The first phase of Tom Izzo’s 31st season looks much like many of his previous Michigan State basketball nonconference schedules.
Some blueblood opponents. Some local flavor. Some old faces in new places.
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And some big-time visitors to Breslin Center this winter.
Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo shakes hands guard Jeremy Fears Jr. (1) as he walks off the bench during the second half at Breslin Center in East Lansing on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025.
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The Spartans will open with a pair of exhibition games, the first on Oct. 23 against Bowling Green, where former Izzo point guard Tum-Tum Nairn is the associate head coach. They’ll then play a rare road exhibition game against 2023 and 2024 national champion Connecticut on Oct. 28 in Storrs, Connecticut.
MSU tips off the regular season with three straight home games, opening against Colgate on Nov. 3 before a Nov. 8 visit from John Calipari and Arkansas that is part of a home-and-home series. The Spartans return the visit to Fayetteville next season.
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Other major highlights include the Nov. 18 game against Kentucky in the Champions Classic at Madison Square Garden in New York. MSU will face North Carolina on Nov. 27 in Florida as part of the Fort Myers Tip-Off. And the Spartans welcome Duke to Breslin on Dec. 6, which is a return game for moving the 2020 Champions Classic from a neutral site to the fan-free Blue Devils’ Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Izzo will face two in-state foes in the nonconference slate, starting with a Nov. 21 visit from Detroit and coach Mark Montgomery, a former MSU point guard and Izzo assistant. The Spartans also will head to Little Caesars Arena to face his good friend Greg Kampe and Oakland on Dec. 20, the 13th straight year the two programs will face each other and their fourth time at LCA.
Four of the 11 opponents played in the NCAA tournament last season, while MSU went 30-7 and advanced to Izzo’s 11th Elite Eight after winning his record-tying 11th regular-season Big Ten title.
Times and television for games, along with the 20-game Big Ten schedule, will be announced at a later date. Here is the complete list of MSU’s nonconference opponents (*exhibition game).
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Oct. 23 Bowling Green*
Oct. 28 at Connecticut*
Nov. 3 Colgate
Nov. 8 Arkansas
Nov. 13 San Jose State
Nov. 18 vs. Kentucky (Champions Classic, New York)
Nov. 21 Detroit
Nov. 25 East Carolina (Fort Myers Tip-Off in Fort Myers, Florida)
Nov. 27 East Carolina (Fort Myers Tip-Off in Fort Myers, Florida)
Dec. 6 Duke
Dec. 16 Toledo
Dec. 20 vs. Oakland (Little Caesars Arena, Detroit)
Dec. 29 Cornell
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State basketball nonconference schedule 2025-26 season
