Basketball Season Heats Up Quickly

After struggling in a couple of exhibition games, Michigan State may have calmed a few nerves last week with regular season wins over Quinnipiac and Toledo. There were some defensive lapses, missed free throws, and many, many fouls against Toledo but the Spartans got off to quick starts in both games and mostly did what was expected against two solid mid-major teams.

Next, however, is a major step up as MSU prepares to face Duke on Tuesday in Chicago for the Champions Classic (7 PM ET, ESPN). Later in the week, the Spartans host Northern Iowa (Friday, 7 PM ET, FS1). Let’s take a closer at both of Michigan State’s opponents this week.

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Duke Blue Devils

Duke needs no introduction. The Blue Devils are a serious national title threat and are off to a 2-0 start this year with convincing wins over Army (84-50) and Coastal Carolina (113-52). Their performance in exhibition games, however, is what stands out on this young season.

After downing Belmont by 40 in their exhibition opener, Duke followed with a 39 point win over Tennessee in Cameron Indoor Stadium on October 20. Then, five days later, the Blue Devils traveled to Kansas and defeated the Jayhawks 90-84. Duke trailed by two at halftime but outscored Kansas 47-39 after the break. Patrick Ngongba II led all scorers with 28 points and added 10 rebounds against the Jayhawks and will pose a major challenge to Michigan State’s big men. Wisconsin transfer John Blackwell added 23 points and hit four of seven threes against Kansas.

Duke’s Expected Starters

Duke has gone with the same starting lineup in both of their regular season games but the stats below represent each player’s averages against Tennessee and Kansas, Duke’s two toughest opponents, exhibition or otherwise.

#7 Dame Sarr. 6-8, 200, SO, SF. 28 MINS, 13.5 PTS, 8-17 FG, 1-8 3FG, 4 REB, 1 AST

#30 Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje. 7-2, 250, FR, PF. 23.5 MINS, 8.5 PTS, 7-17 FG, 3-8 3FG, 6.5 REBS, 2.5 AST

#21 Patrick Ngongba II. 6-11, 250, JR, C. 25.5 MINS, 20.5 PTS, 13-18 FG, 2-3 3FG, 8.5 REBS, 2 AST

#13 John Blackwell. 6-5, 205, SR, SG. 24 MINS, 20.5 PTS, 12-20 FG, 8-13 3FG, 4.5 REBS, 2 AST

#2 Cayden Boozer. 6-4, 195, SO, PG. 22.5 MINS, 4 PTS, 2-7 FG, 0-0 3FG, 4.5 AST

Blackwell has absolutely lit it up in Duke’s exhibition games but it’s surprising that both Boumtje Boumtje and Ngongba have also shown the ability to hit the three. Anton Bonke, Ethan Taylor, Jesse McCulloch, and Cam Ward are really going to be tested here.

It will be interesting to see how the Spartans match up. If Tom Izzo goes with the same starting lineup as he did against Quinnipiac and Toledo, who does Coen Carr guard from the four spot? Would we assume Jordan Scott on Sarr, Jasiah Jervis on Blackwell, Jeremy Fears on Boozer, and Anton Bonke on the 7-2 Boumtje Boumtje? That would leave Carr (6-6, 230) on Ngongba?

Or does Jervis come off the bench against Duke? It’s hard to see the Spartans taking the floor without both Scott and Carr, so maybe they slide over to the 2 and 3 spots while Jervis gives way to Ward, McCulloch, or Taylor to put two Spartan bigs on the floor.

Off the Bench for Duke

#3 Deron Rippey Jr. 6-3, 185, FR, G. 17 MINS, 12 PTS, 10-13 FG, 4-8 3FG, 1 REB, 2 AST

#5 Sebastian Wilkins. 6-8, 220, SO, F. 20.5 MINS, 9 PTS, 6-9 FG, 1-3 3 FG, 4.5 REBS, 0.5 AST

#12 Bryson Howard. 6-4, 190, FR G. 12 MINS, 3.5 PTS, 1-7 FG, 1-7 3 FG, 3.5 REBS, 0.5 AST

#1 Caleb Foster. 6-5, 200, SR, G. Foster did not play against Tennessee. These stats are from the Kansas exhibition game. 15 MINS, 2 PTS, 1-6 FG, 0-3 3FG, 0 REB, 1 AST

Rippey and Wilkins seem to be the biggest threats off the bench, but Rippey did most of his damage in the blowout win over Tennessee, where he had 21 points in 21 minutes. His role reduced a bit in the more competitive game with Kansas, where Rippey scored three points in 13 minutes.

Jon Scheyer is in his fifth season as Duke’s head coach, after taking over for Mike Krzyzewski. Scheyer is 70-7 in has last two years which included a run to the Final Four in 2025 and the Elite Eight in 2026.

Keys to the game for the Spartans

Running game. Regardless of if Carr primarily plays the three or the four, Michigan State will always look to get him going in the transition game. Connecticut, the last elite-level team the Spartans faced, made it a goal to shut down this part of the Spartans’ game and it worked. Can Duke also make it tough for MSU to run?

Defending the three point line (and the free throw line). Duke shot 36% on their three point attempts against Tennessee and Kansas and their bigs have shown they can occasionally step out and be effective in this area. The Blue Devils also got to the free throw line 33 times against Kansas, hitting 27 (81.8%). This followed a 19-21 performance from the line against Tennessee. So Duke can get to the line and make their free throws while Michigan State struggled, at times, to guard without fouling against Toledo and also missed too many of their own foul shots. Communication and proper execution of switches and ball screen defense are going to be crucial in this game.

Keep the ball moving. One thing that stood out in the Toledo game (and I think against Quinnipiac also – I had to stream it on the radio) was how quickly the Spartans moved the ball on offense. This wasn’t the same offense we saw bog down at crucial times last season. Can MSU keep this going against an elite Duke team?

Shorten the bench? The Spartans were able to give significant run to a lot of players in their first two games. Will Izzo shorten the rotation for this one? Or throw everything he has at Duke? The Blue Devils front court, plus Blackwell, are excellent but MSU may be slightly deeper.

After the Champions Classic, Michigan State will have either have to come back down to earth or bounce back to face Northern Iowa, their second opponent of the week.

Northern Iowa Panthers

Location: Cedar Falls, IA

Conference: Missouri Valley

Last Year: Went 23-13 overall and 11-9 in the MVC. Won the conference tournament and auto bid to the NCAA tournament; fell to St. John’s 79-53 in the first round.

This Year: 1-1. Opened with a 106-70 win against Cornell (IA), followed by a 98-83 loss at Furman on Saturday. Hosts Green Bay on Tuesday.

Northern Iowa’s Expected Starters

#1 Greyson Uelmen. 6-3, 183, JR, G. Transfer from North Dakota. Named to the ‘26-27 MVC preseason watch list.

#2 Geon Hutchins. 6-4, 189, SO, G. Appeared in 35 games as a true freshman for Northern Iowa, averaging 1.5 points and 1.2 rebounds in 7.7 minutes per game.

#3 Tate McCubbin. 6-8, 190, JR, F. Transfer from Austin Peay. Named to the ‘26-27 MVC preseason watch list.

#35 Ian Smikle. 6-9, 248, JR, F. Transfer from Tulsa, where he averaged 3.1 points and 3.6 rebounds in 13.8 minutes per game last year. Named to the ‘26-27 MVC preseason watch list.

#22 Kyle Pock. 6-6, 223, SR, F. Played in 34 games for UNI last year with one start. Averaged 3.7 points and 1 rebound in 12.5 minutes.

Off the Bench for UNI

#8 Carson Vis. 6-4, 202, SO, G. Went to Grand Rapids Christian HS. Appeared in 31 games as a freshman last year, averaging 5.8 points in 14.8 minutes per game.

#31 Isaiah Johnson-arigu. 6-7, 214, JR, F. A well-traveled player. Began college career at Miami (FL) in 2024 and then transferred to Iowa midseason; did not appear in a game for the Hawkeyes. Played 33 games at St. Thomas in ‘25-26, averaging 10.8 points in 21.3 minutes.

#32 Will Gerdes. 6-8, 216, FR, F.

#9 Levi Valdo. 6-3, 207, SO, G. Redshirted at UNI last year. Previously played in Italy’s Serie B League.

#24 Jalen Wilson. 6-8, 207, SO, F. Redshirted at UNI last year.

#0 Redek Born. 6-3, 207, JR, G. Appeared in 19 games for UNI as a true freshman; redshirted last year.

#7 Jules, Isebaert. 6-5, 192, SO, F. Has played three seasons in the BNXT League, the top professional league in Belgium and the Netherlands. Also played in the Belgian U18 and U20 systems.

Kyle Green is in his first year as head coach at Northern Iowa. He replaces Ben Jacobson, who departed for Utah State after last season. Green is no stranger to UNI, however, having spent 16 years there as an assistant. For the past five years, Green was an assistant on T.J. Otzelberger’s staff at Iowa State, where the Cyclones made it to the NCAA tournament each year.

G0 Green!