As college basketball begins a new season, Michigan State and Michigan’s basketball teams have some expectations for this year. For Michigan, former head coach and alumni Juwan Howard was fired after finishing with a 8-24 record, the lowest in school history.
Along with the lackluster season, Howard brought unneeded controversy. Two years ago, after a loss to Wisconsin, Howard threw a punch at one of Wisconsin’s coaches. Adding to insult, Howard had an altercation with a fellow staff member last year. With failed March Madness runs, two straight losing seasons, and the unnecessary controversy, Howard was fired at the end of the season.
Obviously, Michigan did not make it into March Madness. But that’s not the point. Aside from Michigan’s season collapse, Florida Atlantic University had a ‘Cinderella’ run last year, making their first appearance in the Final Four.
The man behind their surprising run was FAU head coach, Dusty May. Michigan hired May on March 23rd, 2024, right after FAU was eliminated in the Final Four. In addition, May’s hiring brought in one of his own players from FAU’s surprising tournament run. Center Vladislav Goldin who was one of FAU’s top players transferred to Michigan after withdrawing from the NBA draft.
With May taking over, Michigan looks to improve this season while rebuilding the basketball program they once were. Although May will not be an instant success for Michigan, this year and the next few years could be a positive rebuilding season for the Wolverines, while not ruling out a possible March Madness appearance. Their rebuild began last week as they won their season opener against the Cleveland State Vikings.
As for Michigan State, the Spartans made their 26th straight March Madness appearance, all while finishing 20-15, and seventh in the Big Ten. It was an underwhelming season for Hall of Fame head coach Tom Izzo. This season, Izzo is looking forward to this year, saying, “I’m as excited as hell, and I just feel like I’m in a good place. For me, my team’s getting better. I think we got some things solidified in some of those exhibition games. I’m looking forward to whether we can put them to good use.” Izzo says his team has improved, along with the roster’s depth.
As players share similar views as Izzo, the team is ready to overcome future challenges. Spartans guard Jaden Akins seemed optimistic for this year’s season. Akins said, “We got a lot of depth on the team. So just getting our minutes right and our rotation right for what it’s gonna be in the season, we’re gonna see that in the first couple weeks of the season.” Coming into his senior year, Akins is expected to improve this season by stepping up as a leader of the team.
After MSU’s exhibition win over Ferris State, Center Jaxon Kohler said, “We tried so many different lineups in the summer. But at the end of the day, whatever lineup you put out in the game, you want to do your job,” Kohler also said, “And if you do your job and then you get other people to do their job, and if they organically just work together really well, it helps a team win.” Kohler is a big motivator for the team coming into his junior year and shares the same expectations as Izzo.
The expectations are high for the Spartans as they aim to be a Big Ten powerhouse by the end of the year. They have improved their roster through the transfer portal, and recruiting multiple players, including Jase Richardson. Richardson was ranked 25th in the nation by ESPN and is the son of former Spartans player Jason Richardson.
