Spartans Add Three on National Signing Day in a Top-10 Recruiting Class

East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State's men's basketball team has received signed National Letters of Intent from Jesse McCulloch (Cleveland, Ohio / Lutheran East), Jase Richardson (Miami, Fla. / Columbus) and Kur Teng (Manchester, N.H. / Bradford Christian Academy [Mass.]).

The Spartans' recruiting class has been recognized nationally as one of the best in the country, ranked No. 7 by 247 Sports, No. 13 by Rivals, and No. 19 by ON3 Sports. All three players are ranked among the top-100 nationally in the ESPN Top 100.

"Signing Day is always great, especially when you think you had a good class and we think we have that with the guys who signed today," Head coach Tom Izzo said. "I like what we're doing and the way we're doing it on the recruiting front. This is a highly ranked class and we're very excited to have these guys coming here.

"Jesse has a body that can put on some good weight, we project him as a guy who can really, really help us down the road and he's got a love for the game. It's unique with Jase because he is the first son of one of my former players we recruited. I told his dad early on that I'm going to recruit Jase as Jase and not his son. It's pretty cool for a son to come to a place his dad went to two Final Fours and won a national championship and 20 years later his son has a chance to do some special things. With Kur, we always look at programs they play and where they come from and he's one of those that we say he's "Our Kinda Guy." We're just really excited to have all three of them coming to our program."

Jesse McCulloch (6-10, 225, F – Cleveland, Ohio / Lutheran East)
A four-star recruit who has moved up the recruit rankings over the last two years … Ranked No. 98 in the ESPN Top 100 … Tabbed No. 106 in the country by On3 Sports and No. 128 by 247Sports … Among power forwards, ESPN lists him at No. 13, with On3 Sports and 247Sports tabbing McCulloch at No. 21 … Plays for one of the top prep basketball programs in Ohio at Lutheran East … An all-state honoree as a junior … Averaged 17.3 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game … In three years at Lutheran East, has helped lead the team to a 54-18 record and two state titles.

Izzo on McCulloch…
"He's a four-start recruit right now and I think he could move up. He has something that we think is very valuable, he can really shoot the ball. He's got more weight and more energy and he's a guy that's excited to be here. His team has played very well, so he has won a lot in Cleveland. We were attracted to him because he could shoot it and he communicated really well on the floor, maybe better than any guard I've seen. Then we had a chance to meet his family and his parents, they were just unbelievable. We looked at Jesse early, we liked Jesse early and we moved on Jesse early."

Jase Richardson (6-3, 180, G – Miami, Fla. / Columbus)
The son of former Spartan standout Jason Richardson … Listed among the top-40 players in the country … Appears at No. 28 in the country in the ESPN Top 100, No. 35 in the country by 247Sports, No. 37 by On3 Sports and No. 39 in Rivals … Ranked No. 3 among combo guards by On3 Sports, No. 4 by 247Sports, No. 6 by ESPN and No. 11 in Rivals … Averaged 16.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists for PG Elite on the Nike EYBL circuit last year

Izzo on Richardson…
"In Jase Richardson, we get a little bit of everything. We get a guy who can shoot it. What is probably the best thing is, it is an honor to have the son of a former player. That is a big-time recruit. He's right on the edge, hopefully will be a McDonald's All-American by the time the year is up. He's ranked in the top 35 or 40 for most polls. He's ranked among the three best combo guards and I think that's what he is. He had a knee injury a few years ago and I saw him play and he was good and he was just coming back. I saw him last summer and his game was elevated to a whole new level and now he's even taken it to a new level. I think the health of him has made a big difference. He can pass it, he can shoot it, he can defend it, and he can rebound it, he's a very aggressive rebounder. As he gets stronger, and that would maybe be the only thing right now, as he gets stronger like his dad went through, I think this kid has a chance to be one of the great combo guards because I think he can do it in a lot of different ways that we've had. He too, his family, his mother was a coach believe it or not, he's got a brother, so in the family, they all are big basketball nuts. He lives, eats, and sleeps it. I think he's going to be a great addition to not only what we have, but we need and I think that that's going to be really important to us in the near future."

Kur Teng (6-4, 185, G – Manchester, N.H. / Bradford Christian Academy [Mass.])
The first player of the class to commit to MSU … A consensus top-50 guard … A 4-star recruit listed at No. 44 nationally by 247 Sports, No. 39 in the ESPN Top 100 and No. 43 by On3Sports … Ranked as the No.8 shooting guard in the class and the top player in Massachusetts by 247 Sports … The Circuit's 2023 3SSB Most Valuable Player … NBPA Top 100 and adidas Eurocamp selection … Named Most Valuable Player at the adidas 3SSB 17u Open Championships … In the 2023 adidas #3SSB circuit, Teng shot 48.8 percent from 3-point land, while averaging 18.1 points per game and 5.3 rebounds per game … Has scored 1,615 varsity points entering his last season at Bradford Christian Academy (Lawrence, Mass.) … A two-time New England Prep School Athletic Conference (NEPSAC) AA first team selection.

Izzo on Teng…
"We always look at program's guys play from and are they "Our Kinda Guys." This guy's coach (Vin Pastore) is a lovable guy, hard on his players, demanding of them and he's had some big-time players, some pro players from his program. The body, the build, we thought he could be a Big Ten guard and then the fact that he can shoot it. He's got a mid-range game, a long-range game, he can shoot the ball and right now, let's face it, there's a premium on being able to shoot the ball. We got to know him and we got to know his family. It was just the right fit for us and hopefully that's why he thought it was the right fit for him."

Spartans Add Three on National Signing Day in a Top-10 Recruiting Class

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