Top MSU, Izzo Target Just Had Career Game
There might not be a more prevalent name in the 2026 class for Michigan State basketball and head coach Tom Izzo than South Bend Washington's Steven Reynolds III.
The four-star guard is Indiana's No. 1 player in the class and it is not particularly close. Performances like that he just had against Hobart High School are a reason why. Reynolds scored a career-best 50 points while grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out three assists in the 87-51 victory.
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â Steven Reynolds III #SR3 (@SR3BucketKing) December 28, 2024
Reynolds has a lot going for him. He can shoot the lights out, his IQ and feel for the game are about as high as you can find in a prospect, and he is tough. As a coach's son (his father, Steve, is the women's coach at Washington and a state title winner), Reynolds knows how to elevate those around him.
Helps when he was started on the game so young.
"I mean, he was shooting 3s at a very young age," head coach Ryan Varga told me back in September. "He's always out there, just always has a ball in his hand. You could definitely tell -- a coach's son. And one that's been around the game a long time. All of his sisters are playing [two, Amiyah and Mila, are currently at Purdue, and Kira is on her way], so he's sitting at the edge of the bench. It's funny, I was going through film from my first year, about eight years ago, and there he is right at the edge of the bench. So it's kind of full circle that he's in the position he is right now."
Varga touted the basketball IQ as almost too good, telling me that Reynolds' teammates have to catch up to him and the chess game he is playing in his mind when he is on the court.
"But he does an excellent job of coaching them up and getting them where they need to be," Varga said. "You could say anything you want about him shooting. He can shoot it from anywhere. Tremendous mid-range shooter. Which, you know, the analytics tell you not to get to that mid-range, but with him, there isn't a mid-range shot that he takes that I don't think is going in."
Clearly, things were dropping for Reynolds against Hobart.
Michael France is Sports Illustrated's Michigan State recruiting beat writer, covering all things Big Ten recruiting for Spartan Nation. Be sure to follow him on Twitter/X@michaelfrancesi for exclusive Spartans recruiting coverage.
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