MSU basketball beats North Dakota St. in NCAA tourney (video analysis)
Lansing State Journal columnist Graham Couch and Detroit Free Press beat writer Chris Solari discuss MSU’s NCAA tournament win over North Dakota State
BUFFALO, NY – Ryan Conwell got knocked to the floor over and over. The Louisville guard continued to get back up, even after getting tripped by South Florida’s Wes Enis.
The knee injury that kept him out earlier in the season and the bumps and bruises accumulated during a long season wouldn’t keep Conwell down. And it wouldn’t keep the Cardinals from getting to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Setting up a long-awaited matchup against Michigan State basketball’s Jeremy Fears Jr that’s been in the making for over two years.
“I think it’ll be good. Obviously, great players going at it,” Conwell said Friday, March 20. “I respect him a lot. I know he’ll be ready for the challenge, and I’ll be ready for the challenge, for sure.”
The 3-seed Spartans (26-7) take on 6-seed Louisville (24-10) with a trip to the Sweet 16 of the East region up for grabs on Saturday, March 21. Tipoff is 2:45 p.m. at KeyBank Center (CBS).
For the well-traveled Conwell, a senior on his fourth school in four seasons, it will be his second time playing against MSU. His sophomore year, while playing for Indiana State, the 6-foot-4, 215-pound Indianapolis native scored 16 points on 5-for-11 shooting but lost to the Spartans at Breslin Center, 87-75.
The date, Dec. 30, 2023, is an important one. It was a week after Fears was shot in his upper left leg, ending his freshman season, and a day after he returned to East Lansing following surgery on his gunshot wounds and an ensuing hospital stay. He arrived on crutches and watched from the bench, his long and arduous path back unclear and his future playing basketball still uncertain.
In the time since, Fears recovered fully and has coach Tom Izzo on the verge of his 17th Sweet 16. The 6-2, 185-pound point guard from Joliet, Illinois, also has blossomed into an All-American and first-team All-Big Ten player in his third season with the Spartans. He leads the nation at 9.2 assists per game and leads MSU in scoring at 15.4 points per game this season.
“I think him coming back from that and being able to produce in the way he is, it just really speaks volumes just to who he is and his circle,” Conwell said. “It’s really just a blessing that he was able to come back. You don’t wish that happening on anybody, no matter if they play basketball or not. But just the simple fact that he’s able to come back and produce in the way he is, it’s just really special.”
Dr. Lorenzo Guess called Fears’ recovery and development since being shot both “amazing” and “crazy.” MSU’s director of strength and conditioning and a former Izzo guard said Fears has increased his strength and vertical jump since being shot.
“Even though some days, he didn’t want to do anything because he wanted to practice,” Guess said Friday. “Every day I had him when he did rehab in the training room, we had a lot of one-on-one time together. He wanted it. Whatever he could do, he did it. …
“This is a testament to him. This dude went to work. Everything he did, he believed in us. And look at what he did? And also he’s a winner. He always finds a way to win.”
Conwell, meantime, has continued to progress as a player.
He averaged 5.1 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists as a freshman in 2022-23 while at South Florida, which he helped send home from Buffalo on Thursday (83-79) with 18 points, six assists and four rebounds.
Conwell then went to Indiana State in 2023-24 (16.6 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists), followed by Xavier last season (16.5 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists).
This season with the Cardinals, Conwell is averaging 18.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists. He’s averaged 30-plus minutes at ISU, Xavier and now Louisville and this year has been playing through a knee injury that kept him out of only one game.
Assistant coach Thomas Kelley, who was on MSU’s staff for the ISU game in 2023, said Conwell’s toughness “is right there” with Fears’ grit. Jaxon Kohler also missed that game for the Spartans with a foot injury.
“He’s a physical guard, he’s shifty. He can shoot it, he can score at three levels,” Kelley said of Conwell. “He’s a very good basketball player. He was good. And then watching him now, I’ve been watching, he’s still physical. He can get you on his hip, he’s strong enough to finish. He can make plays.
“He’s found a way to do well everywhere he’s been. You gotta be tough to do that, mentally and physically.”
Fears, a self-admitted basketball junkie, said he saw the reckless abandon with which Conwell and Louisville played in Thursday’s first-round win. He also said Conwell is “a bucket.”
“I’ve seen him make some tough drives, tough finishes. He got in the paint and made some plays, kicked out to his teammates and whatnot,” Fears said. “They’re a good team. They make shots, they play defense, they rebound, they run. So for sure, it’s definitely gonna be a challenge. And I think they match up with us how we match up with them.”
Fears’ next mission is to get that head-to-head victory over Conwell and to continue pushing toward a second national title for his coach. And another step toward reaching the goals he set before he got to MSU, before he got shot, and since last season ended one game short of a Final Four in the Elite Eight.
“It’s gonna be a game, for sure,” he said. “Just trying to do our job and our work and hopefully go get another win.”
Contact Chris Solari: [email protected]. Follow him @chrissolari.
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