1. MSU’s exhibition win over Ferris State is revealing of lineup possibilities
EAST LANSING – Ferris State made Michigan State work for this win. There’s good and bad in that for the Spartans. The good being that the competitive nature of the game and the ways the Bulldogs pushed MSU revealed some things — strengths, concerns and, most of all, lineup possibilities.
I think MSU’s best lineup right now includes three players for sure: Jaden Akins, Coen Carr and Jaxon Kohler. The rest is TBD.
In Tuesday night’s 85-67 win at Breslin Center, Jeremy Fears Jr., Tre Holloman and Jase Richardson played big parts in pulling away when things got dicey in the second half.
The whole bit about Kohler being MSU’s best rebounder is clearly true. He had 11 rebounds, three offensive, in 21 minutes. It’s not just the numbers. He just seems to have a nose for it and doesn’t get pushed off the ball the way some others do. Kohler also had nine points. He’s going to have to be on the court for MSU a lot, which means he’ll be playing some center, too. He did Tuesday night in MSU’s three-guard lineup, with Coen Carr at power forward, as MSU steadied things in the second half.
Carr is a difference-making athlete. No longer just a spectacular one (More on him below).
MSU’s big guys, other than Kohler, had some tough moments. In their defense, Ferris State played several smaller lineups that were tough covers. Still, there are some rim-protection and rebound concerns.
Akins isn’t scoring a ton — he had three points on five shots, five rebounds and two assists in 23 minutes. We’ll see if that changes when the competition requires more from him offensively. But he’s the glue in a lot of ways out there.
Frankie Fidler, Holloman, Fears, Richardson, Xavier Booker, Szymon Zapala — you could make an argument for any of them right now. Fidler led MSU in scoring with 14 points, but didn’t have a rebound. Fears had eight assists and one turnover. I’d be a little surprised if he doesn’t remain the guy, but there’s competition. We’ll know soon enough, when the games count and MSU faces Kansas and then heads to Maui.
2. Coen Carr is going to be worth keeping an eye on — beyond the dunks
I’m fascinated by the season ahead for Coen Carr. I have a feeling that when push comes to shove, when a step up in competition makes MSU uncomfortable, Carr will more often than not be on the floor.
It’s a shame Tuesday night’s game was on BTN-plus, because Carr made some acrobatic plays — alley-oop dunks and almost alley-oop dunks — that were something even by his standards, including one in the first half on a pass from Tre Holloman that cannot be described with words. Later, he caught a pass that I was certain was going to land in my lap on the baseline and he nearly threw it down. Incredible stuff.
But it was the other stuff that I think bodes well for his season — being the first hand on an offensive rebound (several times), the drive and dish to Szymon Zapala for a dunk (that somehow didn’t stay in the basket), his cutting bucket off the glass on an inbound play, his step-around left-handed driving layup, his willingness to shoot the 3 (even when it’s blocked or an airball). He looks far more confident on both ends, like a guy who knows he has some physical advantages and he’s increasingly figuring out how and where to use them.
Carr finished with 12 points and four rebounds (keeping alive a couple more) in 21 minutes, playing both on the wing and — when things got tight in the second half — at power forward mostly alongside Jaxon Kohler at center as an effective pairing. All but 68 seconds of Carr’s time at power forward came with a three-guard lineup, without Frankie Fidler in the game. Against more sizable competition, I expect we’ll see Carr and Fidler together more. It may not be what Tom Izzo is saying the plan is now, but if those two wind up being part of MSU’s best five or best closing lineup — like I think they might — Carr will play plenty of power forward.
3. Freshman thoughts – the Ferris State edition
I don’t know if this is going to be an every-game part of the quick takes this season — unless Jase Richardson and/or Kur Teng are big parts of the rotation.
Richardson made an argument for it Tuesday in the second half. He was in with MSU’s most effective lineup which took control after Ferris State cut the difference to 49-43. Richardson had a fast-break layup and a corner 3 during the ensuing stretch as MSU took control. He was sound on the defensive end, too, and finished a team-best plus-19 in 10 minutes (a flawed stat but still; Kohler was next at plus-15). You could tell Izzo was happy with Richardson, who, after two exhibition games, looks like someone who will provide a spark, mostly off the ball, though he played some point guard in the first half.
Teng played three first-half minutes, missing two 3s and hitting two free throws. He was noticeable during that stretch. MSU often has a freshman who plays a three-minute stretch in the first half and, depending on the game state and his first-half performance, will or won’t see a similar stint in the second half. I think that’ll be Teng at the start of the season. Tuesday, with MSU in control, Teng played six minutes late and scored seven points down the stretch. For him, those are important minutes.
Jesse McCulloch played two first-half minutes and two more in garbage time. He had a nice block and outlet pass late. He’ll help this program at some point — he’s a big body with skill. I just don’t think it’ll be this season. We’ve probably seen the last of him in games until next year.
Contact Graham Couch at gcouch@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @Graham_Couch.
