Harris scored 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including two 3-pointers, finishing as the team’s second leading scorer in his first game at Breslin Center, a performance that left head coach Tom Izzo impressed.

“It was fun,” Harris said. “It was my first time. It was what I’d been waiting for ever since I committed, so it felt good that it finally came.”

On a night when Izzo was frustrated with most of his team for trying to do too much, he singled out Harris as one of the game’s bright spots, making the plays that were there to be made without forcing the ball.

“He just fit,” Izzo said.

“Unlike a lot of other guys, he did what he can do. He guarded, struggled a little with some communication things, but for a freshman, he guarded really well. I don’t know how many rebounds he got, but he got a couple. Ran the lane pretty well, didn’t do things he couldn’t do. … That was a pretty good performance for a freshman in his first game.”

Bracing for takeoff
With Branden Dawson leaping for three highlight reel dunks in the exhibition opener, it was tough to remember the sophomore guard had torn his anterior cruciate ligament, or ACL, just eight months ago.

The lone remaining sign was a precautionary brace worn on his left knee, that Dawson originally considered playing without.

Dawson led the Spartans with 16 points, along with seven rebounds Tuesday, and said he spoke with the team’s orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Michael Shingles, after the game and the two decided he will continue wearing the brace throughout the season.

“I was very hungry to get it off, but I just had to meet with Dr. Shingles and he told me that the brace is like armor, he’s not playing, I’m playing,” Dawson said.

“(Shingles) just said that for my future he wants me wearing the brace. … Coach (Izzo) said it as well. He wants me wearing the brace. If I wasn’t wearing the brace, I’d be taking a huge risk, so I just want to keep it perfect.”