EAST LANSING – Of all the recent rules changes in college sports Tom Izzo has disliked, there is one he truly has embraced.
Playing anyone, anywhere at any time – and not having it count against his record with Michigan State basketball.
For the second straight season, Izzo and the No. 6 Spartans will face Dan Hurley and No. 5 Connecticut in an exhibition game, with tipoff set for Breslin Center on Tuesday, Oct. 20 (7 p.m., BTN+).
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Last preseason, MSU went to Hartford, Connecticut, fell behind big and then rallied late in a 76-69 exhibition loss to UConn. But it wasn't the only time they met; Hurley’s Huskies ended the Spartans’ season with a 67-63 win in the Sweet 16 on March 27 in Washington.
“Like last year, it'll be a good test for us,” Izzo said Thursday, Oct. 15. “The problem now when you're playing these big exhibition games is you have to figure out what exhibition games are really for – to see what you have, to see how your team improved, to see what guys fit with what guys, to mix up the lineups, see who's improved – and get an idea.
“The great thing for me is getting an idea against a team and a coach that I know pretty well. I know Danny real well. We're both looking for the same thing – to see where our team's at.”
Izzo said Hurley called him after MSU’s win over Arkansas in last year's second regular-season game to give him some critique of what he saw during the exhibition game they played.
“We didn't play very well out there last year, and he called me a couple weeks later after we had beaten Arkansas or somebody really good, and said, ‘God, I was worried for you, because I thought your team was awful,’” Izzo said. “Only Danny could be honest like that. I would have said the same thing to him. I said, ‘We were awful, but you had something to do with it.’ But I knew we were better than what we played.
“That's part of the preseason. You've got to make sure you keep it all in perspective.”
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UConn, which advanced to April's national title game before losing to Michigan, opened its exhibition slate with a 72-52 win over Syracuse last Tuesday. Na'jai Hines had 17 points and eight rebounds, while Silas Demary Jr. scored 13 and Nik Khamenia 12. The Huskies will finish exhibition play against Purdue on Oct. 27.
MSU, which dismantled Incarnate Word, 89-59, on Oct. 2 at Breslin, has had a bit of a break between preseason games. It is the first time Izzo has three exhibition games on the slate, taking advantage of a recently enacted rule adding another chance for teams to get in work before the games count toward standings and NCAA Tournament resumes.
“We've already played one exhibition game, and we were OK,” Izzo said. “I thought our young guys really looked young the first time we put them in. Subbing by hockey lines is sometimes what I do, especially in the first exhibition game. It's not necessarily great for anybody, meaning our players – other than to get the definite opportunity to play.”
Izzo said he expects to mix up his lineup more against the Huskies and potentially again Sunday, when the Spartans head to Milwaukee, to face Shaka Smart’s Marquette on Sunday (1 p.m., YouTube). MSU opens the regular season against Quinnipiac on Nov. 2.
“I really respect what Shaka's done there,” Izzo said. “And I think it'll be a different test, but a good test for us before we start moving on.”
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State basketball has 1 goal in exhibition with UConn