EAST LANSING — March came early in East Lansing, as the No. 6 ranked Michigan State men’s basketball team faced No. 4 UConn on Wednesday, Oct. 21, in an exhibition that exposed the team’s weaknesses while testing its composure ahead of the season.
The Spartansfell 78-70 to the team that eliminated it from the 2026 NCAA Tournament in the Sweet 16 in a preseason exhibition matchup this week, and for head coach Tom Izzo and veteran players, this was the ultimate test to enter into the new season.
“Obviously, we’re here to play, to compete, to win every game, so you know the goal is obviously to win anytime you get to put on this Spartan jersey,” point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. said. “But at the same time, you kind of have to understand that we have a lot of guys who’ve never been in this position. So we want to make sure those guys are prepped and understand how we do things, and just trying to get those guys caught up to speed.”
The "new guys" Fears mentioned enter into the new season as the biggest question marks for the Spartans. One of the new additions to the team, senior transfer Anton Bonke, is especially under a microscope, holding the weight of replacing four-year Spartans Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper.
Bonke has struggled in the two exhibition games for the Spartans, benched in the second half of the UConn game.
“I just felt like I could tell that Anton was nervous as hell,” Izzo said. “I mean, he went into the second time for a minute. He just got tired immediately, and he’s in pretty good shape. It was a frustrating thing as a coach, but it just shows you that that was a hell of a crowd, that was a Sweet 16 game, just better because you’re home.”
Bonke isn’t the only one having the navigate this larger spotlight, however, as freshmen guard Carlos Medlock Jr. and forward Jasiah Jervis each are new to this high-intensity atmosphere that comes from such a premiere matchup.
Medlock mentioned how one of the biggest learning curves comes in understanding the pace and not losing control.
“You can really see how fast the game begins,” Medlock Jr. said. “It’s just learning how to control the game after coming in, especially coming in after a guy like Fears. It’s learning how to control the game sustainably, and if we’re down, just trying to be that sparkplug.”
All of these nerves are amplified even more for a college newcomer when facing an opponent who is just coming off a national championship game appearance.
“It was good that we played them,” Medlock Jr. said. “We’re going to have multiple games like that playing in one of the hardest conferences. You don’t have many games like that, so it’s just being ready for that moment and being ready for the game”
Navigating the newcomers' approach to a game like this, even if it’s just an exhibition, falls not only on Izzo, but also on the seasoned players such as Fears, who knows the role he has to play beyond the court with them.
UConn started the game punching early, which destabilized the Spartans. Navigating responses to those runs is one of the ways Fears has found a way to play as mentor.
“It’s hard,” Fears said. “Obviously you don’t really know much about it until you’ve been in a big run. So I think the best thing about that is just going through it. I think once you understand and you play through a big run, then maybe you finally get your own couple big runs. You start to understand the difference in the vibe and the feel of how valuable a good shot is, a bad shot is, or a foul, and how that can change the trajectory of the game.”
The season has yet to begin, which might be the bright spot in the midst of the adjustments from the newcomers. And as the season approaches, the question will be how the team develops through these kinks and who will step up through them.
The Spartans travel to Marquette on Sunday, Oct. 25, in its final exhibition game of the season before kicking the year off at home against Quinnipiac on Monday, Nov. 2.
Doug Doty is a freelance writer.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Michigan State newcomers put to test in exhibition loss to UConn