Men’s Basketball Hosts Niagara on Thursday Night at Home

East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State's men's basketball team plays its second game of the season on Thursday, Nov. 7 (8 p.m.), hosting Niagara at the Breslin Center.

The game will air live on BTN, with Kevin Kugler and Shon Morris calling all of the action. The Spartan Media Network radio call can be heard state-wide and on the web at MSUSpartans.com, with Will Tieman handling the play-by-play and Matt Steigenga serving as the color analyst, and Zach Surdenik is the studio host. The game can also be heard on channel 84 on SiriusXM and on the SiriusXM app.

About the Spartans

Michigan State finished the 2023-24 season with a 20-15 overall record, including a 10-10 mark in the Big Ten Conference to finish tied for sixth place in the league.
The Spartans were selected for the NCAA Tournament for the 26th-straight season, the longest streak in Big Ten Conference history, the third-longest in NCAA history and officially recognized by the NCAA as the longest active streak.
MSU beat Mississippi State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before falling to North Carolina in the second round.
The Spartans will replace four starters who accounted for 61.7 percent of the team's scoring last year, 48.6 percent of the team's rebounds and 64.2 percent of the team's assists, led by guard Tyson Walker (All-Big Ten Second Team).
MSU returns three players who started games last year, led senior guard Jaden Akins, who finished fourth on the team in scoring with 10.4 points per game while adding 3.9 rebounds, 1.2 assists and tying for the team lead in 3-pointers made (64) … He was the only player to start all 35 games last year.
Michigan State also returns seven letterwinners, and welcomes five newcomers, two transfers and three freshmen.
Junior guard Tre Holloman emerged as a key player in the rotation as a sophomore, averaging 19.7 minutes per game while contributing 5.7 ppg, finishing second on the team with 2.4 apg and leading the team in 3-point field goal percentage (42.5%).
Junior center Carson Cooper started the final four games of the season and appeared in all 35 games, averaging 3.4 points and 4.4 rebounds overall.

Spartans Victorious in Season Opener

Senior guard Jaden Akins tied his career-high with 23 points and Michigan State pulled away in the second half, beating Monmouth, 81-57, in the season opener for both schools on Monday night at the Breslin Center.
Akins scored 15 of his 23 points in the second half, hitting 8-of-12 shots from the floor and 6-of-7 from the free the line. He added a team-high nine rebounds, handed out five assists and had two blocks and two steals.
Freshman guard Jase Richardson scored 10 points and had four assists off the bench, while senior center Szymon Zapala finished with nine points, eight rebounds and three blocks.

MSU Adds Two Transfers

MSU welcomes in a pair of transfers in senior forward Frankie Fidler (Omaha) and senior center Szymon Zapala (Longwood/Utah State).
Fidler, a 6-7, 217-pound forward, spent three years at Omaha and was named First Team All-Summit League in 2023-24 after averaging 20.1 points per game, 6.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.
Fidler started all 33 games for the Mavericks, connecting on 45.2 percent of his field goals, 35.6 percent of his 3-point attempts and a team-best 85.4 percent of his free throws (216-of-253).
Zapala comes to Michigan State after one season at Longwood University in Virginia, helping guide the team to a 21-14 record as the Lancers won the Big South Championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
A 7-0, 240-pound center who hails from Poland, Zapala averaged 9.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in 16.7 minutes, connecting on 62.9 percent of his shots from the floor and starting in 23 of 35 games.

Three Newcomers Make Up Freshman Class

The Spartans' recruiting class has been recognized nationally as one of the top-20 in the country (No. 16 by 247 Sports and No. 19 by ON3 Sports)
The class includes guards Jase Richardson (the son of former Michigan State All-American Jason Richardson) and Kur Teng, along with forward Jesse McCulloch.

About Niagara

Niagara is led by sixth-year head coach Greg Paulus, who has a 68-78 career record, including a 46-50 record in conference play.
The Purple Eagles opened the season on Monday night with a 100-65 win over Houghton University … Seven different players scored in double figures, with sophomore guard Jahari Williamson leading the way with 16 points.
Niagara posted a 16-16 record last season, advancing to the quarterfinals of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament.
Niagara is one of five schools in all of Division I men's basketball to have no returning minutes from the previous season, joining DePaul, IUPUI, Iona, Kentucky and Louisville.
The Purple Eagles have 14 total newcomers, tied for the third-most in college basketball with 10 other schools (Cal, IU Indy, UIT Martin, Missouri State, Tarelton State, Fresno State, Pacific, Coastal Carolina and DePaul).
The game on Thursday night at Michigan State is the first of a seven-game road trip for Niagara.

Against Niagara, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Association

Thursday's game will be the first ever meeting between Michigan State and Niagara.
Michigan State has previously played just four schools in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.
The Spartans are 8-1 all-time against teams from the MAAC, the lone loss coming to St. Peter's, a 73-66 loss on the road on Dec. 1, 1983.
The team's most common opponent is Canisius (4-0) and the Spartans are 1-1 all-time against St. Peter's and 2-0 against Mount St. Mary's.