The 2024–25 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Spartans were led by 30th-year head coach Tom Izzo and played their home games at Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan as members of the Big Ten Conference.
With a win over Oregon on February 8, 2025, Tom Izzo tied Bob Knight for the most wins in conference history with 353. With a win over Illinois on February 15, Izzo passed Knight for the most wins in conference history.
With a loss by rival Michigan on March 5, the Spartans secured at least a share of the Big Ten regular season championship, their first since 2020. The championship was Izzo's 11th, tying him for the all-time record with Knight and former Purdue coach Ward Lambert. With a win over Iowa on March 6, MSU secured the outright regular season championship. The championship marked the team's first outright championship since 2018. With a win over Michigan in the regular season finale on March 9, MSU earned its 17th conference win on the season, the most conference wins in school history. The Spartans finished three games ahead of second-place Maryland and Michigan in the conference. The Spartans defeated Oregon in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament before losing to Wisconsin. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 2 seed in the South region marking the school's 27th consecutive tournament appearance, the nation's longest active streak. They defeated Bryant in the first round and New Mexico in the second round to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. It marked the 16th Sweet Sixteen appearance under Izzo and the school's 22nd overall. MSU defeated Ole Miss to advance to the Elite Eight where they were defeated by overall No. 1 seed Auburn. They finished the season 30–7, 17–3 in Big Ten play.
The Big Ten named Tom Izzo the conference's coach of the year for the fourth time. Freshman Jase Richardson was named to the All-Big Ten third team and the All-Freshman team. Jaden Akins was named to the All-Defensive team and the coaches' third team. Associate head coach Doug Wojcik was named the Howard Moore assistant coach of the year.
The Michigan State Spartans drew an average home attendance of 14,797, the 16th-highest of all college basketball teams.https://stats.ncaa.org/rankings/change_sport_year_div
Previous season The Spartans finished the 2023–24 season 20–15, 10–10 in Big Ten play to finish in a three-way tie for sixth place. As the No. 8 seed in the Big Ten tournament, MSU defeated Minnesota in the second round before losing to top-seeded Purdue in the quarterfinals. The Spartans received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament as the No. 9 seed in the West region, extending Izzo's record-setting streak to 26 straight tournament appearances. They defeated Mississippi State in the first round before losing to No. 1-seeded North Carolina. The Spartans were led by Tyson Walker who averaged 18.4 points per game and Malik Hall who averaged 12.7 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.
Offseason
Coaching changes On April 3, 2024, assistant coach Mark Montgomery was named the head coach at Detroit Mercy. On June 6, Tom Izzo announced that former Michigan assistant coach Saddi Washington had been named an assistant coach with the Spartans. Izzo also announced that assistant coach Doug Wojcik had been promoted to associate head coach. Recruiting director Jon Borovich and video coordinator Austin Thornton were elevated to assistant coaches.
Departures On April 4, senior center Mady Sissoko announced he had entered the transfer portal. On April 29, Sissoko announced he would transfer to California. On April 18, Tom Izzo confirmed that senior point guard A. J. Hoggard would not return for his fifth year at MSU. On May 18, Hoggard announced he would transfer to Vanderbilt. DeparturesNameNo.Pos.HeightWeightYearHometownNotesMalik Hall25F6'8"225GSAurora, ILGraduatedA. J. Hoggard 11G6'4"210SrCoatesville, PAGraduated/Transfer to VanderbiltMady Sissoko22F6'9"250SrBafoulabé. MaliTransfer to CaliforniaTyson Walker2G6'0"175GSWestbury, NYGraduated
Incoming transfers On April 23, 2024, Omaha small forward Frankie Fidler announced he would transfer to Michigan State. This marked he first time since 2021 that the Spartans had a transfer join the team – MSU being one of the few schools to not accept many transfers in the new transfer portal era. Fidler averaged 20.1 points and 6.3 rebounds per game with Omaha in the 2023–24 season. On May 14, Longwood center Szymon Zapala announced he will transfer to Michigan State. Zapala spent three years at Utah State before playing at Longwood in the 2023–24 season.
TransfersNameNo.Pos.HeightWeightYearHometownPrevious schoolFrankie Fidler8SF6'7"205SrBellevue, NEOmahaSzymon Zapala10C7'0"240GSZaborze, PolandLongwood
Recruiting class On April 3, 2023, four-star shooting guard Kur Teng committed to MSU for the 2024 season. On April 20, four-star center Jesse McCulloch announced he too would play for MSU in 2024. On October 15, four-star shooting guard Jase Richardson, son of former MSU star Jason Richardson, announced he would join the Spartans in 2024. Richardson became the first son of a player who played for Izzo as head coach to commit to MSU.
Spain trip The Spartans team took a team-building trip to Spain in August 2024 to play exhibition games against various teams "representing Spain." They played games in Madrid, Valencia, and Barcelona. MSU won their first two games while losing the third against KK FMP, a Serbian professional team.
Preseason
Preseason Big Ten polls Michigan State was picked to finish in fifth place in the conference by an annual, unofficial preseason poll of basketball writers. They received one first place vote. No Spartan was named to the conference's preseason All-Big Ten team.
Preseason rankings The Spartans were not ranked in the preseason AP poll, but they did receive votes. Michigan State was also unranked in the preseason coaches poll, but did receive votes.
Jersey patch The Spartans announced they would wear a "JF" patch on their uniforms during the season to honor former university trustee Joel I. Ferguson.
Exhibition games The Spartans played an exhibition game at Tom Izzo's alma mater, Division II Northern Michigan, on October 13, 2024. Prior to the game, Izzo had his jersey retired by Northern Michigan. The game, played in the football team's Superior Dome, was won by the Spartans 70–53. Jase Richardson led the Spartans with 11 points while Xavier Booker added 10. Jaxon Kohler nabbed eight rebounds and scored nine in the win.
The Spartans played a second exhibition game at Breslin Center on October 29 against Ferris State. Frankie Fidler led the Spartans with 14 points, 12 of which came in the first half, as MSU won 85–67. Jaxon Kohler led the Spartans with 11 rebounds while Xavier Booker added 10 points in the win.
Regular season
Early non-conference games
Monmouth The Spartans opened the season on November 4 against Monmouth at Breslin Center. Jaden Akins led the Spartans with 23 points while freshman Jase Richardson was the only other Spartan in double figures in scoring with 10 points. 11 different Spartans played over 10 minutes in the game as MSU won easily 81–57. Akins led the Spartans with nine rebounds and Jeremy Fears Jr. had eight assists in the win. MSU only made three of 18 three-point attempts in the game. The win moved MSU to 1–0 on the season.
Niagara The Spartans next faced Niagara on November 7. Jaxon Kohler set career highs for points and rebounds, 20 and 13 respectively, as MSU blew out the Purple Eagles 96–60. Jeremy Fears Jr. led the Spartans with 13 assists as four Spartans scored in double figures in the win. MSU improved their three-point shooting, making six of 18 shots in the win. The win moved MSU to 2–0 on the season.
Kansas The Spartans faced No. 1-ranked Kansas as part of the Champions Classic on November 12 in Atlanta. MSU fell behind early, trailing 6–0. However, the Spartans rallied and kept the game close throughout the half and were within six at the break. Jase Richardson hit a three-pointer with a second left in the first half and was fouled to further narrow the lead. Frankie Fidler led the Spartans with 15 points, including 8–8 from the free throw line. Jaxon Kohler added 12 points and 10 rebounds, but the Spartans lost 77–69. Again, MSU had 10 players play at least 12 minutes in the game, but only Fidler and Kohler scored in double digits. MSU shot poorly from three again in the game, making only three of 24 attempts. The loss dropped MSU to 2–1 on the season.
Bowling Green MSU returned home to face Bowling Green on November 16. The Spartans trailed throughout the first half, but were able to tie the game at 43 at half time. However, MSU fell behind again in the second half, trailing by as many at eight. The Falcons took at 72–68 lead with 7:11 left in the game. However, MSU shut out the Falcons from there, finishing on an 18–0 run to end the game and win by 14. Jaden Akins led the Spartans with 23 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists. Six other Spartans scored in double figures in the win. MSU's three-point shooting continued to struggle as the Spartans made only four of 20 shots from three. The win moved MSU to 3–1 on the season.
Samford The Spartans played Samford on November 19 at Breslin Center. MSU again fell behind early and trailed by as many 13 in the first 10 minutes. However, the Spartans rallied and took the lead with a little more than four minutes left in the half, outscoring the Bulldogs 13–3 to end the half. Samford refused to go away in the second half however as MSU never led by more than 13. The Spartans, who continued to struggle shooting the ball, held on for the 83–75 win. Jaden Akins led the Spartans with 25 points while Jase Richardson and Frankie Fidler added 12 each. The Spartans made seven of 24 three-pointers.
Maui Invitational
Colorado MSU next traveled the Maui Invitational to play Colorado in the first game on November 25. The Spartans continued to struggle from three, making only two of 21 three-point attempts. Despite this, the Spartans shot 50% from the field as they controlled the game against the Buffaloes. Leading by 13 at the half and by as many as 19 in the second half, MSU won easily 72–56. Jase Richardson led the Spartans with 13 points while no other Spartans scored in double figures. However, 10 Spartans scored in the win. The win moved the Spartans to 5–1 on the season.
Memphis The Spartans faced Memphis in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational on November 26. The Spartans kept the game close throughout the first half and exchanged the lead for the first eight minutes of the game. However, they trailed by three at half time. Memphis took control of the game in the second half, leading by as many as 15 on a couple of occasions while MSU brought the lead down to seven. However, the Spartans, who made seven of 20 three-pointers, could not come any closer as they lost for the second time on the season. The Spartans shot only 63% from the free throw line in the 71–63 loss. Jase Richardson led the Spartans with 18 points while Jaden Akins added 12. Richardson did take an elbow to the head in the game, but did not leave the game. The loss dropped MSU to 5–2 on the season.
North Carolina