Michigan State HC Tom Izzo looking to 'get back to championship caliber'

EAST LANSING – The Michigan State men’s basketball team officially began practice for the 2024-25 season on Monday afternoon at Breslin Center. But truth be told, practice began when the Spartans traveled to Spain for a 10-day, three-game exhibition back in mid-August. During that trip, MSU visited Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona, playing games on the 15th, 18th and 20th. "In that Spain trip, I thought we played pretty well," said MSU head coach Tom Izzo, who is entering his 30th season as head coach. “It was hard to get a feel because I had so many guys that I wanted to play, so I kept guys from 12 to 20 minutes. Most guys played from 16 to 20 minutes which means you get to see a lot of people (but) you don't get as good of a flow.’’ Izzo and his staff, which will include newcomer and Lansing native Saddi Washington, will get to the business of evaluating the team’s talent and working toward a starting lineup and substitution rotation when the team officially begins the season on Nov. 4th against Monmouth. MSU will play exhibitions at Northern Michigan (Oct. 13) and Ferris State (Oct. 29) before opening the season on Monday, Nov. 4 against Monmouth.  Going forward, MSU returns four players who earned starts last season – senior guard Jaden Akins (35 starts), junior guard Tre Holloman (two starts), junior center Carson Cooper (eight starts) and sophomore forward Xavier Booker (two starts). (More inside)