2020–21 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team will represent Michigan State University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Spartans will be led by 26th-year head coach Tom Izzo and will play their home games at Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan as members of the Big Ten Conference.

2020–21 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
2020–21 record0–0 (0–0 Big Ten)
Head coachTom Izzo (26th season)
Associate head coachDwayne Stephens (18th season)
Assistant coaches
Home arenaBreslin Center
2020–21 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L PCT  W L PCT
Illinois0–0 –  0–0  –
Indiana0–0 –  0–0  –
Iowa0–0 –  0–0  –
Maryland0–0 –  0–0  –
Michigan0–0 –  0–0  –
Michigan State0–0 –  0–0  –
Minnesota0–0 –  0–0  –
Nebraska0–0 –  0–0  –
Northwestern0–0 –  0–0  –
Ohio State0–0 –  0–0  –
Penn State0–0 –  0–0  –
Purdue0–0 –  0–0  –
Rutgers0–0 –  0–0  –
Wisconsin0–0 –  0–0  –
† 2021 Big Ten Tournament winner
As of June 25, 2020; Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season

The Spartans finished the 2019–20 season 22–9, 14–6 in Big Ten play to earn a share of their third straight Big Ten regular season championship.[1] Their season ended following the cancellation of postseason tournaments due to the coronavirus pandemic.[2]

Offseason

Departures

Junior forward Xavier Tillman announced on March 24, 2020 that he would explore the NBA draft process, but would not sign with an agent, leaving the possibility he could return to play in the 2020–21 season.[3] Sophomore guard Aaron Henry announced he would enter the NBA draft as well, but would also leave open the ability to return to school.[4]

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownNotes
Kyle Ahrens 0 G 6'6" 210 RS SR Versailles, OH Graduated
Connor George 41 G 6'4" 200 SR Okemos, MI Graduated
Cassius Winston 5 G 6'1" 185 SR Detroit, MI Graduated

Recruiting classes

2020 recruiting class

On April 2, 2019, days after the Spartans advanced to the Final Four, four-start point guard Jalen Terry announced he would sign to play with the Spartans in 2020.[5] However, on October 15, Terry announced he would reopen his recruiting and decommitted from MSU.[6] On September 9, four-star center Maddy Sissoko committed to MSU.[7] On October 6, four-star point guard A.J. Hoggard announced he intended to play with MSU in 2020.[8]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
A.J. Hoggard
PG		 Coatesville, PA Huntington Prep 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Oct 6, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 83
Maddy Sissoko
C		 Mount Pleasant, UT Wasatch Academy 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Sep 9, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 87
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

    2021 recruiting class

    On April 22, 2020, four-start shooting guard Pierre Brooks announced he would play for Michigan State in 2021.[9]

    Early offseason rankings

    In April 2020, most early pollsters listed Michigan State as a preseason top-15 team for the 2020–21 season. These included ESPN (No. 8),[10] Sports Illustrated (No. 11),[11] Yahoo! Sports (No. 13),[12] USA Today (No. 19),[13] NBC Sports (No. 5),[14] and CBS Sports (No. 12).[15]

    Incoming transfers

    On May 28, 2019, Marquette forward Joey Hauser announced he would transfer to MSU. Due to NCAA transfer rules, Hauser had to sit out the 2019–20 season, but will have at least two years of eligibility left beginning in the 2020–21 season.[16]

    Roster
    2020–21 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team
    PlayersCoaches
    Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
    F 30 Marcus Bingham 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)225 lb (102 kg) JrCatholic Central HS Grand Rapids, MI
    F 44 Gabe Brown 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)210 lb (95 kg) JrBelleville HS Belleville, MI
    F 25 Malik Hall 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)210 lb (95 kg) SoSunrise Christian Academy Naperville, IL
    F 20 Joey Hauser 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)230 lb (104 kg) RS JrMarquette
    Stevens Point HS    		 Stevens Point, WI
    F 11 Aaron Henry 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)210 lb (95 kg) JrBen Davis HS Indianapolis, IN
    G AJ Hoggard 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)185 lb (84 kg) FrHuntington Prep Coatesville, PA
    G 13 Steven Izzo (W) 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)150 lb (68 kg) SoLansing Catholic East Lansing, MI
    F 15 Thomas Kithier 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)225 lb (102 kg) JrDakota HS Macomb, MI
    G 1 Joshua Langford 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)200 lb (91 kg) RS SrMadison Academy Madison, AL
    G 3 Foster Loyer 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)170 lb (77 kg) JrClarkston HS Clarkston, MI
    F 34 Julius Marble 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)225 lb (102 kg) SoJesuit HS Keller, TX
    C Mady Sissoko 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)230 lb (104 kg) FrWasatch Academy Mount Pleasant, UT
    G 2 Mark "Rocket" Watts 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)185 lb (84 kg) SoSPIRE Institute Detroit, MI
    Head coach
    Assistant coach(es)
    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • (W) Walk-on

    Roster

    Schedule and results
    Date
    time, TV    		 Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
    city, state
    Exhibition
    TBA*
    TBA    		 TBA     Breslin Center 
    East Lansing, MI
    Non-conference regular season
    November 10, 2020*
    TBA, ESPN    		 vs. Duke
    Champions Classic    		     United Center 
    Chicago, IL
    November 27–29, 2020*
    TBA    		 Auburn, Belmont, Boise State, Gonzaga, Saint Louis, Siena, or Xavier
    Orlando Invitational    		     HP Field House 
    Bay Lake, FL
    November or December 2020*
    TBA    		 TBA
    ACC – Big Ten Challenge    		      
     
    TBA*
    TBA    		 Toledo     Breslin Center 
    East Lansing, MI
    Big Ten regular season
    TBA
    TBA    		 at Michigan
    Rivalry    		     Crisler Center 
    Ann Arbor, MI
    TBA
    TBA    		 Michigan
    Rivalry    		     Breslin Center 
    East Lansing, MI
    Big Ten Tournament
    TBD
    TBD    		 vs. TBD     United Center 
    Chicago, IL
    *Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
    All times are in Eastern Time.

    References
    1. Charboneau, Matt. "'They ain't forgetting us': Michigan State clobbers Ohio State, wins third straight Big Ten title". Detroit News. Retrieved 2020-03-09.
    2. Solari, Chris. "March Madness cancellation inevitable, unavoidable: 'Bigger than basketball'". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2020-03-13.
    3. "2020 NBA Draft: Michigan State's Xavier Tillman announces he will test draft waters". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
    4. Solari, Chris. "Michigan State basketball's Aaron Henry enters NBA draft with ability to return to college". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
    5. Savage, Brendan (2019-04-03). "Michigan State wins recruiting battle for Flint Beecher guard Jalen Terry". mlive.com. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
    6. Solari, Chris. "Michigan State basketball: 2020 PG Jalen Terry decommits from Spartans". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2019-10-14.
    7. Solari, Chris. "Michigan State basketball lands 4-star big man Mady Sissoko". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
    8. "Four-star point guard AJ Hoggard picks Michigan State". Detroit News. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
    9. TillTheBitterEnd, Sam Tyler- (2020-04-22). "Men's Basketball: Pierre Brooks commits to Michigan State". The Only Colors. Retrieved 2020-04-22.
    10. "Virginia up, Kentucky down in college basketball's Way-Too-Early Top 25 for 2020-21". ESPN.com. 2020-04-20. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
    11. Woo, Jeremy. "Way-Too-Early Top 25 for 2020–21 Hoops Season". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
    12. "Yahoo Sports' absurdly early Top 25 college hoops rankings for next season". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
    13. Gleeson, Scott. "College basketball's way-too-early preseason top 25 teams for the 2020-21 season". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
    14. "The way-too-early college basketball preseason top 25". CollegeBasketballTalk | NBC Sports. 2020-05-28. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
    15. "2020-21 college basketball rankings: Gonzaga is No. 1, Kentucky is No. 2 in never-too-early Top 25 And 1". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
    16. "Michigan State basketball lands Marquette transfer forward Joey Hauser". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
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