It was undoubtedly a bit of a rough start to the season for the Michigan State men's basketball team, but things seemed to have finally turned a corner for the Spartans.
Backs against the wall, MSU delivered a 24-point smackdown of the then sixth-ranked Baylor Bears at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, which the team followed up with a wall-to-wall, no-doubter against an Oakland team that gave both Ohio State and Illinois fits for 30-plus minutes earlier in the season. Before heading home for the holidays, the Spartans dominated a bad Stony Brook team with a near-100-point offensive outing, ultimately winning 99-55.
With eight days off before an 11-1 Indiana State team heads into East Lansing, the squad appeared to have found some of the missing mojo during this three-game winning streak that had been lacking to kick off the year.
Unfortunately, the feel good vibes were rapidly replaced with dread, as news broke on Dec. 23 that freshman point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. was shot in the left leg while at a friend's home in Joliet, Illinois. While, thankfully, the bullet narrowly avoided his artery and the injury was never considered life-threatening, by all accounts, it appears that his freshman season is likely done.
There’s little doubt, given his mental makeup, that Fears Jr. will return in full force this offseason, hungrier than ever, and with the reins to next year’s team firmly in his hand -- but in the here and now it’s very clearly a substantial loss.
On Thursday, head coach Tom Izzo said that Fears will come back to the team on Friday (Dec. 29) and will continue his rehab in East Lansing. Izzo mentioned that he was unsure if Fears will be on the bench for Saturday's game versus Indiana State, and that the timeline for the freshman point guard's recovery is unclear as of right now.
Averaging over 15 minutes per game (MPG), Fears statistical production (3.5 points per game, 3.3 assists per game, 1.9 rebounds per game) may be replaceable, but his calm presence, his defensive prowess at the point of attack, and his overall leadership will be greatly missed. And while we at Spartans Illustrated -- and everyone across all of Spartan Nation -- wish Jeremy a full and speedy recovery, we also need to touch on the practical aspect of him no longer being able to suit up this year.
So, let’s dive into the recent play of the Spartans and how best to fill the large gap that Fears’ injury creates for the roster.
Guard Play Surging
The preseason idea of Michigan State’s ability to impose its guard depth on opposing rosters was FINALLY gaining steam down this most recent stretch of hoops. Point guard A.J. Hoggard — after a brutal three-game start to begin the season where he averaged just 5.0 points per game (PPG) and shot 19.2% from the field — slowly has returned to form.
Over his last nine games, Hoggard is averaging 12.8 PPG, 5.1 APG (assists per game) to 1.9 TOV (turnovers per game), 3.6 RPG (rebounds per game) and 1.4 SPG (steals per game). He also put together 50/38.9/78.8 shooting splits (overall shooting percentage, 3-point percentage and free-throw percentage), and most importantly over the last three games, is putting in complete performances from start to finish. He has gotten back to his downhill punishing ways, and the team as a whole has begun to eat around him as his confidence has returned.
