The Michigan State Spartans aren't overlooking their opener against Monmouth

East Lansing – The Michigan State men's basketball team knows better than to look past an opponent. Last season's opening loss to James Madison – which ended up being pretty good, mind you – is still fresh in the Spartans' minds this week.

“Give them credit, they beat us and had a heck of a year after that,” Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said Friday of the Dukes, who finished 32-4 and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament. “But it’s a big week. See if we learned anything, see what our approach is.”

The Spartans are performing a balancing act this week. They don't want to overlook anyone, but they also have a lot to look forward to. Monday's season opener against Monmouth and Thursday's follow-up game against Niagara are two medium-sized games that Michigan State should definitely overcome. Perhaps the biggest takeaway from these games will be the team heading into its highly anticipated Champions Classic game next Tuesday in Atlanta against preseason No. 1 Kansas.

These games are a warm-up, a practice run that, unlike the two friendlies and the three games against professional European teams on the summer trip to Spain, really counts. The Spartans need to pay enough attention to these games, as last year's opening loss showed, but they also have bigger fish (or rather, Jayhawks) to fry.

There is a lot to learn from this week's tunings. The recent contest against Ferris State highlighted shooting, scoring and effort issues. Those were a focus of practice last week, and Michigan State will measure its progress against Monmouth.

“We’re just starting to play these games,” shooting guard Jaden Akins said Friday. “We have a lot of depth on the team, so we just got the right minutes here, our protection for what's going to happen in the season. “We'll see that in the first few weeks of the season.”

For one thing, the players like the way they get a few practices in before facing a team as talented as Kansas. As they settle in, they can learn more about their team and feel more comfortable than if they had jumped straight into such an important matchup. And coaches get a lot of live footage to look back on and show in competition what areas they need to train their players in. The more the Spartans learn from the games against Monmouth and Niagara, the more they can keep Kansas from exploiting these weaknesses in Atlanta.

The Spartans will answer some big questions in the next two games that will likely evolve even as the season progresses. The most important thing: who will be in the starting line-up? Izzo praised the strength of his team, with seven or eight players who could start depending on their talent. But he tries to differentiate the top five from the rest.

There are also a number of individual questions that need to be answered. Can the Spartans get Akins to be the lights-out shooter Izzo believes he can be? Can sophomore Xavier Booker develop into an opposing mismatch in the four-man team? And can the two big transfers – small forward Frankie Fidler and center Szymon Zapala – fit a little better with the way Michigan State likes to play ball?

It's much better to answer these questions in games that should be comfortable wins than against the team many people consider to be the best in the country right now. At least the best for those who forgive Kansas for its exhibition loss to legendary coach John Calipari's new team in Arkansas.

In many ways, the Spartans are in a similar position to any program across the country, trying to figure a lot out on the fly this week against Monmouth and Niagara. After the offseason, most teams are still fine-tuning the details to play against a real opponent. Izzo said teams won't know who they're playing until early December (the start of conference play). With so much unknown about the opponents, it just means that coaches have to spend their time training their own units.

Michigan State has gotten to know its own roster pretty well with all of its games over the summer and preseason. It's a team with some depth, with a good mix of experience and youth. Expectations are likely to be high this season, even if this year's Associated Press preseason poll didn't rate the Spartans for the third time in four years.

Michigan State has a lot to look forward to this season – and this month. A good start and lots of learning from this week's encounters will set the tone for the season. Look ahead, but don't overlook.

“It’s important like every week – we don’t take any team lightly,” Akins said. “We will prepare for them like we prepare for every game. We just have to worry about Monday’s game and start the season right.”

Michigan State vs. Monmouth

▶ A notice: Monday, 7 p.m., Breslin Center, East Lansing

▶ TV/Radio: BTN Plus/760

▶ Outlook: This is the season opener for both teams and the programs' first meeting. Michigan State is coming off a 20-15 season that helped the Spartans make their 26th straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Hawks, meanwhile, are coming off an 18-15 season and won their only exhibition game 95-65 against Rhode Island College.

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@ConnorEaregood

The Michigan State Spartans aren't overlooking their opener against Monmouth

Michigan State vs. Monmouth

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