Skip to main content
Michigan State
Join Now

V-Cast: Michigan State has work to do coming off tough loss to No. 4 Duke

On3 imageby: Paul Konyndyk17 hours agoPKonyndyk

EAST LANSING – Michigan State let a golden opportunity for a win against No. 4 Duke at home on Saturday in game where Michigan State had some loose screws in some areas including free-throw line cutouts.

Hall of Fame head coach Tom Izzo was disappointed that his team came up lacking in fundamentals in a 66-60 loss.  Spartan players, meanwhile, are determined to use their first loss as fuel for self-improvement.

Afterward, SpartanMag staffers Jim Comparoni and Paul Konyndyk checked in from courtside at the Breslin Center with the latest V-Cast.

V-CAST TOPICS

Missed Opportunity: Michigan State played well enough defensively to beat Duke at Breslin Center, but the Spartans didn’t get the critical buckets in the final minutes of this game needed to extend their winning streak. Izzo was vocal in his disappointment that his team came up short in areas like free-throw line cutouts against Duke. The Spartans also struggled to get offensive production late in the second half when Duke went to a zone defense as a result of foul trouble.

Shooting guard: Michigan State struggled to get production at the shooting guard position with either starter Kur Teng or back-up Trey Fort. Teng and Fort made a combined 1-for-7 shots against the Blue Devils. Teng got good looks early in this game. Fort struggled to get good looks against Duke’s length. His only bucket came on lob dunk. Jordan Scott played the best game of Michigan State’s shooting guards. The freshman hit two big threes and contributed five rebounds in the loss.

Getting Better: Michigan State needs to use upcoming games against Toledo and Oakland to make strides in areas that need to be better. The Spartans need to figure out the best way forward at the two. Michigan State also needs to use its remaining non-conference games to get more production out of its fastbreak. One way to get more out of the fastbreak is to use the remaining non-conference games to get back-up point guard Divine Ugochukwu more minutes pushing tempo.

Football: Pete Thamel broke news on Saturday that Michigan State football coach Pat Fitzgerald would be retaining defensive assistant coaches Joe Rossi and James Adams from Jonathan Smith’s coaching staff. Rossi is a veteran defensive coach with a strong background in the Big Ten at Minnesota and Rutgers prior to Michigan State. It is unclear if Rossi will continue in his current role as a defensive coordinator or if he will be a position coach on Fitzgerald’s staff. Adams coached safeties for the Spartan defense in 2025, after serving as the safeties coach at Wake Forest the previous season. Prior to Wake Forest, Adams served as corners coach at Purdue.   

You may also like