5 Observations: Michigan State flexes depth, potential vs. Hillsdale College

The Spartans are deep, talented and experienced, and the rest of the country had better take note...

Author:
Matthew Lounsberry
Publish date:
Oct 25, 2023 8:53 PM EDT

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Michigan State opened what's expected to be an outstanding 2023-24 season with a 85-43 exhibition win over Hillsdale College on Wednesday night.

Tom Izzo's fourth-ranked Spartans looked the part against an overmatched Division II opponent, flexing the depth, talent and experience that makes MSU a bonafide national title contender this season.

Here are five observations from an impressive first look at the Spartans...

1.) Veteran starting lineup

It should come at no surprise that Izzo is going with his veterans as the starters to begin the year. Freshmen have to earn their way into the starting lineup, Izzo won't hand them that honor.

A.J. Hoggard, Tyson Walker, Jaden Akins, Malik Hall and Mady Sissoko were the first five against Hillsdale. Akins, a junior, was the youngest of the starters, which operated like a well-oiled machine right off the tip. There were none of the usual early-year miscues out of these five. Now, a portion of that can probably get chalked up to the quality of opponent, but a lot of it has to do with just how much basketball these guys have played together.

Michigan State's starters built a quick 12-3 lead before giving way to the backups.

2.) The backups are pretty good too...

Izzo opted for a platoon swap four and a half minutes into the game, bringing in three freshmen in Jeremy Fears, Coen Carr and Xavier Booker, as well as a pair of sophomores in Carson Cooper and Tre Holloman.

The backups actually drew a bigger cheer from the Breslin Center crowd than the starters, and those cheers became a thunderous applause when Booker and Holloman knocked down back to back 3-pointers to draw a Hillsdale timeout. Freshman Gehrig Normand, the final piece of MSU's Top 5 incoming recruiting class, subbed in a few minutes later and played considerable minutes tonight.

MSU's backups increased the Spartans' lead to 27-10 before another platoon swap brought the starters back.

3.) Can Xavier Booker be MSU's stretch big?

The one piece of the puzzle that Michigan State lost from last season was Joey Hauser's shooting from the power forward spot.

Enter Xavier Booker.

The freshman looked smooth and more than comfortable shooting from deep tonight, converting on 2-of-3 attempt from beyond the 3-point line. If Booker can bring that to the table — and keep in mind, they played a Division II school tonight — that just might be the last piece of the puzzle for the Spartans this season.

Now, let's not put too much on the freshman's plate here. After all, Hauser shot 46% from deep a season ago. It would be unrealistic for Booker to come in and shoot like that. But if he can stretch the floor from the four-spot, that opens up a ton of options for Michigan State at the offensive end. Booker finished with six points, three rebounds and three blocks.

4.) Tre Holloman is not an afterthought

Michigan State's backcourt is absolutely loaded. Both Hoggard and Walker drew preseason All-Big Ten selections, and Akins might be the best two-way player on this team. Throw in a five-star freshman point guard in Fears, and its easy for Holloman to be the overlooked man in the Spartans' backcourt.

But the sophomore shouldn't be overlooked. Holloman played very well tonight, finishing with nine points, four assists and a steal while playing his usual tough brand of on-ball defense. Fears also played very well, directing the offense with Hoggard on the bench. The freshman finished with an eye-popping eight assists, matching Hoggard for the team lead. Fears did lead the team with four turnovers however.

Make no mistake, Izzo has five guards he can comfortably turn to at any time. That depth is going to be tough for any opponent to deal with this season, and give Izzo and the Spartans the option to play very aggressive defensively at the guard spots.

5.) Carson Cooper was MSU's best center

Hillsdale College did not have the size to matchup with Michigan State's frontcourt. With that context, Carson Cooper looked really good for the Spartans tonight. The sophomore was aggressive on the glass, pulling down seven rebounds and also showed better refinement and comfortability on the offensive end than we saw a year ago. Cooper scored 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, tying Walker for the team lead in scoring. The sophomore added two assists, two blocks and a steal.

That's not to say Mady Sissoko played poorly. He finished with nine points and six rebounds, and was a problem for Hillsdale tonight as well. But Cooper's refinement at the offensive end separates him from Sissoko already.

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