Tuesday afternoon, Michigan State men's basketball's Jeremy Fears Jr. and Jaxon Kohler earned All-Big Ten honors.
Fears was named to the first team list, while Kohler was tabbed to the honorable mention team. Senior center Carson Cooper was named MSU's sportsmanship honoree.
Fears, MSU’s floor general, has made a name for himself, emerging as the Spartans’ number one option. The sophomore point guard averages 15.5 points and 9 assists per game. Fears is the first Spartan to earn first-team honors since Cassius Winston in 2020.
Fears ranks number one in the country in total assists, assists per game and assist rate per KenPom.
Fears’ 281 assists on the season rank second all-time on the MSU single-season assist list. He passed Mateen Cleaves on Sunday against Michigan and is 10 away from Winston’s 291 assists during his junior campaign.
Kohler has been a force and consistent sorcerer in the post for the Spartans. The senior forward, who averages 12.8 points and 9.1 rebounds a game, has developed a shot from the perimeter and has become MSU’s most dynamic player.
MSU kept its No. 8 ranking in the AP Top 25 poll, No. 9 per KenPom, and No. 11 in the NET. According to Fox Sports’ Michael DeCourcy, MSU is slotted on the last line as a two-seed in the NCAA tournament. MSU, 25-6 (15-5 Big Ten), earned the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten Tournament with two home losses on the season.
This weekend, MSU will face either Minnesota, Rutgers or UCLA Friday night in the Big Ten Tournament in Chicago.
