Chris Holtmann credits growth of Michigan State's Joey Hauser

Within Michigan State’s victory over Ohio State this weekend was another impressive Joey Hauser performance. The 6-foot-9 grad student has taken it to a new level this season with the Spartans and, based on what he saw from the sidelines in the Buckeye’s 62-41 loss, Chris Holtmann believes he looks like an all-new player.

Holtmann commended Hauser for his growth during his postgame press conference. He said Hauser’s assertiveness is at an all-time high both because of how Tom Izzo has worked with him as well as how he has built his own confidence from high school to today.

“He’s a more confident shooter, a more confident player. I think that’s probably the biggest thing I’ve seen with him,” said Holtmann. “I recruited him out of high school, it seemed, like a decade ago. He was a really, really good player coming out of high school. And, obviously, they got him through a transfer.”

“Really good player, really talented. It doesn’t surprise me that he’s turned into a really good Big Ten player,” Holtmann said. “I think Tom’s done a great job with him in terms of feeding him with some confidence. Because he did not play this confident, in my opinion, last year.”

Hauser scored 22 of Michigan State’s 62 points in their win this weekend in Columbus. He did so on high-level efficiency with an 8-13 (61.5%) day from the field, including a 6-9 (66.7%) mark from distance. Hauser also nearly finished with the seventh double-double of his season with eight boards.

This was Hauser’s second straight 20-point game as well as the sixth of his season. In total, this was his ninth game out of 10 where he finished in double-figures and the 17th time he has done so over his last 19 appearances.

That’s unbelievable consistency for a player in Hauser who is posting career numbers across the board, including points at 13.9 per game. That’s what Holtmann always expected out of him, though, as his talents are now on full display in East Lansing.