Michigan State basketball: Jase Richardson available vs. Colorado

Michigan State basketball opens an important week of hoops against Colorado on Monday evening and some fans were worried that the Spartans may not have their star freshman, Jase Richardson, for the contest.

Fortunately, it sounds like he’s doing well after tweaking his ankle in the Samford game last week.

In fact, Jon Rothstein is reporting that the talented freshman and son of MSU legend Jason Richardson will be good to go on Monday. He is reportedly “available” for the Colorado game.

Michigan State's Jase Richardson (ankle) will be available for today's game in the Maui Invitational against Colorado, per a school spokesman.

Averages 8.4 PPG.

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) November 25, 2024

Honestly, Michigan State avoided a major disaster here. The freshman guard went down awkwardly against Samford near the end of the game and laid on the floor holding his leg for a minute before getting helped to the bench. It looked like it could’ve been a non-contact injury which, as we all know, is one of the worst possible injuries due to potential severity.

Richardson had been red-hot on the year before that injury, averaging 8.4 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.2 steals while only turning the ball over once in five games. And that’s with some ball-handling duties. He is also shooting 63 percent from the floor, 50 percent from deep, and 100 percent from the free throw line. He’s been as good as advertised, and then some.

Michigan State knew it needed him this week if it wanted to engineer the Maui Invitational against the likes of UConn, North Carolina, Iowa State, Auburn, and Memphis and come away with a winning record. A 2-1 mark in Maui would be an overwhelming success.

Now that Richardson is good to go and can be that sixth man off the bench, Tom Izzo has to feel much better about his team’s chances to compete for the Maui crown. It’s not going to be easy, but getting to the championship or the third-place game wouldn’t be easy without Richardson.

These next three days will be a huge test for this team but fortunately Jase will be there to help.