EAST LANSING, Mich. — The lineup change was announced about 30 minutes before tipoff. It was the first of its kind for this Michigan State team, which had trotted out the same starting five for every game the team had been at full strength. But not this one. A.J. Hoggard in, Tyson Walker out.
A move like that, especially without much notice, is going to warrant increased attention. All the focus was on Michigan State’s point guards. How would they perform? How would they respond? How much would change?
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These are all valid questions, particularly for a duo Tom Izzo has demanded more from of late. But if Saturday’s 76-61 win over Indiana was a sign of things to come, Michigan State might’ve unlocked something in both players.
“We just think with the point guard spot, it starts with us,” Hoggard said. “Coach always says that if the head dies, the body follows. With us being the head, we kinda gotta be focused at the point of attack. We kinda just talked about being good in our role and just continuing to help the team win.”
This was the best game Michigan State’s point guards have played in a long time. They played with confidence. They played to their strengths. And they set the tone for a much-needed bounce-back performance for an MSU team in a daunting stretch.
Hoggard got the nod as a starter for the first time this season. It came after a stretch of games during which Michigan State got off to slow starts and played with low energy. Izzo noted this when discussing why the change was made, also pointing to Hoggard’s assists numbers: 27 during his previous five games. Izzo felt Hoggard could get others involved earlier and had earned the opportunity.
Perhaps Hoggard’s biggest flaw is that he plays at a speed that isn’t always needed. He gets tunnel vision sometimes. That has led to bad turnovers and poor possessions with him running the offense. Coaches have worked with him on slowing things down, playing within himself and the flow of the offense. It’s part of the learning process for a second-year player who never had a true veteran to learn from at his position.
But one thing Hoggard brings to the table — perhaps more than anyone else on this team — is confidence. It’s one of the reasons he entered the starting lineup, and it served as a spark that has been missing, particularly at the start of games.
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The change in style was noticeable. Hoggard was vocal from start to finish Saturday, unafraid of getting into it with Indiana players and demanding strong play from his teammates. He attacked the basket, as he always does. He limited his turnovers, finishing with just two in 21 minutes of action. He struck the right balance between scoring and assisting, and, most importantly, he played under control. He finished with 14 points and eight assists and attributed his success to getting the starting nod.
“I kind of just wanted to get everybody going up early, just starting at the point of attack,” Hoggard said. “Me just being out there from the beginning of the game for the tipoff, I just wanted to bring energy and get my guys going.”
What a play for @MSU_Basketball 💪🔥 pic.twitter.com/RRMmdhcI5G
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) February 12, 2022
Of course, the natural question when a player enters the starting lineup is what happens to the player coming off the bench. That’s where Walker — a transfer from Northeastern brought here to stabilize the position — found himself Saturday for the first time this season.
Walker had struggled when entering the game. In Tuesday’s loss to Wisconsin, Walker had more turnovers (two) than points (one) and assists (one). With five total assists in his previous four games, Michigan State needed to make some sort of change to get things going in the right direction.
Izzo had extensive talks with both point guards this week and told reporters Thursday that he felt he had productive conversations with them. That happened to be the same day the switch was made.
It has been an up-and-down year for Walker, who at times has looked like the answer at point guard but has looked lost at other times. Making the jump from the CAA to the Big Ten has been a work in progress. Izzo and his staff have pushed Walker to shoot more, considering he made 38 percent of his attempted 3-pointers last season, but he has passed up open looks to try to get others involved. In one game, Walker was so disappointed in his play that he asked to be taken out of the lineup.
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It’s the sign of a player who desperately wants to contribute but has put too much pressure on himself to allow things to come naturally. That led to some soul-searching this week. It might’ve taken a lineup change to get him there, but this was the most inspired Walker has looked in some time. And it was the most fun he has had.
Junior forward and team captain Malik Hall had conversations with Walker throughout the week about playing loose, and it showed. Against Indiana, Walker was far more aggressive with his shot, scoring 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field (3-of-6 from beyond the arc). He got better as the game progressed, evidenced by his second-half sequence that created some distance for MSU.
A Walker 3-pointer increased Michigan State’s lead from five to eight. He followed that up with a steal and a layup in transition. All of a sudden, Michigan State held a 10-point lead. Walker’s play ignited the crowd and brought out some rare emotion from him. There wasn’t much of a drop-off when either point guard exited. That much was clear after Hoggard picked up his second technical foul and was ejected.
Moments later, Walker re-entered the game, nailed a 3 and got the crowd to its feet again.
Easy money for @MSU_Basketball's Tyson Walker 💸 pic.twitter.com/5H5TZ2Y8Dl
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) February 12, 2022
“I was having a hell of a time,” Walker said, with a big grin. “Just me having fun. Having a good time, man.”
The play of Michigan State’s point guards had a trickle-down effect on the rest of the team. This was the most energy the Spartans have played with in a long time, and it was exactly the sort of effort Izzo was looking to see.
After Tuesday’s loss, he told reporters he expected to get some calls from his former players about the lack of effort and emotion his team displayed. Izzo said he never has had to teach a team how to play hard. That was a new reality for him this past week as he searched for answers.
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Izzo was looking for a spark. Some passion. Some fight. He got all of that and more Saturday, and it all started with his point guards.
“I told my team, the first thing I said was, ‘It wasn’t pretty, but it was gritty,'” Izzo said. “I (was) very disappointed in how we played with the energy level (Tuesday), and I was very proud in how we played with the energy level (Saturday). We didn’t play great. It was a crazy game. I’m anxious to look at some of these things that happened. … But it was a crazy game, and I thought we got after it on the floor more than we have in the last three games.
“Again, not pretty, but it was gritty. I’ll take gritty over pretty.”
The sample is small, but Michigan State found something that worked Saturday with this lineup change, and the fact Walker and Hoggard genuinely pull for one another makes a move like this easier.
They’re a couple of East Coast point guards who grew up on AAU courts together. Hoggard offered Walker a strong pitch when he entered the transfer portal in search of a new home, and the two have become close friends off the court.
“Being so close helps, just being supportive,” Walker said of his relationship with Hoggard. “I want to see him succeed no matter what, even if I played zero minutes. That’s always gonna be a thing.”
“Tyson is one of my best friends,” Hoggard said. “We walk to practice, walk home from practice together. We talked about it. He was cool with it, I was cool with it, so we just accepted it and just know we got to bring it, whether we’re starting or not starting. We’ve just gotta bring it each and every night being the point guards of the team.”
Michigan State needs its two point guards thriving and contributing in their own ways. Hoggard and Walker will need to maintain this level of play, but given the discussions leading up to the change, this was the sort of response one was hoping to see.
As the team heads to the closing stretch of the season, that’s all it can ask for.
(Photo of A.J. Hoggard: Rey Del Rio / Getty Images)