What MSU's Fears Said About Setting New Program Assist Record

EAST LANSING, Mich. --- The record book has already been rewritten this season by Jeremy Fears Jr.

Back on Friday against UCLA during the Big Ten Tournament, Michigan State's star point guard reached 294 assists on the season. That catapulted Fears past 2018-19 Cassius Winston (291 assists) for the most assists in a single season in MSU history. Fears averages a nation-leading 9.2 assists per game, but he's second in the nation in total assists behind Purdue's Braden Smith (317).

Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. hunches over during a game against Michigan at the Breslin Center on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

"It's kind of happened naturally," Fears said after practice Monday. "I'm grateful for my teammates; they basically did the hard work. I just passed them the ball. They had to take the shot and whatnot. Overall, [getting the record] was special."

This time of year, though, Fears is mostly focused on other things.

Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. looks on during a Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal game against UCLA at the United Center on Friday, March 13, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

"Our goal is to win games and championships. I definitely want to focus on keeping moving upward. Maybe in the future I'll look back and think about it, but not as of right now. It's still special and definitely cool to see."

Fears expanded some more on the assist record, his inclusion among a fairly long line of great MSU point guards, and also his thoughts on the upcoming NCAA Tournament run. A video of his media availability from Monday has been provided below.

Video of Jeremy Fears Jr.

More from Fears

Having that record at Michigan State is an impressive feat. When guys like Magic Johnson, Winston, Mateen Cleaves, and Scott Skiles (just to name a few) have all played for your school, it means something. Johnson's 11.2 assists per game during his NBA career is the highest ever, and Skiles holds the single-game NBA record, with 30.

"[Being compared to players like Winston, Cleaves] is definitely something I wanted to reach," Fears said. "Those guys had great careers here: Final Fours, even Mateen's national championship, so that's definitely stuff and goals I have for myself."

Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. jogs out to the court after being introduced as a starter against Northwestern at the Breslin Center on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

Thoughts on North Dakota State

Fears can look to extend the record even further with a deeper run in the NCAA Tournament. Third-seeded MSU starts its run in March Madness against 14-seed North Dakota State, the regular-season and tournament champs out of the Summit League.

"They've got eight, nine guys that can all play," Fears said about the Bison. "All can shoot the ball, kind of skilled, and they have every position that you need. That kind of shows you why their record is 27-7, I believe. That's really hard to do, winning 27 games."

Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. looks on during a break on the bench during the second half against Michigan on Sunday, March 8, 2026, at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images