MSU's Tom Izzo In Attendance For Top 2026 Target

The Michigan State Spartans beat Florida Atlantic, and then head coach Tom Izzo made a short trip to watch top 2026 target guard Steven Reynolds III.

South Bend Washington's Steven Reynolds brings the ball up the court during a scrimmage at the Notre Dame Team Camp at Rolfs Athletics Hall on Thursday, June 13, 2024, in South Bend. | MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK

2026 South Bend Washington guard Steven Reynolds III is one of Tom Izzo and Michigan State's top priorities of the 2026 recruiting cycle.

Reynolds was offered in August, and the Spartans have been in close contact since. Washington's season is underway, and they just partook in the first inaugural Michiana Hoops Shootout, pitting Northern Indiana and Southwestern Michigan high school teams against each other.

The event was played at Portage Central High School, and Izzo was seen in attendance, having made the trip after his Spartans thrashed Florida Atlantic 86-69 earlier Saturday afternoon. Rivals was on the scene and reported via X, formerly known as Twitter.

Tom Izzo was at Portage Central High School tonight, watching 4-star guard @SR3BucketKing in the final game of the inaugural @michiana_hoops Shootout. Spartans Illustrated contributer @Ben_Sonday was there as well & snapped these pictures. SB Washington beat Benton Harbor, 78-67. pic.twitter.com/mnVJCyfcF8

— Spartans Illustrated (@SpartansRivals) December 22, 2024

Izzo had quite the busy Saturday. It goes to show how committed the veteran coach is to the game, still, and his dedication on the recruiting trail has not wavered despite a new generation of coaches dominating the college basketball scene.

I spoke with Reynolds and his coach, Ryan Varga in September. Reynolds is a special player with all of the right skills to succeed at a high level of college hoops, but his off-the-charts IQ is what will set him apart from his peers.

"[The IQ is] Almost to the point where he's ahead, so it can kind of be his downfall too because his teammates are still trying to catch up to him," Varga said. "But he does an excellent job of coaching them up and getting them where they need to be. You could say anything you want about him shooting. He can shoot it from anywhere. Tremendous mid-range shooter. Which, you know, the analytics tell you not to get to that mid-range, but with him, there isn't a mid-range shot that he takes that I don't think is going in.

"He is a very underrated passer. He can really pass the ball. I've never seen anybody rebound and put the outlet pass right in the breadbasket for a layup more than he does. So just having an extra coach on the floor who is very skilled makes things kind of look easy, makes me look a heck of a lot better."

Michael France is Sports Illustrated's Michigan State recruiting beat writer, covering all things Big Ten recruiting for Spartan Nation. Be sure to follow him on Twitter/X@michaelfrancesi for exclusive Spartans recruiting coverage.

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