Returning Players: Jaxon Kohler, Carson Cooper, Jesse McCulloch, Brennan Walton, Colin Walton
Departed Players: Xavier Booker (transfer), Szymon Zapala (graduation)
Transfers In: None
Recruits In: Cam Ward
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Welcome back to our 2025-26 Michigan State Basketball preview series. Your preseason 22nd ranked Spartans opened the season Thursday night with a 75-66 victory over Bowling Green in a preseason exhibition. Today we will round out our look at the roster with a deep dive into Michigan State’s frontcourt, both at the Power Forward (4) and Center (5) positions. This season MSU returns much of its production at both frontcourt positions, with seniors Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper back for their fourth year in the green and white. Jesse McCulloch will suit up for the first time this season after redshirting a season ago, along with the highly regarded 4-star true freshman in Cam Ward who will battle for meaningful minutes in the rotation.
Jaxon Kohler led the charge a year ago, playing an average of 20.8 minutes per game, primarily at the 4 but also spending some time at the 5 in small-ball lineups. Carson Cooper is next, averaging 17.1 minutes a game at the center spot, with the now-alum Szymon Zapala not far behind at 14.2. MSU will have to replace the 12.8 minutes provided by Xavier Booker, who will suit up for a different Big Ten team in the UCLA Bruins this season. Let’s take a look at the new rotation of bigs that Coach Izzo and staff have to utilize on the court during this 2025-26 campaign.
Jaxon Kohler (#0, Senior, 6’9” 245lbs)
Dubbed the “Mormon Mamba” coming out of High School in American Fork, Utah, and “The Kohler Bear” by TOC, Jaxon has played key minutes for MSU in every year since arriving in East Lansing and shown steady improvement in each. This year, Jax will take on a new name for the first time: Captain.
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After battling injuries in the early part of his Spartan career, Kohler appeared in all 37 of Michigan State’s games a season ago. Improved defense and rebounding is what has allowed Kohler to earn minutes at both the Power Forward and Center spots, leading the team in 24-25 with 7.5 rebounds a game. Kohler also ranked 6th in the conference last season with 2.51 offensive rebounds per game, displaying a unique knack for being around the ball at the right place and the right time.
Defensively is where Jaxon has made the biggest strides in his time at MSU, which was especially on display on last year’s squad. He showed both versatility and tenacity, a plus defender in guarding anyone from quicker stretch 4s out on the three point line to bigger post players down low. The 6’9” forward has begun to develop himself into a classic Izzo big on the defensive end, and still has room to grow.
On the offensive end, despite only averaging 7.8 ppg in 2024-25, Jaxon has shown flashes of being even more of a featured scorer on every level. With his patented crisp footwork in the post (that every announcer feels the need to mention), and improved jump shot in both the midrange and three point game, The Kohler Bear will need to be one of the focal points of the offense for this year’s team. Expect a heavy dose of Kenny Goins-esque trailer three pointers, post moves, and pick and rolls from Jax in 2025-26. How far can #0 go?
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Carson Cooper (#15, Senior, 6’11” 245 lbs)
Coop is back for more in his fourth season in the green and white, and, similarly to Jaxon Kohler, his first as a captain. The IMG Academy product and late signee was thrust into playing time likely earlier than planned in his career at MSU, and will bring a wealth of experience and size to this year’s lineup. A season ago Carson averaged 5 points and 5.2 rebounds, primarily coming off of the bench until later in the season. Despite losing some starts to Szymon Zapala in 24-25, Cooper was often the trusted big man that Coach Izzo went to down the stretch late in games. This season, Spartan fans can expect to see a lot more of Coop from the opening tip, and hopefully with a more diversified skillset.
Speaking of which, this off-season, Cooper has been working on developing a serviceable jump shot. Check out the big man step out and knock down the trey at about the 22 second mark of this video.
If my eyes do not deceive me, and this is not Artificial Intelligence from the MSU Social Media team, (you can never be too sure these days), the near 7-footer has put together a smooth stroke from deep since we last saw him in March.
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In the past, Carson has done the dirty work for Spartan basketball: defending, rebounding, setting hard screens, and being rewarded with the occasional lob. But if Coop can turn himself into even a minor threat from beyond the arc, it could do wonders for MSU’s offensive rhythm and spacing. After 3 years now of seeing defenders give him five to six feet of cushion on dribble hand-offs, State fans would love to see the veteran Cooper make them pay in his senior season.
Jesse McCulloch (#35, RS Freshman, 6’10” 240 lbs)
Here’s where the experience of the Spartan bigs drops off a cliff. While the Cleveland, Ohio native has spent a redshirt year in the program, he will be seeing his first live game experience in the 2025-26 season. Also of note, Jesse battled a lower body injury this summer, spending some time in a walking boot. (Editor’s note: McCulloch showed no signs of this injury in Thursday night’s exhibition, looked to be at 100% or close to it). So what does JMC bring to the table?
As the runner-up in 2024’s Ohio Mr. Basketball sweepstakes, McCulloch has a unique skillset for his size. Heralded as a top-100 recruit according to ESPN, Jesse not only brings a strong post presence, but can and will knock down jumpers from the outside (as Thursday’s Exhibition showed). My question for Jesse: how quickly can you adjust to the physicality and pace of play in the Big Ten? With a year practicing against Cooper, Kohler and Zapala, hopefully the learning curve is less steep for the redshirt freshman. McCulloch will certainly be challenging for minutes, at worst being another body to throw at some of the dominant interior players across the conference, at best being a reliable depth piece who provides a new feather in the cap for the Spartan offense. Only time will tell for #35.
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Cam Ward (#3, Freshman, 6’8”, 225 lbs)
Rather than finishing out the year with the lowly Tennessee Titans, the former University of Miami QB has decided to give roundball a try. *Checks notes* Scratch that. This is a DIFFERENT Cam Ward, this one about 4 years younger, 6 inches taller and hailing from Upper Marlboro, Maryland.
The shining star of MSU’s 2025 recruiting class, the former 46th-best ranked prospect arrives to East Lansing eager to scratch the rotation early, and certainly has the skillset to do so. A “Bull in a china closet” according to Tom Izzo, Ward averaged just under 30 ppg in high school. Cam put together an impressive tape that includes not only the dazzling offensive highlights that big-time recruits often boast of, but also some serious ‘bite the floor’ gritty defense. He projects as a prototypical Michigan State power forward, and will likely be able to spell Jaxon Kohler at the 4 or step in when Jax slides to the 5. With the second longest wingspan on the team, Cam Ward has turned heads all summer on both ends of the floor, and is certainly an intriguing piece with a very high ceiling. The question is how quickly can he develop into a weapon for the Spartans. Can he be this year’s surprise breakout star, like Jase Richardson a year ago?
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(Editor’s note: After the exhibition versus Bowling Green, Izzo remarked “I was really impressed with Cam, he will be phenomenal.” A strong debut for the rookie on Thursday night.)
The Walton Twins (Brennan- #40, Colin- #43. Both RS Freshman, 6’7” 220 lbs)
Rounding out Michigan State’s 25-26 big men, we have the redshirt freshmen Walton twins. A couple of local standouts from Okemos High School, the pair are one of ten sets of twins in Division I college basketball. Brennan and Colin will most likely serve similar roles as they did a season ago, spending 24-25 as key members of the scout team, preparing the starting forwards for looks from opponents that they would see throughout the season.
In an off-season interview, Colin spoke to just how much he was able to grow last season, being a part of the program: “Basketball aside, my athleticism increased so much. We came in here before every game day and we’d lift before the game. One of the biggest benefits of being around the program is that we (he and Brennan) could just increase our athleticism. For a lot of guys at college level, athleticism is key.”
Not only valuable in the personal development of the twins, but having bigger, stronger, and quicker scout team bigs to go against is hugely important for the development and preparation of guys like Carson Cooper and Jaxon Kohler, and the team as whole. This year, without the redshirt tag, the Walton twins will look to play their first collegiate minutes, and take advantage of any opportunities they may get. Hoping to see some late game Brennan and Colin action this season, and befuddle opposing teams with their identicality.
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Overall, MSU returns a ton of experience with Kohler and Cooper at both big man positions. The development of these two, especially on the offensive end, will prove vital in whether or not the Spartans can once again be a threat come March. Behind the two vets, I would not be surprised to see a lot of Cam Ward and Jesse McCulloch off the bench, especially in the non-conference season. It is likely that we will be seeing one or even both of the duo in Izzo’s primary rotation, even once Big Ten play starts up, in a similar “Strength in Numbers” mentality to last year’s squad.
How do you see the minutes divided up amongst the bigs? Now that we’ve previewed the entire roster, how do you think the starting lineup/substitutions will shake out as the season rolls on? Let us know down in the comments.
