Michigan State's Tom Izzo 'Extremely Impressed' by Illinois' Keaton Wagler

The No. 1 player circled on every team’s scouting report prior to a matchup with Illinois is freshman guard Keaton Wagler. It’s shocking, considering the Illini are loaded with experienced, proven offensive standouts (Andrej Stojakovic, Tomislav Ivisic and Kylan Boswell, for starters) that a freshman is the star of the show for the No. 5 team in the country – especially one as unheralded coming out of high school as Wagler was.

Then again, that minimal fanfare throughout his amateur career may be exactly what has allowed Wagler to immediately flourish at the highest level of college hoops. And in the opinion of Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo, that is likely the case.

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo praises Illinois' Keaton Wagler

“Wagler, I think he is the [Big Ten] Freshman of the Year. Honestly, I think he could be the Player of the Year,” Izzo said prior to Illinois’ matchup with Michigan State in East Lansing on Saturday (7 p.m. CT, FOX). “I think he’s that good. Pretty impressive. I told Brad [Underwood] I think it’s because he didn’t get ruined by the media, by the fans or by the coaches because he was no five-star, ten-star, McDonald’s this. He was – I don’t even know if he was a Burger King – I think he was a Subway. He was a guy that was a three-star and moved up a little bit.

“But you’ve got to give him a lot of credit, and them a lot of credit, because he’s a very, very impressive guard. He’s got size. You talk about quarterbacks in the NFL, you always hear the story about [how] the game slowed down for him. Since [Kylan] Boswell has been hurt, the game has actually slowed down for this kid. He handles himself really maturely. He seems like a great kid. He can pass it. He can shoot it. He can take his time and get 46 against Purdue. And he can just be a passing guy and get some against somebody else. So I’ve been extremely impressed with him.”

In other words, Izzo confirms what our eyes have been telling us about Wagler: a mature-beyond-his-years lead guard with essentially zero flaws in his game. Wagler can shoot, pass and drive. He doesn’t turn the ball over. He doesn’t force the issue. He makes the right play time and again. And once the decision is made, Wagler (or his teammates) tend to capitalize on the opportunity at a high rate.

Wagler never gets lumped in with the “sharpshooters” in the Big Ten, but he is leading the conference in three-point percentage at 44.4 percent while hitting 2.6 per game – an even more impressive number considering his shot diet, which is loaded with a hefty dosage of off-the-dribble jumpers.

Wagler's footwork around the basket is impeccable. His change of pace is second to none. And at 6-foot-6, he has the leverage and vantage point to do it all – shoot, pass or drive – with relative ease.

Most importantly, though, it’s the metronome-level consistency that Wagler displays in his skill set. He shows up every single night. Without fail. He doesn't get rattled or hung up on a (rare) bad play. And with an outing at the always-rocking Breslin Center against the always-tough Spartans up next, the Illini sure hope that trend will continue on Saturday night.