In 2024, UConn and Michigan State basketball appeared to be on a collision course in Maui. Until, suddenly, they were not. While Tom Izzo’s squad took care of the Colorado Buffaloes in their opening round matchup, the same could not be said for Dan Hurley’s Huskies.
On Thursday, Hurley and Co. took a chance to rectify that, if you squint and ignore the asterisk. The Huskies will host the Spartans in October and will return the favor, heading to the Breslin Center next fall.
Hold your horses, Michigan State basketball is only playing an exhibition
Now, that seems early, and that is true. This game will be marked as an exhibition. While it is not clear which team pushed for the series to be an exhibition, there can be assumptions made from both sides. Tom Izzo has played teams such as Tennessee in exhibitions in recent years.
However, he also has an “any team, any place, any time” policy, which former Samford basketball coach Bucky McMillan complimented, saying teams had ducked the mid-major powerhouse Bulldogs.
Additionally, Dan Hurley’s legendary press conference rant at the Maui Invitational lives in infamy, and could be used as the “smoking gun” for ducking a team during the regular season.
That said, it is not necessarily bad news for the Spartans that this game will not be on the record books of the 2025-2026 season. Michigan State basketball enters in a year with a lot of questions, as the Spartans lose star Jase Richardson and Jaden Akins to the NBA, alongside crucial role players Szymon Zapala, Tre Holloman, and Frankie Fidler.
Additionally, there are even questions among the players on the roster, too. The “gem” of the Spartans’ transfer portal class, former Florida Atlantic forward Kaleb Glenn, is out for the season with a leg injury. Jesse McCulloch redshirted in 2024, and his health is in question with a foot injury as well.
Combine that with the Spartans hosting Duke and Arkansas this winter, and this game will be an excellent way to gauge the season. It will be a great glimpse of how Jeremy Fears Jr., incoming transfer Trey Fort, and the rest of the team will fare against a traditional basketball powerhouse.
The exhibition will be played on October 28, 2025. There is not an official date set for the return game in 2026, per the Michigan State basketball website.
