Breaking Down MSU's Jeremy Fears Jr.'s Big Leap
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Michigan State probably would not have its current top-10 status without its "floor general."
Jeremy Fears Jr. has excelled this past season. Even during tough games, like his 0-for-10 shooting game against Duke, Fears finds other ways to make a positive impact, like recording 13 assists.
Nearly every important statistic for Fears is up from last season: points, rebounds, assists, steals, field goal percentage, three-point percentage, and free-throw percentage, to name a few. His 9.8 assists per game so far are easily the most in the country. Fears' jump shot looks much smoother than how it looked last year.
On this episode of the Michigan State Spartans Insider Podcast, let's take a look at what has caused this leap in Fears' game to be possible, and how it means he might be putting himself on a trajectory that possibly ends with his No. 1 eventually going up in the Breslin Center's rafters. Video of the entire episode can be viewed below.
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More on Fears
Fears' best part of his skillset was always as a facilitator, but it's reached a whole new level. He's averaging more than four more assists per game than last year, and his number of turnovers per game has gone up by... 0.1. An assist-to-turnover ratio of 4.63-to-1 is utterly absurd at the collegiate level.
Purdue's Braden Smith was the Big Ten Player of the Year last season, and is second nationally in assists per game to Fears in assists per game. His ratio entering Wednesday is 3.29-to-1; that's still fantastic, but it's still well behind Fears right now.
The other evolution of Fears' abilities has been as a scorer. He's averaging 11.6 points per game this year, and was just at 7.2 in 2024-25. His percentages and volume are both up from inside and outside the arc, and that's with the Duke game weighing him down.
This might have helped open up passing lanes for Fears, too, since opponents cannot just go under screens and dare him to shoot, since Fears is hitting 38.1% of his long balls this season. Now, they're forced to go over, which opens the possibility of penetrating and either getting a look at the rim, a lob to the big man rolling off the screen, or maybe a kickout.
Additionally, Fears also needed to be this way for Michigan State to remain elite. Jase Richardson, Jaden Akins, and Tre Holloman all could be a primary ball handler when asked, and that much of that depth is not really a strength of MSU's now. It all runs through Fears, and he's been able to rise to the occasion.
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A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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