No. 17 Michigan State Hosts San Jose State on Thursday Night at the Breslin Center

East Lansing, Mich. – In a battle among Spartans, Michigan State's men's basketball team wraps up a three-game homestand to start the 2025-26 regular season, hosting San Jose State on Thursday, Oct. 13 (6:30 p.m., BTN). Michigan State is coming off a thrilling 69-66 win over No. 14 Arkansas on Saturday night, with freshman forward Cam Ward led MSU with his first career double-double (18 points, 10 rebounds).

The game will be streamed on BTN, with Kevin Kugler and former Spartan All-American Steve Smith calling all of the action. 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 as the studio host. The game can also be heard on channels 106 or 195 on SiriusXM or on the SiriusXM app.

About the Spartans

Michigan State finished the 2024-25 season with a 30-7 overall record, including a 17-3 mark in the Big Ten Conference, winning the league's regular season title by three games.
It was the 11th time Big Ten regular season title under Head Coach Tom Izzo.
The Spartans were selected to the NCAA Tournament for the 27th-straight season and advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the 11th time, finishing the year ranked No. 7 in the Associated Press Top 25.
MSU Head Coach Tom Izzo enters his 31st season at the helm of the program he has been with for more than 40 years, including his time as an assistant coach.
The Spartans will look to replace three starters and four letterwinners who accounted for 63.5 percent of the team's scoring last year, 41.8 percent of the team's rebounds and 52.3 percent of the team's assists … Notable losses included guards Jaden Akins (All-Big Ten Third Team, All-Defensive Team) and Jase Richardson (All-Big Ten Third Team, All-Freshman Team).
The cupboard is not bare, by any stretch, as the team welcomes back senior forward Jaxon Kohler and redshirt sophomore point guard Jeremy Fears Jr., as well as a talented group of returning players and newcomers.
Kohler started 34 of 37 games last year, averaging 7.8 ppg and was among the top-10 in rebounding in the Big Ten (7.5 rpg), while Fears started 36 times, averaging 7.2 ppg, was third in the Big Ten in assists (5.4 apg) and was No. 8 nationally in assist rate (38.9%).
The Spartans also welcome back junior forward Coen Carr, one of the most athletic players in all of college basketball … He averaged 8.1 ppg and 3.6 rpg last year, along with senior center Carson Cooper, who added 5.0 ppg and 5.2 rpg.
Sophomore guard Kur Teng and redshirt freshman forward Jesse McCulloch are expected to play significant minutes in the rotation this coming year.
Teng appeared in 19 games last year as a freshman, averaging 3.1 minutes per contest, while McCulloch was a key part of MSU's scout team during the run to the Elite Eight.

Spartans Stand Strong as No. 22 Michigan State Beats No. 14 Arkansas, 69-66

Freshman forward Cam Ward had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds and three players scored in double figures as No. 22 Michigan State pulled away from No. 14 Arkansas in a 69-66 win at the Breslin Center on Saturday night.
Ward hit 8-of-13 shots from the floor and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds for his first career double-double, while junior forward Coen Carr had 15 points and seven rebounds, senior forward Jaxon Kohler had 10 points and seven rebounds and redshirt sophomore guard Jeremy Fears Jr. added four points, three rebound and nine assists.

Spartans vs. Spartans

Thursday's game against San Jose State features two of the five NCAA Division I schools who share the Spartans nickname.
In addition to Michigan State and San Jose State, other Spartans include UNC Greensboro, USC Upstate and Norfolk State.
Michigan State has only played San Jose State, winning all three previous meetings.

About San Jose State

San Jose State enters the game on Thursday with an 0-2 record following losses at Utah (84-75) and at UC Santa Barbara (85-74) to open the season.
The Spartans, under the direction of fifth-year head coach Tim Miles, were selected to play in the National Invitation Tournament last year, finishing the year with a 15-20 overall record.
San Jose State was picked to finish in 10th place in the Mountain West Conference.
The Spartans return just three players who saw playing time and 19.4 percent of their scoring, while adding six different players from the transfer portal and five freshmen.
Junior guard Colby Garland leads the team in scoring with 25.5 ppg, including a career-best 30 points at UC Santa Barbara on Saturday.
San Jose State is averaging 74.5 points per game and shooting 48.7 percent from the floor through two games, while yielding 84.5 ppg with opponents shooting 53.5 percent.

Against the Spartans

Thursday's game against San Jose State is the fourth all-time meeting between the programs.
Michigan State leads the all-time series, 3-0, with all three previous meetings being played at the Breslin Center.
The Spartans won the last meeting, 85-45, at the Breslin Center on Dec. 19, 2007, with current MSU graduate manager Goran Suton scoring 11 points (5-of-8 FG), while adding four steals and four blocks.
MSU won the second meeting, 75-72, topping then-No. 25 Arkansas in the Great Eight in Auburn Hills during Tom Izzo's first season as Head Coach at Michigan State.

No. 17 Michigan State Hosts San Jose State on Thursday Night at the Breslin Center

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jaden Akins

Coen Carr

Carson Cooper

Jeremy Fears Jr.

Jaxon Kohler

Jesse McCulloch

Jase Richardson

Kur Teng

Cam Ward

No. 17 Michigan State Hosts San Jose State on Thursday Night at the Breslin Center

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Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jaden Akins

Coen Carr

Carson Cooper

Jeremy Fears Jr.

Jaxon Kohler

Jesse McCulloch

Jase Richardson

Kur Teng

Cam Ward

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