Izzo Weighs Coen Carr at the Four Against Duke

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has spent the first two games of the regular season tinkering with his lineups, and one of the groups he keeps going back to puts Coen Carr at the four. The No. 5 Spartans meet No. 2 Duke on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 7 p.m. ET in the Champions Classic at the United Center in Chicago, and Izzo was asked about that smaller look in a CBS Sports video with Jon Rothstein.

Michigan State’s Coen Carr shoots against Toledo during the first half on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. Credit: USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect (Reuters)

Tom Izzo on using Coen Carr at the four

Rothstein asked Izzo, “We have seen so far you use a smaller lineup with three guards and Coen Carr as the four man. Is this something you think that will continue even if it’s not vintage Michigan State in terms of the chemical makeup?”

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Michigan State’s head coach answered, “You know, and it is funny because I had a kid, Branden Dawson, who we went to a Final Four with. He played the four the whole time, you know. I’ve had some guys that we go a little smaller. We can go big or small. I think that’s a plus for us and I think you’ll see both in that game Tuesday. It just happens that maybe two of the best players for Duke are their two big men.”

Dawson is a useful reference point. He spent four seasons at power forward for Izzo and started on the 2015 Michigan State team that reached the Final Four, where the Spartans lost to Duke. So Izzo is willing to be flexible with this roster depending on the matchup, and he is saying out loud that both versions of his team are in play on Tuesday.

What Michigan State gives up going smaller

The group Rothstein described is the one Michigan State started in its 91-61 win over Toledo on Thursday, Nov. 5: three guards in Jeremy Fears Jr., Jasiah Jervis and Jordan Scott, Carr at the four, and Anton Bonke at center. Going any smaller than that means Jesse McCulloch, the other big man in the rotation, stays on the…

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Publish date : 2026-11-10 20:10:00

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