MEN'S BASKETBALL Ferris State Preview

[Kevin Knight]

Sharing the MSU preview in this instance as it's for an exhibition game:

Michigan State Hosts Ferris State on Tuesday Night​

East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State's men's basketball team plays its final exhibition game before the start of the 2024-25 regular season on Tuesday, Oct. 29, hosting Ferris State at the Breslin Center.

The game tips off at 7 p.m. and will be streamed on B1G+, with Matt Merrifield handling the play-by-play, Jack Steger serving as the color analyst and Marin Klein on sidelines. The Spartan Media Network radio call can be heard state-wide and on the web at MSUSpartans.com, with Will Tieman handling the play-by-play, Matt Steigenga serving as the color analyst and Zach Surdenik is the studio host.

Northern Michigan Recap

• The Spartans played the first of two exhibition games this year on Sunday, Oct. 13, beating Northern Michigan, 70-53, in the Superior Dome Showdown in Marquette, Mich.
• Freshman guard Jase Richardson scored 11 points and sophomore forward Xavier Booker had 10 points as 11 different players scored for the Spartans.
• MSU shot 43.1 percent from the floor (22-of-51), including 51.9 percent (14-of-27) in the second half, and hit 47.1 percent of its 3-point field goals (8-of-17).
• The exhibition game was the first visit for 30th-year Michigan State Head Coach Tom Izzo to his alma mater … Izzo graduated from Northern Michigan in 1977.

About the Spartans

• Michigan State finished the 2023-24 season with a 20-15 overall record, including a 10-10 mark in the Big Ten Conference to finish tied for sixth place in the league.
• The Spartans were selected for the NCAA Tournament for the 26th-straight season, the longest streak in Big Ten Conference history, the third-longest in NCAA history and officially recognized by the NCAA as the longest active streak.
• MSU beat Mississippi State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before falling to North Carolina in the second round.
• The Spartans will replace four starters who accounted for 61.7 percent of the team's scoring last year, 48.6 percent of the team's rebounds and 64.2 percent of the team's assists, led by guard Tyson Walker (All-Big Ten Second Team).
• MSU returns three players who started games last year, led senior guard Jaden Akins, who finished fourth on the team in scoring with 10.4 points per game while adding 3.9 rebounds, 1.2 assists and tying for the team lead in 3-pointers made (64) … He was the only player to start all 35 games last year.
• Michigan State also returns seven letterwinners, and welcomes five newcomers, two transfers and three freshmen.
• Junior guard Tre Holloman emerged as a key player in the rotation as a sophomore, averaging 19.7 minutes per game while contributing 5.7 ppg, finishing second on the team with 2.4 apg and leading the team in 3-point field goal percentage (42.5%).
• Junior center Carson Cooper started the final four games of the season and appeared in all 35 games, averaging 3.4 points and 4.4 rebounds overall.

MSU Adds Two Transfers

• MSU welcomes in a pair of transfers in senior forward Frankie Fidler (Omaha) and senior center Szymon Zapala (Longwood/Utah State).
• Fidler, a 6-7, 217-pound forward, spent three years at Omaha and was named First Team All-Summit League in 2023-24 after averaging 20.1 points per game, 6.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.
• Fidler started all 33 games for the Mavericks, connecting on 45.2 percent of his field goals, 35.6 percent of his 3-point attempts and a team-best 85.4 percent of his free throws (216-of-253).
• Zapala comes to Michigan State after one season at Longwood University in Virginia, helping guide the team to a 21-14 record as the Lancers won the Big South Championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
• A 7-0, 240-pound center who hails from Poland, Zapala averaged 9.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in 16.7 minutes, connecting on 62.9 percent of his shots from the floor and starting in 23 of 35 games.

Three Newcomers Make Up Freshman Class

• The Spartans' recruiting class has been recognized nationally as one of the top-20 in the country (No. 16 by 247 Sports and No. 19 by ON3 Sports)
• The class includes guards Jase Richardson (the son of former Michigan State All-American Jason Richardson) and Kur Teng, along with forward Jesse McCulloch.

Michigan State Exhibition History

• Michigan State has played in-state exhibition games against 10 different schools in Michigan.
• The game against Ferris State on Tuesday night will be the fourth meeting between the schools.
• The teams last met on Oct. 27, 2021, a 92-58 Michigan State win at the Breslin Center.
• Gabe Brown led the Spartans with 19 points, while then-freshman guard Max Christie scored 17 points.
• Current senior guard Jaden Akins played 14 minutes off the bench, scoring 3 points, grabbing 3 rebounds and handing out 3 assists.
• Previous meetings were in 2017 (80-72 MSU win), 2015 (94-53 MSU win) and in 2011 (85-58 MSU).

Preview courtesy of MSU Athletics.