ATLANTA – Tom Izzo put on his glasses and scanned the stat sheet.
He didn’t need his readers — or a piece of paper — to know that going 3-for-24 on 3-point attempts was problematic. However, in Tuesday night’s Champions Classic 77-69 loss to No. 1 Kansas quite a few promising moments for Michigan State basketball.
And a lot of negative things besides the constant outside shooting.
«We played a very good team, we were right for most of the game,» Izzo said afterward at State Farm Arena. «But there are some positives that come out of it. And now we have to figure out how to get some shots.»
Advantage? The Spartans (2-1) destroyed hard all night and battled the Jayhawks (3-0), displaying character-defining determination. They only trailed by 10 once, in the final seconds of the first half, and tied the game five times in the second half. Although they were never able to take full advantage of Kansas’ own offensive struggles.
«I don’t think this group will ever back down,» said senior transfer Frankie Fidler, who led MSU with 15 points and added eight rebounds. We have strong guys and I think our will to win is high. But I think tonight it came down to us missing those shots that didn’t get us over that hump.”
COUCH’S 3 QUICK SUMMARY:Michigan State basketball showed it belongs against Kansas. This can only be enough for so long
Downside? MSU’s starters went a modest 9-for-36 for just 35 points and 16 rebounds. Fidler was 3-for-12, Jaden Akins 1-for-8 with just two points. Xavier Booker missed all five of his throws to finish scoreless.
«When we tied it, we’d end up shooting poorly or missing a shot, and they’d go down and foul or score and kind of stop the momentum every time,» Akins said. «So you have to find a way to get over that hump when you have the game right there.»
Another plus? MSU’s reserves outscored Kansas’ bench, 39-15, and grabbed 23 of the team’s 43 rebounds.
Junior forward Jaxon Kohler put together his second straight double-double, scoring 10 of his 12 points in the second half and grabbing 10 rebounds. Freshman Jase Richardson continued his strong start to his career as a Spartan, riding the momentum with a four-point play just before halftime to finish with eight points with three rebounds. Carson Cooper added six points and five boards, and Coen Carr had eight points off the bench.
«There’s going to be positives and negatives to every game,» Kohler said. “I feel the positive in this game is that even though we didn’t shoot particularly well from the outside, we didn’t let it affect us. We kept fighting.»
Another downside? Booker’s steady decline to start the second season.
The 6-foot-11 sophomore, a former five-star recruit, is now 5-for-22 overall and 1-for-11 from three-point range while starting the Spartans’ first three games. He has yet to make a free throw and has just eight rebounds in 50 minutes of court time. Booker played 13 minutes and scored the final 16:56 against the Jayhawks. Both he and Akins had just one rebound.
“The book will be fine. He’s progressing,” Izzo said. “If he makes a couple of those threes, we’re all sitting there happy with him and he probably plays a little bit more because he had, I think, wide open threes. I don’t think he had one that wasn’t wide open.»
Despite dishing out some harsh criticism, Izzo also staunchly defended his young forward.
«The book missed wide open shot after shot, which I don’t care about, I really don’t,» Izzo said. “But then he doesn’t defend and he doesn’t rebound — in (14) minutes, to get one rebound, he just has to rebound better. He has to do something. …
«It is not yet where everyone wants it to be. It wasn’t his fault that someone projected certain ways onto him. He’s a good player and a really talented kid, and he’ll get there. It’s just that the process takes a little longer.»
MSU also showed increasing tenacity attacking the basket, making 18 of 21 free throws. Fidler went 8-for-8. The Spartans got to the line 73 times and shot 76.7% through three games.
However, it would end up going back to the Spartans’ 21 missed three-pointers on Tuesday. Third straight game and second straight season with a brutal start to the year.
MSU is currently shooting just under 20% (12-for-60) from beyond the arc this season. Izzo’s team started the 2023-24 campaign shooting just 17.5% from three-point range in the first four games, then 38.1% over the last 31 games. On Tuesday, Akins, Fidler and Booker combined to go just 1 of 14 from deep. Kohler went 1-for-5 from outside. Junior Tre Holloman missed all three of his three-point attempts and struggled all night (2-for-7 for five points, two assists, two turnovers and one rebound in 11 minutes).
“I mean, I think we have great shots. We missed them,” Akins said. «I really missed them all.»
But some encouraging words came from a surprising source considering his playing history with the Spartans: Kansas center and former Michigan star Hunter Dickinson, who had a career-high 28 points and 12 rebounds.
«We beat a Michigan State team that’s probably going to be ranked in the top 25. Obviously, they’re not there right now, but they’re a really good team,» Dickinson said when asked about the less-than-stellar Jayhawks. showing on Tuesday. “As he plays for Coach Izzo’s team, he will prepare them for the No. 1 in the country. We knew going in that we weren’t going to be able to blow them up. They’re playing really hard, they’re doing their thing. He is also a Hall of Fame coach. He will prepare his boys.”
Righting the wrongs becomes a priority for Izzo and his players when they return home to face Bowling Green on Saturday (6 p.m./BTN) and host Samford next Tuesday. It’s preparation before the Spartans head to the three-day Maui Invitational starting Nov. 25, where several top talents will be there, including two-time defending state champions Connecticut and North Carolina.
Hawaii’s three chances to show Tuesday’s near miss were a learning lesson rather than a lingering pattern before Big Ten play begins in early December.
“It’s definitely difficult. (Jayhawks) were supposed to be the No. 1 team. 1 in the country. And we didn’t play great, but we were there,” Akins said. «It shows that we have a pretty good team and room for improvement.»
Contact Chris Solari:csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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