Why MSU's Big Men Have Hit Rough Patch

Michigan State senior big men Carson Cooper and Jaxon Kohler have been a massive part of the Spartans' success this season. They've shown everyone what growth and improvement should look like at the college level, but just as MSU hits the toughest stretch of its Big Ten schedule, the play of its bigs has declined.

It goes beyond just Kohler and Cooper, but those are the primary faces of the position on this Michigan State team, and they're both captains and starters, so naturally, they receive the focus.

msu big me — Michigan State's Carson Cooper, left, blocks Michigan's Aday Mara during the first half on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Turnover Issues Arise

One of the biggest problems that has developed among Michigan State's big men over recent games is the sudden increase in turnovers from its big men. Over the last two games, the Spartans have turned the ball over 32 times, but 18 of those have been credited to the bigs, with Cooper and Kohler accounting for 11.

"We've got guys trying to do things they can't do," head coach Tom Izzo said after Friday's loss to Michigan. "That's why, over our last three games, our bigs have had 10 turnovers and nine turnovers. It's hard to do that. That means they're trying to do more than they can do. We're going to haveto talk about that."

Cooper made a play that personified that explanation perfectly against Michigan, or more accurately, attempted to. Somehow the ball ended up in his hands with the shot clock winding down, and he drove to the basket, flailing about as he put up a reverse layup that never had a chance. The ball ended up in Michigan's hands and became a Cooper turnover, but the real issue was that he's not the guy you want with the ball in that situation, especially if he's having to try to make a defender miss to clear a path to the hoop.

Kohler Goes Cold, Cooper Disappears

Kohler's shooting has also dipped during the stretch, even if his scoring is still similar. He's scored 24 points over the last two games, but it hasn't been a very efficient 24 points. He's just 8-for-23 from the floor and 3-for-13 from three-point range after seeming like a breakout shooter for most of the season.

"He's playing too many minutes," Izzo responded when asked about Kohler after the Michigan game. "We had no choice. Our young guys just did not [play well]. I thought Jesse [McCulloch] played well for about three or four minutes, but then [he didn't], so we played Jaxon. Then Coop got in foul trouble a little bit, so we had to play Jaxon more. I thought his legs were gone at the end, and I don't blame that on him. I blame it on me."

In Friday's game, Cooper also disappeared, scoring just six points and grabbing only two rebounds while committing three fouls. That's not what Michigan State needs from him in these big games, and it's certainly not the type of player he's been all season.

Depth Question Marks

An easy fix would be to distribute minutes among the big men more evenly, but as I mentioned above, the issues have extended beyond Cooper and Kohler. During the same span, Jesse McCulloch and Cam Ward, the two youngsters who are next in line, have not played well enough either.

During Friday's game, they played eight minutes each. Ward helped with the rebounding, but overall wasn't good enough, finishing with no points and three turnovers. McCulloch's only contributions were two points and two rebounds after not seeing the floor at all against Rutgers. Ward also struggled with turnovers and scoring against the Scarlet Knights.

The depth players simply aren't ready to play more minutes. That means Michigan State's best course of action is really just to battle through its latest issues and hope its senior big men can get it back together.

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