Jeremy Fears Jr. takes over in OT for Michigan State basketball

EAST LANSING — Jeremy Fears Jr. converted a three-point play with 1:47 remaining in overtime to give No. 10 Michigan State basketball a lead it wouldn’t relinquish in a come-from-behind 85-82 victory over No. 6 Illinois on Saturday, Feb. 7.

The win snaps a two-game losing streak for the Spartans and featured another stellar performance from point guard Jeremy Fears Jr., who led the Spartans with 26 points (including 11 in the extra period) and 15 assists – the third-most helpers by an MSU player in program history, behind only Mateen Cleaves’ 20 in 2000, Gary Ganakas’ 17 in 1972 and his own 17 last month against Maryland.

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Jaxon Kohler had 11 points and 15 rebounds, freshman Jordan Scott added 10 points and three rebounds before fouling out and Kur Teng added 10 points for the Spartans.

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Back and forth to finish regulation

Teng hit a 3-pointer with 8.5 seconds remaining to give the Spartans a two-point lead, 71-69, roughly 100 seconds after Scott’s pair of free throws had given the Spartans their first lead of the second half.

But Illinois tied it with 1 second left when Illinois’ Jake Davis was fouled; he calmly hit both shots. MSU had a shot at the win as time expired, with Fears finding Carson Cooper at the arc on a ¾-court pass, but Cooper’s shot clanged off the back of the rim.

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Where does MSU sit in the Big Ten race?

With the win, the Spartans (20-4) improved to 10-3 in Big Ten play and sit 1½ games back of Michigan, which plays Sunday at Ohio State; MSU dropped Illinois out of a share of first place in the conference; the Spartans are in fourth place, half a game behind 10-2 Nebraska, which beat Rutgers on Saturday, and a half game ahead of 9-3 Purdue. The top four in league play qualify for a double-bye in next month’s Big Ten Tournament in Chicago.

More controversy for Jeremy Fears Jr.

Michigan State’s Jeremy Fears Jr. moves the ball against Illinois during the first…

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Publish date : 2026-02-08 03:36:00

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