Breaking Down Jeremy Fears' Historic Game for MSU

EAST LANSING, Mich. --- Jeremy Fears Jr. had perhaps his finest game as a Spartan on Saturday.

Michigan State's "floor general" scored 17 points, but the eye-popping stat is his 17 assists during the 10th-ranked Spartans' 81-46 demolition of Maryland. It's tied for the second-most assists in any game in MSU's history, only behind a 20-assist performance from program legend Mateen Cleaves against Michigan on March 4, 2000. Fears is also the first player in Big Ten history to have a 17-point, 17-assist game.

Michigan State's Tom Izzo, left, coaches up Jeremy Fears Jr., right, during a game against Maryland at the Breslin Center on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

Fears is emerging as one of the best point guards --- scratch that --- players in the country. Popular analytics site KenPom ranks Fears ninth in its standings for Player of the Year.

Following Saturday's result, Fears is averaging 13.4 points and 8.8 assists per game. Across Fears' last eight games, he's averaging 17.2 points and 8.4 assists per game. His scoring has vastly improved from last year, and only Purdue's Braden Smith can say he averages more assists than Fears.

More on Fears' Game vs. Maryland

Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr., left, yells at Maryland's Guillermo Del Pino while guarding him during the first half on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The extra impressive part is that Fears didn't even play that many minutes due to the completely lopsided result. Fears only played 25 minutes on Saturday against Maryland, despite entering the game averaging 30.7 minutes per game.

It's easy to imagine Fears reaching that 20-assist mark if the game were closer. At the rate Fears was getting assists on Saturday, he would've been on track to tie Cleaves' record with four or five minutes of playing time, which just would have gotten him to his season average.

Tom Izzo said after the game that he would've thought more about keeping Fears in down the stretch if he were just a bit closer. Sportsmanship is, of course, a factor here.

Trying to get three more assists can have the appearance of stat-padding, and running up the score against a team that's already having a rough season is just not something Izzo is very interested in.

Michigan State's Tom Izzo smiles from the bench during a game against Maryland at the Breslin Center on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

During the time Fears was on the court, Michigan State outscored the Terrapins by a whopping 43 points. Given that was the final margin of victory for the Spartans, that means it was just completely even during the 15 minutes he was on the bench.

Fears just seemed to be visualizing the court at another level on Saturday. It's his 10th career game with at least 10 assists, but it shatters his previous career-high of 13. Fears also obtained his sixth career double-double for his efforts on Saturday.

Keep up with all our content when you follow the official Spartan Nation page on Facebook, Spartan Nation, WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE, and be sure to share your thoughts on MSU's game vs. Maryland when you join our community group, Go Green Go White, WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE. Don't forget to give us a follow on X @MSUSpartansOnSI as well.

Never again miss one major story related to your beloved Spartans when you sign up for our 100% FREE newsletter that comes straight to your email with the latest news. SIGN UP HERE NOW