To finish the night, Carr shot 4-for-6 with 13 points, seven rebounds and two blocks. His athleticism was something that the Titans could not stop.  

Yet through the hot start, something felt off. MSU seemed lethargic in its play, committing unnecessary turnovers, struggling to grab defensive rebounds and struggling to shoot free throws. It was sloppy play, and Detroit Mercy took advantage of this, going on a 7-0 run to cut into MSU’s lead. 

“I was disappointed, as you can imagine,” head coach Tom Izzo said. “We're still not consistent enough for me. I just didn't think we played as good as we could have played.”

MSU’s inconsistent first-half post play was a major reason for its lethargy. Offensively, the Spartan big men dropped passes and missed shots, and defensively—and on the boards—they weren’t physical enough. By the end of the first half, senior center Jaxon Kohler had four points and two rebounds, while senior forward Carson Cooper had two points and one rebound.

To finish the game, Kohler and Cooper would combine for 25 points and 10 rebounds. It was a second half effort that lifted the Spartans to victory.

“As well as Jaxon Kohler has been playing, we did not think he played very well,” Izzo said. “He didn't get one defensive rebound. [Detroit Mercy] didn't let it in the post as easily as we let it in the post. They were tough, and usually we're pretty tough, but I thought physically, we got bumped a little bit.”

Though MSU exhibited sloppy play for most of the first half, it was still the better team. The Spartans were more effective at driving to the basket, finishing plays, drawing fouls, showcasing a deeper bench, and playing athletic man-to-man defense that the Titans struggled to score against. When the final horn sounded, Detroit Mercy finished shooting 22-for-60 overall, 5-for-20 from beyond the arc, and committed 15 turnovers.

Sophomore guard Jeremy Fears was also a reason MSU was better than its opponent. The floor general was quicker than the Titan defenders, finding success in driving to the basket, finding open teammates and playing solid perimeter defense. To finish the game, Fears would go 7-for-12 shooting with 18 points, 11 assists and two steals.  

“I was impressed with Jeremy Fears,” Izzo said. “He's rounding into the point guard I thought he could be and would be and should be.”

While consistent from the jump to the final horn, Fears ascended to the top of his game in the beginning of the second half where his shooting and passing presence was too much for Detroit Mercy defenders to bear. With a 16 point lead coming out of halftime, Fears opened the half up by hitting a three-pointer. He then had assists on three of the next five baskets, two of which were from beyond the arc. 

Across from Fears and dressed in red was guard Orlando Lovejoy, who gave Fears and company a run for their money. All night, Lovejoy found success driving to the basket and taking quick pull-up shots, most of which fell. By the end of the game, he was Detroit Mercy’s leading scorer, shooting 5-for-8 with 14 points, four assists, and three steals.

Aside from Lovejoy, only two other Titans scored ten or more points. It was a game that saw little quantity, not just for Detroit Mercy, but also for MSU. Other than Fears, Carr and one half of Kholer and Cooper, the Spartans bench and its role players did not execute. Senior guard Trey Fort would finish with five points, freshman Cam Ward would also finish with five and sophomore Kur Teng would finish with two. 

“Our four upperclassmen played pretty well,” Izzo said. “But our other guys struggled a little bit, both offensively and defensively, and that was disappointing coming off a pretty good play out in New York.”

With a 5-0 record, MSU will travel to Fort Myers Fla. to battle in the Skechers Fort Myers Tip-Off tournament, which starts on Tuesday, No. 25. Its first opponent will be East Carolina.