Michigan State basketball defeats Grand Valley State in exhibition, 73-56: Game thread replay
Exhibition: Michigan State basketball (23-13 in 2021-22) vs. Grand Valley State (17-11 in 2021-22 Division II)
When: 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Where: Breslin Center, East Lansing.
TV: Big Ten Network Plus (online-only).
Radio: WJR-AM (760).
More:Michigan State basketball vs. Grand Valley State: 5 things to watch in exhibition game
Game notes: Coach Tom Izzo’s 28th season in charge of the Spartans almost-but-not-officially tips off tonight at Breslin Center. (The official season opener comes Monday with a visit from Northern Arizona.)
This will be the Division II Lakers’ third exhibition against a D-I squad, after a 92-76 loss to Oakland on Oct. 20 and am 85-69 loss to Eastern Michigan on Oct. 27. Keep an eye on freshman Jalen Charity, who averaged 10.5 points in the two exhibitions, as well as Chinedu Kingsley Okanu. The transfer from Northern Illinois had 11 points in the Lakers’ loss to the Eagles and averaged 6.3 points in MAC play with the Huskies last season.
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The Spartans are coming off another season in the NCAA tournament, though they were knocked out in the second round in a close-fought game against Duke in March. Gabe Brown, Marcus Bingham and Max Christie are departed from that team, but hopes are still high with Tyson Walker and A.J. Hoggard set to run the point and Jaden Akins ready to improve in his sophomore season (once he’s fully healthy).
Izzo opted not to bring in any high-profile transfers, which leaves the Spartans with just 10 scholarship players. While the backcourt is a clear strength, and Joey Hauser and Malik Hall are experienced at forward. At center, however, junior Mady Sissoko is looking to take a step up, and the Spartans will look to integrate freshmen Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper into Izzo’s system and the level of Big Ten play.
After GVSU and NAU, the competition level will take a bit of a leap for the Spartans; they’ll face No. 2 Gonzaga (Nov. 11), No. 4 Kentucky (Nov. 15) and No. 17 Villanova (Nov. 18) in an eight-day span in San Diego (on the USS Abraham Lincoln), Indianapolis and East Lansing, respectively.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State basketball defeats GVSU, 73-56: Game thread
