Michigan State (5-2) will play in its final game of the Maui Invitational tonight against the North Carolina Tar Heels (4-2).

Tip off is set for approximately 9:30 p.m. on ESPN2.

Stay tuned here for live updates and game discussion here in the game thread.

At first the Spartans dominated, then they almost squandered a golden opportunity. But after 5 minutes of bonus basketball, Michigan State beats UNC in OT, 94-91, to claim third place in Maui.

Check out the recap here:

This is only the third meeting between the teams.​

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. - Michigan State women's basketball will hit the road for the Thanksgiving break heading to Palm Springs, California for the Acrisure Classic Nov. 26-27. The Spartans open action against the Cal Bears on Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 2 p.m. ET.

• The Spartans have started the season 6-0 for the first time under head coach Robyn Fralick, along with the second time in the last three years, as part of the third time in the last five seasons, joining the 2022-23 and 2020-21 seasons.

• Cal is off to a fast start with a 6-0 record this season. Last time out, the Bears defeated Auburn 63-59 on Nov. 22. The Spartans and the Bears have a limited history only playing twice. The series is tied 1-1 with MSU winning the last meeting in 1996.

• The Spartans have three players averaging in double figures led by junior forward Grace VanSlooten, who is averaging 16.6 ppg. Graduate guard/forward Julia Ayrault is second in scoring with 13.6 ppg, while junior guard Theryn Hallock is third with 12.8 ppg.

• Michigan State is first in the nation in scoring margin through six games this season (+50.5). MSU also stands second in the nation and first in the Big Ten in assists per game, averaging 23.2 apg. On the defensive side of the ball, MSU is third in steaks per game, averaging 16.8 spg.

SCOUTING CALIFORNIA
California is off to a fast start with a 6-0 record. The Bears have a pair of road wins against San Jose State and Gonzaga. Last time out on Nov. 22, Cal edged out a 63-59 win over Auburn on Nov. 22.

The Bears have four players averaging in double figures, led by Lulu Twidale who is scoring 18.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. Ioanna Krimili is second with 16.0 ppg. Kayla Williams and Marta Suarez are scoring 12.7 and 11.8 ppg, respectively. As a team, Cal is averaging 82.5 ppg, while allowing only 55.7 ppg.

Charmin Smith is in her sixth season at the helm of the Bears. She holds an overall career record of 62-80.

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE BEARS
Michigan State and Cal have a very brief history with the series tied 1-1. In 1988 in Berkeley, Cal came out on top 64-54. In the only other meeting, Michigan State defeated Cal on the road, 93-62, in Berkeley.

LOOKING AHEAD
Following the game against the Bears, Michigan State will take on either Arizona or Vanderbilt. The Spartans don't have a very extensive history with either team. MSU is 1-1 against Arizona with the last meeting coming in 2004. Both team has won one neutral site meeting.

MSU holds a slight 2-1 advantage over Vanderbilt. The last meeting was in the NCAA Tournament in 2005 with the Spartans coming out out on top, 76-64.

Arizona
1/2/93 Tempe, Ariz. L, 46-89
3/21/04 Austin, Texas W, 72-60
Series tied 1-1 (N: 1-1)

Vanderbilt
1/15/97 East Lansing W, 82-51
12/3/97 Nashville L, 51-63
3/27/05 Kansas City W, 76-64
MSU leads 2-1 (H: 1-0, A: 0-1, N: 1-0)

WELCOME TO THE ACRISURE CLASSIC
The Acrisure Classic is a part of the Acrisure Series, the country's largest MTE series, (multiple team event) which will be held at the beautiful new 11,000-seat Acrisure Arena. The Acrisure Classic boasts some of the nation's strongest programs as Arizona, Vanderbilt and Michigan State all made the 2024 NCAA Tournament.

BY THE NUMBERS VS. UDM
• All 20 points scored by Michigan State in the fourth quarter was scored by freshmen off the bench, including forward Helen Holley netting her first career points with a lay-up. Guard Kennedy Blair added seven points, while forward Juliann Woodard scored 10. MSU's bench out-scored its counterparts from Detroit Mercy, 42-27.

• The Spartan defense held Detroit Mercy to 44 points, tying for the second-fewest points allowed behind 42 points done twice, most recently last time out vs. Western Michigan (11/17/24) and matching holding Oakland to 42 points in the season-opener on Nov. 5. Michigan State's defense has limited the opposition under 50 points for the fifth game through six contests this season.

STINGY DEFENSE
MSU held Detroit Mercy to eight points in the first quarter and eight points the fourth frame on Nov. 20, as the Spartans have now stymied the opposition to single-digits in at least one quarter of all six games, as part of in 10 quarters out of the 24 total quarters played. MSU has posted multiple quarters with single-figure scoring in four of the six games this season.

AROUND THE BIG TEN
Michigan State is first in the Big Ten in scoring offense, averaging 96.3 points per game, just ahead of Ohio State's 92.8 ppg. The Spartans are also tied for first in the league in scoring defense, allowing only 45.8 ppg. MSU is also tied for second in the league in assists with 23.4 apg and are first in steals with 16.8. The Spartans are first in turnover margin, forcing +14.5 per game.

AROUND THE NATION
After just six games, the Spartans are first in the nation scoring margin, winning games by 50.5 points. Michigan State is second in the NCAA and first in the Big Ten in assists per game with 23.2 apg. MSU is also seventh in bench points with 39.8 bench points per contest. Michigan State stands fourth and first in the Big Ten in scoring margin, winning games by 49.2 ppg.

LAST TIME OUT
Four Michigan State women's basketball players reached double figures, as the Spartans cruised to a 101-44 victory of Detroit Mercy Wednesday night at the Breslin Center.

Despite playing just 14 minutes, freshman forward Juliann Woodard led the Spartans in scoring with 17 points off the bench. She went 7-for-8 from the field, including 3-for-4 from beyond the arc. Junior forward Grace VanSlooten scored 16 points, adding seven boards and five assists. Graduate guard Jaddan Simmons, who earned her second start of the season, had a MSU career-high with 15 points and three steals. Junior guard Theryn Hallock added 11 points and tied a career high with four steals, while redshirt-freshman Kennedy Blair added 10 points.

Preview courtesy of MSU Athletics.

2024-25 Michigan State Men’s Basketball Schedule



Sunday Oct. 13 at Northern Michigan (exhibition) Marquette, Mich. 1 p.m. MSU 70 NMU 53 W
Tuesday Oct. 29 FERRIS STATE (exhibition) East Lansing, Mich. MSU 85 Ferris State 67 W

Monday Nov. 4 MONMOUTH East Lansing, Mich. MSU 81 Monmouth 57 W (1-0)
Thursday Nov. 7 NIAGARA East Lansing, Mich. 8pm MSU 96 Niagara 60 W (2-0)
Tuesday Nov. 12 vs. Kansas (Champions Classic) Atlanta, Ga. MSU 69 Kansas 77 L (2-1)
Saturday Nov. 16 BOWLING GREEN East Lansing, Mich. MSU 86 Bowling Green 72 W (3-1)
Tuesday Nov. 19 SAMFORD East Lansing, Mich. MSU 82 Samford 75 W (4-1)

Monday Nov. 25 vs. Colorado (Maui Invite) Maui, Hawaii MSU 72 Colorado 56 W (5-1)
Tuesday Nov. 26 vs Memphis (Maui Invite) Maui, Hawaii MSU 63 Memphis 71 L (5-2)
Wednesday Nov. 27 vs UNC (Maui Invite Maui, Hawaii MSU 94 North Carolina 91 (6-2)

Wednesday Dec. 4 at Minnesota * Minneapolis, Minn.
Saturday Dec. 7 NEBRASKA * East Lansing, Mich.

Tuesday Dec. 17 at Oakland Detroit, Mich.
Saturday Dec. 21 FLORIDA ATLANTIC East Lansing, Mich.
Monday Dec. 30 WESTERN MICHIGAN East Lansing, Mich.

Friday Jan. 3 at Ohio State * Columbus, Ohio
Thursday Jan. 9 WASHINGTON * East Lansing, Mich.
Sunday Jan. 12 at Northwestern * Evanston, Ill.
Wednesday Jan. 15 PENN STATE * East Lansing, Mich.
Sunday Jan. 19 ILLINOIS * East Lansing, Mich.
Saturday Jan. 25 at Rutgers * TBD
Tuesday Jan. 28 MINNESOTA * East Lansing, Mich.

Saturday Feb. 1 at USC * Los Angeles, Calif.
Tuesday Feb. 4 at UCLA * Los Angeles, Calif.
Saturday Feb. 8 OREGON* East Lansing, Mich.
Tuesday Feb. 11 INDIANA * East Lansing, Mich.
Saturday Feb. 15 at Illinois * Champaign, Ill.
Tuesday Feb. 18 PURDUE * East Lansing, Mich.
Friday Feb. 21 at Michigan * Ann Arbor, Mich.
Wednesday Feb. 26 at Maryland * College Park, Md.

Sunday March 2 WISCONSIN * East Lansing, Mich.
Thursday March 6 at Iowa * Iowa City, Iowa
Sunday March 9 MICHIGAN * East Lansing, Mich.


Wed. – Sun. March 12-16 Big Ten Tournament Indianapolis, Ind.
Tues. – Wed. March 18-19 NCAA Tournament – First Four Dayton, Ohio
Thurs. – Sun. March 20-23 NCAA Tournament – First & Second Rounds Multiple Locations
Thurs. – Sun. March 27-29 NCAA Tournament – Regionals Multiple Locations
Sat. – Mon. April 5&7 NCAA Final Four San Antonio, Texas


The full Big Ten men's basketball TV schedule:

Michigan State will have six games that will be exclusively on Peacock:
vs. Samford 11/19
vs. Minnesota 1/28
at USC 2/1
at UCLA 2/4
vs. Indiana 2/11
vs. Purdue 2/18

MSU will have nine games on FOX or CBS:
at Ohio State 1/3 FOX
at Northwestern 1/12 FOX
vs. Illinois 1/19 CBS
at Rutgers 1/25 CBS
vs. Oregon 2/8 FOX
at Illinois 2/15 FOX
at Michigan 2/21 FOX
vs. Wisconsin 3/2 CBS
vs. Michigan 3/9 CBS

MSU will be wearing green helmets, jerseys and pants to go with white accessories against Rutgers this Saturday.

Login to view embedded media

The shooting woes of the last several seasons continues. It’s time for our staff to hire a legit shooting coach that does nothing but teach how to shoot. Even if Izzo has to pull time away from working on sets, there is a bigger need to improve the shooting % of the entire team. Even Izzo said at the half today that we were getting open looks but shots weren’t falling. Sounds like a broken record from his commentary over the last few seasons. It’s time to stop complaining about this recurring problem, and fix it.

It doesn’t take long. I hired a guy for my son when he was in middle school. The guy started with mechanics shooting under the basket, and worked his way out after repetition got the mechanics right. To this day, my son can shoot the rock. I have to believe if we hired a similar coach for our D1 basketball players, we would fix this glaring weakness.

What is Momma Tron cooking??
Login to view embedded media

Class of 2026 four-star OL Gregory Patrick is no stranger to East Lansing. He was back on campus this past Friday.

Patrick had built strong relationship with MSU offensive line coach Jim Michalczik.

"I could see myself playing in that type of offense.”

Statement from MSU on Jase:

After Tuesday’s game, Jase Richardson developed symptoms stemming from an elbow to the head that required further evaluation. Following evaluation both yesterday and today, Richardson has been ruled out for the game vs. North Carolina.

There is one final home game remaining for Michigan State in 2024 (and possibly the last game of the campaign as a whole if the Spartans don't win), as MSU hosts Rutgers on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

As with all home games, Michigan State will host a large number of visitors, including at least one official visitor in Evan Young. We are beginning this list early in the week and will update it as we learn more names.

Here is who will be on campus on Nov. 30:

This is premium content. Please subscribe to view.

Michigan State has successfully flipped 2025 high-three-star cornerback Terrance "Deuce" Edwards from West Virginia. He announced his decision on Wednesday, via social media.

Edwards — who currently attends Trinity Episcopal School in Richmond, Virginia — took an official visit to East Lansing during the weekend of Nov. 22 through Nov. 24 and was able to the take in MSU's 24-17 victory over Purdue on Friday night.

That trip gave Edwards a lot to think about, and he ultimately decided that he wanted to become a Spartan.

"It was a feeling," Edwards told Rivals when asked why he decided to flip his commitment to Michigan State. "My dad told me to pray on it, and it felt like it was the place for me. Once I visited and met with the coaches and players, I knew it was the place for me. Coach Blue and Coach Meat have always been in contact with me and staying in touch, along with Coach Grundy."

Much more here:

For nearly half a century, Thanksgiving in Flint meant thousands would head to Atwood Stadium to watch Northern and Central duke it out for high school football supremacy.


The rivalry game between Flint Northern and Flint Central high schools was a local tradition for 48 years, from 1928 to 1976.

Class of 2025 high-three star cornerback Terrance "Deuce" Edwards remains committed to West Virginia as of press time, but he has a lot to think about following his official visit to Michigan State over the weekend.

Edwards, who included MSU in his top-three in late May, along with with Virginia Tech and West Virginia, originally planned to take an official visit to MSU in June. However, he decided to commit to the Mountaineers on June 15, and never made it to the Great Lakes State.

Edwards has been building relationships with MSU cornerbacks coach Demetrice Martin and secondary coach Blue Adams throughout his recruitment. He also had a chance to meet with head coach Jonathan Smith and defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Joe Rossi on the trip.

"They are committed to getting MSU back on top in the Big Ten, and they have the right coaches in place to do that," Edwards said. "They are also bringing in the type of dogs needed to make MSU that type of program again."

Much more here:

Update: Many MSU fans will want to discuss the Lions because of expectations. Let's create one ongoing thread so we can keep it in one place.
















--------------------

Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs suffered a hamstring injury at practice Monday night, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Gibbs was being evaluated for a leg injury after departing the practice session early, though it was unclear on which play he was injured.

Gibbs, 22, is coming off a Pro Bowl rookie season in which he rushed for 945 yards and 10 touchdowns to go along with 316 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown.

As the transfer portal officially opens up in two next weeks, I thought I would start a thread sharing guys who enter who and who are getting at least some interest from the staff.

In this final test of the regular season for the Spartans, the grading is pass/fail and there will be no curve. But hopefully my final batch of advice for the regular season will be at least passble.

Check out my weekly preview here:

Blake Smythe is a 6-foot-3, 273-pound three-star strong-side defensive end/defensive tackle prospect out of the class of 2026. He currently attends Franklin High School in Indiana.

Smythe took a visit to Michigan State on Nov. 22, to watch head coach Jonathan Smith, defensive line coach Legi Suiaunoa and the Michigan State Spartans take on conference rival Purdue under the Friday Night Lights. MSU won the game by a final score of 24-17.

The visit was a meaningful one for Smythe, as he picked up a scholarship offer from the Spartans.

“I feel like the program is back on its feet now since they hired Coach Smith,” Smythe said.

More here, via @Lee Wardlaw:

I received the following message tonight:

This is premium content. Please subscribe to view.

Michigan State (5-1) plays in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational today against the Memphis Tigers (5-0).

Tip off is set for approximately 6 p.m. on ESPN. Like yesterday's game, MSU will play in the second game of the session, so it is possible that there will be a delay depending on the length of the game before.

@DavidHarns and @SydneyPadgett are in Maui to capture all the action.

Stay tuned here for live updates and game discussion.

Tom Izzo, Jaden Akins and Jase Richardson discuss Michigan State's 71-63 loss to a physical Memphis team, including some "uncharacteristic" aspects Izzo saw from his squad on Tuesday.

"I saw some uncharacteristic things," Izzo said. "We've been shooting the daylights out of the free throws and we missed I think five out of seven."

@SydneyPadgett has more:

The family of the Blackfeet chief who served as the face of the Washington Redskins for 48 years want his image back on the fields of the NFL, relatives told Fox News Digital.

The descendants of John Two Guns White Calf also want his incredible life story retold, too, to a new generation of Americans who seek unity and value multiculturalism.

"The fans want him back and we want him back," Thomas White Calf, a great nephew of the celebrated early-20th-century native, said this week by phone, hours after the family met with Sen. Steve Daines, R-Montana.

Two Guns White Calf’s proud portrait adorned Redskins helmets, T-shirts, playing fields and marketing materials from 1972 until 2020.

The celebrated Blackfeet chief and his life story were canceled even as polls showed that 90% of Native Americans supported the team name and White Calf portrait.

"It’s a point of pride and represents the rich Native American history that helped make our nation great, and it should be enthusiastically celebrated across our culture."

In speaking with sources tonight, it sounds like Michigan State running back commit Jace Clarizio has made a decision between the Spartans and Alabama and the expectation is that it is not going to be going the Spartans' way.

I had heard earlier today that Clarizio was going to be on Michigan State's campus, but everybody I reached out to about it was being pretty tight-lipped. The visit may have been to tell the staff in person what his intentions were.

Clarizio has been committed to Michigan State since May and of course is an East Lansing native. I am unsure what the timeline is for him to publicly announcing his decision, but I think MSU fans should prepare for him not to be in the Spartans' 2025 class.

Michigan State got a commitment from Western Michigan pledge Zion Gist on Monday (read more here), but the plan was for Michigan State to take both running backs. Gist is expected to get a three-star bump on Rivals soon, but obviously Clarizio is the much-higher rated prospect.

Login to view embedded media
Update:

It is now public, as Clarizio flips to Alabama from Michigan State. Story here:

EAST LANSING, Mich. - After a strong freshman campaign, Rachel Forsyth was named Great Lakes Region Women's Cross Country Runner of the Year.

She was coming off a 16th-place finish in the NCAA Championships, finishing the 6k race with a time of 19:49.1 on Saturday in Madison, Wisconsin. She led the Michigan State women's cross country team to a 21st-place finish in the NCAA Championship.

Forsyth earned first-team All-American honors for her strong performance. She is the first Spartan to earn first-team honors since Jenna Magness in 2021. She was also named Big Ten Freshman of the Year after finishing fourth in the Big Ten Championship in Champaign, Illinois in earlier this month.

This is the fifth time that a Spartan has earned Great Lakes Region Women's Runner of the Year. The last Spartan to earn the honor was Magness in 2020. Leah O'Connor also captured the award in 2014, which was the same year that Michigan State won the National Championship. Emily MacLeod earned the award in both 2009 and 2010.

Release courtesy of MSU Athletics.