1. Offense is MSU’s main concern. The Spartans need more from Carr and Kohler.
HARTFORD, Conn. — The last time Tom Izzo coached a game at the old Hartford Civic Center, Antonio Smith was manning the paint, calling out Princeton’s backdoor plays and cleaning up the glass in the second round of the 1998 NCAA tournament, Izzo’s first.
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His second trip here won’t be a core memory.
The good news for Michigan State’s men’s basketball team is that Tuesday night’s 76-69 loss at Connecticut doesn’t count, and that nothing that happens in October in college basketball defines a season. It’s better to see that you’ve got a long way to go in an exhibition against one of the sport’s behemoths rather than in the Champions Classic, as we’ve seen some years.
The bad news for MSU is that Tuesday night still happened, and as of Oct. 28, the Spartans have some shortcomings. Notably half-court offense, defense, defensive rebounding and turnovers. Otherwise, they’re ready for March.
I wouldn’t be all that concerned — yet — about the defensive rebounding. Rebounding is a lot mindset and technique. There are some good rebounders on this team. Others will get there or they won’t play as much. You saw marked improvement in the second half, when UConn had two second-chance points on four offensive boards, after having 15 points on eight offensive rebounds in the first 20 minutes.
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Defensively, MSU looks like a team with a lot of new players in new roles — some of whom won’t be in those roles when games start counting. Some of these lineups you’ll likely never see again. Izzo’s Hall of Fame elbow-block-help defense is a lot about trust. This team has a ways to go on that front, at least beyond its main returners. You can see it.
The concern should be the other end, especially in the half-court, where everything for the Spartans right now is a chore. MSU has to find ways to get more out of its shooting guards and more fluid offense from Coen Carr and Jaxon Kohler. Kohler got some work done at the line Tuesday, with eight of his 10 points coming there. He also had 12 rebounds and helped steady the Spartans there in the second half. He was a physical force on the glass in the second half. A year ago, that would be a heckuva game. MSU needs more from him now. More touches, more scoring, more than 1-for-5 shooting.
Carr turned an ankle early Tuesday, so maybe that impacted him. But other than one baseline 3-pointer, he struggled to find any sort of rhythm offensively (despite 11 points) and didn’t have many opportunities in transition. When MSU settles on a more regular rotation, he might find it easier to get in sync. MSU needs more from him, though — and more on the glass. Carr had two rebounds. That won’t do. He just didn’t impact the game nearly enough.
MSU’s best offense was Jeremy Fears Jr. attacking and getting to the line (14 points, 10-for-13 free throws, six assits) and Fears working a pick-and-roll and lob game with Carson Cooper (12 points, 10 rebounds). Those two together are in midseason form. But the Spartans’ shooting stats tell the story — 4-for-14 from deep, 18-for-46 from the floor overall. There’s just not enough easy offense right now. Fears was pretty, but how the offense looks overall is his responsibility this year.
MSU’s Jeremy Fears Jr. is defended by Connecticut’s Silas Demary Jr. and Dwayne Koroma during the first half of an NCAA men’s basketball exhibition at PeoplesBank Arena on October 28, 2025 in Hartford, Connecticut.
2. Freshman and newcomer thoughts — the UConn exhibition edition
It was a tough night for MSU freshman Cam Ward, who had one point and one rebound in 21 minutes. I think this is the kind of game that’ll serve him well, making him realize the level he needs to reach to be a factor. I’d be surprised if he’s not.
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MSU’s other true freshman, Jordan Scott, had a good second half. He had a 3-pointer (six points overall) and four rebounds and showed some grit in the second half. His role, I think, will be pretty limited, but his second half Tuesday was promising.
The other notable showings from MSU’s newcomers came from transfer Divine Ugochukwu and Trey Fort. Ugochukwu, who finished with five points, one assist, one steal and two turnovers in 15 minutes, had some good moments on both ends, including an early 3 when MSU couldn’t find any offense and a steal that could have been a highlight, if he didn’t lose the ball out of bounds. If Kur Teng struggles as he did Tuesday, Ugochukwu will have a role at both guard spots.
Fort’s 3 was MSU’s first made basket. He finished with eight points. He’s a confident, capable, solid player. He’s not MSU’s problem offensively right now. But that shooting guard spot has to be better overall.
3. A bad night for my 6-foul argument
If there is one hill I plan to die on in this world, it’s that college basketball shouldn’t foul out players until they have a sixth foul. Too many stars spend too much time on the bench saddled with foul trouble. Too many bad calls send them there.
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The argument against the six-foul rule is that the game would get too physical. There’d be too many fouls called. Hogwash, I say.
Tuesday night’s game did not help my argument. MSU and UConn played this game with the six-foul rule. There were 28 fouls in the first half. Not to be outdone by the second half, when there were 29. Some of it was a whistle-happy officiating crew that could have let them play a little more. Some of it was a couple handsy teams. It was a tough watch.
Only one player fouled out, UConn’s Dwayne Koroma. The Huskies’ Malachi Smith had five fouls in 15 minutes. No MSU player had more than four, though Kohler was able to stay in the game after picking up a second foul with five minutes left until halftime.
I stand by my argument. But Tuesday was a decent counterargument.
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Contact Graham Couch at gcouch@lsj.com. Follow him on X @Graham_Couch and BlueSky @Graham_Couch.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU basketball falls 76-69 at UConn in exhibition: 3 quick takes
