In an exhibition win over Ferris State last Tuesday, Akins struggled his way to finishing with three points on 1-for-5 shooting. Izzo admitted after the game, "Nobody’s raised their head above anyone else."

Akins flipped that script Monday night in MSU’s first game of the season, an 81-57 handling of Monmouth University, turning in one of the best performances of his four-year career. 

The 6-foot-4, Farmington, MI native finished with 23 points on 8-for-12 shooting, nine rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocks in 27 minutes. It’s a welcomed sign for an MSU team that will need an alpha on the court to reach Izzo's ninth Final Four.

"It’s really important to build on this, staying aggressive, not overthinking things, just playing basketball and winning games," Akins said postgame.

Akins shot 1-for-4 from long range but got to the free-throw line seven times, converting six. 

Through two exhibition games, Akins hadn’t shown much confidence offensively. Diminished aggression when missing shots has been a theme for him over the years. Last week, he said he needs to be more confident. After Monday’s game, Izzo said Akins has put too much pressure on himself. 

Outside of a dunk to open the game, it was another slow start for Akins against Monmouth. Six of his eight first half points came from layups and dunks.

The Spartans didn’t suffer from it as they held an 11-point lead at halftime.

From the start of the second half until the 17-minute mark, Monmouth drew closer, coming within six at one point. MSU faced potentially its second straight upset at home on opening night. Akins put an end to that within minutes. 

He took two consecutive trips to the charity stripe, making three and missing the fourth. MSU got the offensive rebound and found Akins for his first three of the game, MSU’s second. His four-point possession gave the Spartans breathing room and they didn’t look back. 

Up six points with waning momentum, Akins scored nine straight points to regain MSU’s control and rally his teammates to what finished as a blowout. Akins played the entire sequence as MSU’s lead guard, with junior Tre Holloman playing off the ball.

"They cut it to six and we just needed to string some stops together and needed someone to make a play," Akins said. 

Akins’ 23 points, which tied a career high, came in many different ways. He got to the rim, hit mid-range jumpers and made a three. But the confidence — finally playing his desired role as the scoring guard — was noticeable, even after an average start. 

It was the first game of the season, against Monmouth, no less. But MSU got what it needed out of its senior guard and can exhale a bit. 

"One of our biggest fears was the way (Akins) had been shooting and playing," Izzo said. "Jaden looked like every bit the senior he should be, and he was."

MSU returns to Breslin this Thursday, Nov. 7, to face Niagara University from Lewiston, NY, at 8 p.m. Big Ten Network will air the game. It'll be MSU's last chance to fine-tune itself before the Champions Classic against No. 1 Kansas the following week.

Niagara doesn’t return a single player from last season.