3 Observations from Michigan State's Win over Arkansas

Michigan State does not win that game without freshman forward Cam Ward. During his second college game, with this one being a top-25 matchup on national television, Ward was absolutely stellar.

Getting 18 points and 10 rebounds during a game from a freshman would be great in February or March, or any time, really. Ward showing that he can provide that as early as November while still coming off the bench is a great sign.

One gets the sense that he’s another prototypical Tom Izzo player, as well. While talking to him, his joy and giddiness didn’t seem to stem from the fact that he had 18 and 10. It was because his team won. 

Fellow freshman Jordan Scott is not much different. Both guys play with admirable amounts of effort and play unselfish, winning basketball. Izzo only took two high school recruits in 2025, and the early returns on both of them are tremendous.

All-Around Day for Coen Carr

Something else important is that Coen Carr had one of his most well-rounded games as a Spartan. He scored 15 points, got seven rebounds, got three assists, and also had a steal.

Offensively, I liked how aggressive Carr was, especially in the first half. His alien-like athleticism with his strength gives him the ability to will his way to quality looks at the rim, even with defenders on or around him. There were a few instances where Carr had the ball headed downhill and did that. 

Carr hasn’t necessarily looked like a score-first player often unless it’s when searching for those alley-oops, but he found other ways to score again.

His rebounding was also a nice plus. Some concerns had risen over his lack of rebounds after the two exhibitions and Colgate, especially on the defensive glass. Carr definitely quieted that down a bit.

19 Offensive Rebounds

The stat that both Izzo and Arkansas’ John Calipari seemed to emphasize the most during their respective press conferences was how good the Spartans were on the offensive glass. Calipari talked about it like it was more about where his team fell short, but alas.

For some added contrast, Arkansas had 20 defensive rebounds. That means Michigan State had an offensive rebounding rate of 48.7%, which is insane. 

According to KenPom, at the time this article is being written, the Division I average is 31.7% this year, and it was 29.8% last season.

MSU won the second-chance points battle, 18-12. That could very well be the difference in a game that was decided by three.