What to Know for MSU Basketball vs Cornell
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After spending the Christmas holiday with family and friends, Michigan State basketball will look to get back into game shape before the start of Big Ten play. But first, the Spartans will take on Cornell University, which enters the matchup at 6–5.
Michigan State comes into the game 11–1 following a hard-fought neutral-site win over Oakland in Detroit. Junior forward Coen Carr led the way with a career-high 22 points, adding seven rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in the victory.
The Spartans also received strong contributions from their senior frontcourt duo. Jaxon Kohler recorded his seventh double-double of the season, finishing with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and two blocks, while Carson Cooper controlled the paint with 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting, along with five rebounds and three blocks.
Despite the win, head coach Tom Izzo was not pleased with Michigan State’s performance—particularly its energy level early in the game.
“It looked like the first half we were already on vacation, and that’s not taking anything away from them,” Izzo said postgame. “That’s taking away the energy that we played with.”
With the break now behind them, Izzo will need his team locked in. After Cornell, Michigan State opens Big Ten play on the road in Lincoln, Nebraska, against the red-hot 13th-ranked Cornhuskers. Before that challenge, the Spartans will look to clean things up against Cornell.
What MSU needs to look out for
Cornell has had an up-and-down start to the season through its first 11 games. The Big Red opened the year 0–2, followed that with a five-game winning streak, then dropped three straight before closing the break with a win.
In its most recent game, Cornell rallied from a 34–29 halftime deficit to defeat the University at Albany, 83–75. Senior guard Cooper Noard led the charge with 25 points on 8-of-10 shooting, including 4-of-5 from three-point range. Fellow senior guard Jake Fiegen added 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting, knocking down three triples.
Cornell is one of the best three-point shooting teams in college basketball, averaging 41.6 percent from beyond the arc, tied for fourth-best nationally with Iowa State.
Noard has been Cornell’s standout player this season, averaging 20.6 points per game, along with nearly four rebounds and 1.5 assists per contest.
As Michigan State prepares for the grind of Big Ten play, the matchup with Cornell offers a valuable opportunity to refocus and sharpen execution. Facing one of the nation’s top perimeter shooting teams will test the Spartans’ defensive discipline, while a strong showing could help them build momentum before a challenging road trip to Nebraska. For Izzo and his team, the goal is simple: clean up the details now before conference play exposes them.
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