3 from beyond the arc on Thursday.
- Ward put together a modest debut with two points on 1-for-4 shooting to go with six rebounds, two assists and a block in 16 minutes off the bench. He committed a team-high three turnovers but should be key contributor in year one. Fellow freshman Scott picked up a pair of fouls early and didn't attempt a shot in less than six minutes of play. Izzo expected his time on the floor to be about double that.