Michigan State Basketball takes down North Carolina, 74-58

For the second time in three years, the Michigan State Spartans played on Thanksgiving Day to a nationally televised audience - but this time the result was dramatically different with MSU defeating North Carolina, 74-58, in a Top-25 matchup.

Jeremy Fears played his best game as Spartan - according to Tom Izzo - in this one. Fears put up 19 points (including the final six MSU points of the game) and pulled down five rebounds. He also put seven assists on the board and was the leader Izzo needed him to be.

In 2023, the Spartans lost to the Arizona Wildcats in Palm Springs, California on Thanksgiving Day. This year, Michigan State faced off against North Carolina in the Fort Myers Tip-Off Event and came away with a big win in front of the college basketball audience across the country, letting anyone who hadn't seen the Spartans play yet this year know - Michigan State is winning big games this year, over big time teams.

Both teams entered the game at 6-0, with the Spartans coming off an 89–56 dismantling of East Carolina, while UNC opened the tournament with an 85–70 win over St. Bonaventure. The game was a rematch of last season’s 94–91 overtime MSU win in the Maui Invitational. MSU was seeking its first unbeaten November since 2015–16 and only the fourth under Tom Izzo - mission accomplished.

This was the third straight season the teams have met. While UNC leads the all-time series 13–6, MSU has won three of the last four.

Trey Fort opened up the game with a 3-pointer, followed by a Carson Cooper defensive rebound and a Coen Carr fast-break slam dunk to open up a 5-0 MSU lead less than a minute into the game.

Sloppy basketball and poor defense by the Spartans resulted in two UNC dunks which let the Tarheels stem the early MSU momentum. It was back and forth for the first few minutes of the game – at a frenetic pace – and the Spartans held a 9-8 lead at the first media timeout with 15:38 left in the first half.

Carr made 6 of MSU’s first 11 points, including this baseline drive:

Defense tightened up on both ends and the pace slowed. Shots stopped falling and the Spartans held a 13-12 lead when the national TV audience went to a commercial break with 11:49 remaining in the first half. Besides Fort’s opening three-pointer and two free throws by UNC’s Caleb Wilson, all the points were in the paint for both teams.

Out of the timeout, things picked back up with North Carolina hitting two free throws, Cooper knocking an offensive rebound to Ker Tung for an MSU put back, and UNC answering with a Jarin Stevenson three-point basket – UNC’s first outside made shot – to give the Tarheels a 17-15 lead.

Cooper and Jaxon Kohler were banging hard down low against the Tarheels but couldn’t get shots to fall as the teams stayed stuck on 17-15 for nearly three minutes of game time.

A Fort missed layup gave way to a North Carolina three-pointer and – following a Fort missed three-pointer – a Stevenson layup to stretch the Tarheel lead to seven, forcing Tom Izzo to call a timeout with 7:41 left in the half. The Spartans missed six consecutive shots (and 1 of 12).

On the possession out of the timeout, Kohler missed a three-pointer but Jeremy Fears broke the Spartan streak with MSU’s first basket in nearly five minutes of game time. After a defensive stop, Kohler hit a three-point basket to pull Michigan State to within two, 22-20.

One possession later, a Fears/Cooper pick-n-roll resulted in a Cooper slam dunk and a made free throw on the foul to complete an 8-0 run and give the Spartans back the lead, 23-22.

The Spartans didn’t let up and the defensive pressure intensified.

Fears grabbed the next two defensive rebounds and assisted Divine Ugochukwu on a three-pointer from the corner and – following Cam Ward’s block of Derek Dixon’s shot down low – Ward on a layup.

It ended up being a 13-0 run by the Spartans following Izzo’s timeout, moving the score from a 15-22 deficit to a 28-22 lead with 3:18 left in the half. Luka Bogavac hit a three-pointer for the Tarheels to break the streak. On the next trip down the court, Ward made one of two free throws and the score stood at 29-25.

After a UNC free throw, Carr took the ball to the basket and – while he wasn’t able to finish it – Ward gathered up the rebound and was fouled. Ward knocked down both free throws and the Spartans led 31-26 with two minutes to go in the first half.

Baskets from Zayden High and Jeremy Fears took the game to half time with the Spartans leading by five, 33-28.

MSU’s defensive intensity picked up right off the bat in the second half, with Kohler getting the defensive rebound and Carter making a three-point play. MSU led 36-28 but then the Tarheels went on a quick 5-0 run.

The game pace picked up from there as the teams swapped baskets and turnovers. Cooper made the first seven points of the half for the Spartans and the teams entered the first media timeout with the same five-point MSU lead as at the half, with the scoreboard showing MSU leading 40-35 with 15:53 remaining in the game.

UNC drew up an alleyoop out of the timeout and the Spartans answered with a Kohler offensive rebound and put back. After a defensive stop, Kohler dished it to Ward to give the Spartans a seven-point lead.

The game saw some more up and down action, and the Tarheels cut the lead to four on a pair of free throws, 48-44, with 13:11 remaining on the clock. Cooper missed a slam dunk but grabbed the defensive rebound. A Teng basket and a three-pointer by Kohler gave the Spartans a nine-point lead, 53-44. However, Ugochukwu threw the ball away with 10:43 left in the game to take the game to the media timeout, with the Spartans up, 53-46.

At that point, Kohler had already reached a double-double for the game.

After UNC knocked the lead down to five, 53-48, Cooper missed a shot in the lane and Carr fouled Bogavac on a three-point shot.

Bogavac made two of the three free throws and the MSU lead was down to three, 53-50.

A Fears jumper from the elbow stopped the Tarheel 6-0 run and pushed the Spartan lead back to 55-50. A UNC layup brought the Tarheels back to within three heading into the media timeout with 7:49 to go in the game and the Spartans clinging to a three-point lead.

Coming out of the timeout, Michigan State went down low to Ward who backed his man down and made a jumper off the glass. A defensive stop turned into a Fears three pointer (assist from Kohler out of the double team on the block) – and a missed free throw which could have made it a four-point play.

On the next trip down the court for North Carolina, Fort stole it, Fears passed it, and Ward finished it. And the Spartans lead was up to 10. The scoreboard read 62-52 with 6:20 left in the game.

Following a Ward defensive rebound, the Spartans slowed it down, but the result was the same – a Fears assist to Cooper. A 12-point lead. A UNC timeout.

With 5:17 left in the game, MSU was up 64-52. From there, the Spartans only increased the lead, with a final score of 74-58.

Fears scored MSU's final six points of the game and the green and white crowd in Fort Myers was ecstatic.