It was like he never left.

“The wife gave me permission to hop on a plane and enjoy this experience out here,” Byrd said. “As soon as I got out here it was a lot of fun, it feels like home.”

Byrd came out during pregame introductions to a warm ovation and kissed the Spartan logo at center court.

“To watch him kiss the S was incredible,” junior forward Matt Costello said. “I got kind of emotional when I was out there hugging him.”

Byrd also had a good game. He shot 7-22, scoring 22 points in the game. But the love for Byrd changed when he airballed a shot in the first quarter, leading to the Izzone shouting its customary “Airball!” chant at him.

Byrd laughed and shrugged it off during the game, and had the same reaction after the game.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he said. “They better keep doing what they do because they sure help those guys win a lot of home games.”

Byrd had a history of injuries at MSU and it seemed like a bad movie when with less than 1:30 to go in the game he went down with a leg injury. He would return, and after the game said it was a sprained ankle. For people who had seen him go down before, it was an all-too familiar sight.

“I almost died when I thought he hurt his knee there,” head coach Tom Izzo said. “He was a heck of a leader for us.”

Junior guard Denzel Valentine said he was just hoping Byrd was okay when he went down.

“He’s gone through a lot in his life, with foot surgeries and not playing the way that he can,” he said. “I was just hoping he didn’t injure his foot or tweak that knee so he can play a full season like he can.”

Above all, Spartan players agreed it was good to see their friend again.

“Russell is like one of our brothers,” senior forward Branden Dawson said. “It was great seeing him out there, he had fun, we had fun, so it worked out well.”