Then-sophomore forward Aaron Henry (11) during the basketball game against Wisconsin at the Kohl Center in Madison on Feb. 1, 2020. The Spartans fell to the Badgers 63-64.
—As the ambiguous start date to the 2020-21 college basketball season approaches, Michigan State men's basketball comes in outside the top 10 in the preseason AP Poll. After starting last season ranked No. 1 for the first time in program history, the Spartans check in at No. 13 this year.
Around the Big Ten, Wisconsin and Illinois come in at No. 7 and 8, respectively. Ohio State, Rutgers, and Michigan round out spots No. 23-25, respectively.
Yesterday, head coach Tom Izzo tested positive for COVID-19. During Izzo's isolation period, associate head coach Dwayne Stephens will step in to help prepare the team for a tentative start date of Dec. 1 against No. 9 Duke for the Champions Classic. A location for the matchup is yet to be announced.
In other preseason news, junior forward Aaron Henry earned a spot on the Preseason All-Big Ten Team. No other Spartans earned the honor. Iowa’s Luka Garza is listed as the preseason Big Ten player of the year.
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