EAST LANSING— No. 20 Michigan State men’s basketball (9-2) will return to the Breslin Center to host Florida Atlantic (7-5) on Saturday afternoon.
MSU is on a three-game hot streak. Most recently, it took down in-state foe Oakland 77-58 on Tuesday night at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. Versus the Golden Grizzlies, the Spartans shot 43.3% in the field, 35.3% from behind the arc and 82.6% from the free throw line.
Sophomore forward Xavier Booker and senior center Szymon Zapala had career high nights. Booker put up a career-high 18 points, shooting 5-9 in the field, 3-5 from behind the arc and 5-6 from the free throw line. Zapala had a career-high six blocks.
Junior forward Jaxon Kohler also put up a strong performance. Kohler put up his fourth double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds. He shot 6-11 in the field, 0-1 from behind the arc and 2-2 from the free throw line.
MSU and FAU have met once before on the Breslin floor in 2015. The Spartans walked away with a 27-point win, 82-55.
Scouting FAU
FAU head coach John Jakus is in his first season as a head coach. He replaced former FAU head coach Dusty May (2018-2024) who is now the head coach at MSU’s in-state rival, Michigan. MSU will be FAU’s first-ranked matchup of the season.
The Owls are also on a three-game winning streak. As of late, FAU pushed past Texas State in an 89-80 win on Dec. 14. The Owls had five players in double-digits.
Redshirt junior forward Tre Carroll led FAU with 18 points off the bench. Redshirt sophomore guard Niccolo Moretti followed with 15 points off the bench. Nearly half, 44, of the Owls’ points scored over the Bobcats were bench points.
Against Texas State, FAU shot 52.5% in the field, 41.2% from behind the arc and 60% from the free throw line. The Owls also put up 26 rebounds, 23 assists, 11 steals and four blocks.
This matchup is set to tip off on Saturday at 2 p.m. Tune into the live radio broadcast featuring Matt Merrifield and Jack Stager locally on 88.9 FM or at impact89fm.org/listen-live/.
