Postgame Reactions, Thoughts on Michigan State's Loss to Duke

Here are some other thoughts following the Spartans' first loss of the season.

Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr., right, moves the ball as Duke's Caleb Foster defends during the second half on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

No. 7 Michigan State's loss to No. 4 Duke felt like a missed opportunity for the Spartans. MSU had the lead at halftime and for a good portion of the second half, but the Blue Devils looked like the team more prepared for crunch time in a 66-60 Duke win.

On this episode of the Michigan State Spartans Insider Podcast, let's break down what went wrong during some of those final moments for the Spartans and what the loss means for the season ahead. A full video of the episode can be viewed below.

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Relative Calm

Michigan State's Carson Cooper reacts after the Spartans loss to Duke on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Something that stood out about Tom Izzo's postgame press conference and the mood inside Michigan State's locker room, at least during media availability, is that there wasn't too much worry. Everybody was appropriately irritated that they lost, but the walls are a long way from closing in.

Duke was the fourth and final big opponent on MSU's non-conference schedule, which also includes No. 16 North Carolina, No. 18 Kentucky, and No. 25 Arkansas. Going 3-1 against those teams is a pretty good mark. Taking the Blue Devils down and reaching 4-0 would've been nice for the Spartans, but Michigan State is still in a better spot to succeed right now than where many thought they'd be before the season.

"You've got to take the wins with the losses, pros and cons," MSU center Carson Cooper said following the game. "Coach [Tom Izzo] said it, there hasn't been an undefeated team in college basketball in 50-something years, so you're not going to win every game."

Still, the fact that Michigan State maybe should've won this game makes it sting a bit more.

Dec 6, 2025; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Michigan State Spartans center Carson Cooper (15) dunks the ball against the Duke Blue Devils during the second half at Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Dale Young-Imagn Images | Dale Young-Imagn Images

"Today was a game we could win," Cooper said. "I told the guys after, like, I'd almost rather lose by, like, 30 or 40, and they're actually better than us, and I can sleep better at night knowing they're better than us, instead of lose by one or two possessions here and really think back to, like, 'Damn, if I would have done this or this, then it would have been a different outcome.'

"So this is going to sting a little bit, but we'll bounce back and we'll be better for sure."

Even though the atmosphere felt like a late-February, early-March game with conference championship implications, it's still just an early-December non-conference loss. Michigan State will have a week to pick itself back up before facing Penn State during its first true road game this year next Saturday.

Michigan State guard Jeremy Fears Jr. (1) defends Duke guard Caleb Foster (1) during the second half at Breslin Center in East Lansing on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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