Michigan State men's basketball played its 2023-2024 preseason opener Wednesday night with an exhibition game against Hillsdale. MSU easily came out on top with a final score of 85-43.
Following the game, Spartans Illustrated had the chance to catch up with freshman guard Jeremy Fears Jr. in the locker room after his inaugural game as a Spartan.
Fears started off by giving some points on what it is like to play under a Hall of Fame head coach in Tom Izzo.
"He just wants the best for you, the team, the program, the school," Fears said about Izzo. "He's coaching for something that's bigger than himself. I think he has been here for 28 or 29 years, so he has a lot of knowledge and knows what the plan is ... just trust in his process."
With this being his first game in the Green and White, exhibition or otherwise, Fears had a beaming review about what it meant to him to begin his college career
"It was great," Fears stated, simply. "Just being able to be out there with fans and the team in real jerseys ... something that I have never experienced. It seemed like the court is bigger and the rim is bigger ... words can't really describe how I feel right now, but I am just grateful to have the opportunity to be here to play for a Hall of Fame coach."
Fears shared that when he took the court for the first time, he got chills from hearing all of the fans in the Breslin Center erupt with cheers.
During Izzo's postgame press conference, he mentioned that he was impressed with Fears' ability to own up to mistakes in the heat of the game. When asked about it, Fears summarized the importance of taking accountability and making mistakes known right away — a quality Izzo has looked for in leaders of his teams in the past, especially at the point guard position.
Another heavily discussed topic with Izzo was Fears' visible exhaustion in the first half. Izzo noted that Hillsdale ran a lot of "motion" and that the Chargers did it "very well," but it wore down Fears and some of the other Spartans.
"Jeremy, he got tired chasing, he got tired pushing, and then got some sloppy turnovers," Izzo said about Fears. "But he knows it, and he'll do better."
To echo his coach's comments, Fears said, "I think i was a little gassed ... just trying to adjust and get into the flow. Once I get that, its gonna take a few games obviously, but when I finally get that and adjust, I think I'll be good."
Izzo noted that Fears had some struggles, including four turnovers, but he expected that out of his freshman guard in his first exhibition game. Overall, the head coach was pleased with how Fears played.
"I love Jeremy," Izzo said about Fears. "I've been probably as complimentary of Jeremy as anybody on our team, but tonight, he struggled a little bit, which is so normal. I mean, (it) didn't even faze me a bit because I knew he would (struggle). And yet, struggling a little bit, he still looked damn good to me. I mean, he still did some things that I see that's gonna make him a great, great guard.
"But he's just trying to figure it out, too, and he's playing with so many different guys, and that's gonna be a little bit of a challenge for these first couple weeks ahead of us. But I love Jeremy."
Fears played a total of 18 minutes and ended the game with two points, but he was strong as a facilitator. Fears tied senior point guard A.J. Hoggard for the team lead in assists on the night with eight, and had two rebounds and a steal.
Next up, Michigan State takes on Tennessee in a charity exhibition game to benefit the Maui Relief Fund on Sunday at 3:30 p.m Eastern Time at the Breslin Center.
Michigan State will open its regular season against James Madison on Monday, Nov. 6 at 8:30 p.m. from the Breslin Center.