MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jeremy Fears hit his career scoring high last week and topped it the next time out for Michigan State, totaling 60 points over a two-game stretch.
Fears carried more than offensive momentum with him on this trip to Minnesota. He’s also developing a reputation for some questionable conduct on the court.
After the 10th-ranked Spartans were beaten 76-73 by the Gophers on Wednesday night, coach Tom Izzo spoke at length about Fears and the issue of being labeled, fair or not, as a dirty player.
The subject, raised recently by Michigan coach Dusty May, was relevant again after Fears received a pivotal technical foul in the second half for kicking at Minnesota’s Langston Reynolds.
“You know what? If he plays that way, he deserves it,” Izzo said. “He ain’t going to play that way if I bench him the next game.”
Izzo also made clear he remained upset by May’s public criticism of his player following Michigan’s 83-71 victory over Michigan State on Friday.
Fears and Wolverines star Yaxel Lendeborg were in an intense matchup all night, and Fears appeared to intentionally trip Lendeborg in one sequence. May went so far on Monday to accuse his team’s biggest rival of “several plays that are very dangerous.”
Izzo responded by defending his team’s sportsmanship and insinuating Michigan got away with some rough stuff that went uncalled, too.
So after Fears became a storyline again in Minnesota — not for his offense this time, because he was quieted by Reynolds for 10 points on 4-for-11 shooting — Izzo spent much of his postgame news conference unpacking concerns about the way his sophomore point guard might be perceived by officials and baited by opponents moving forward.
“It’s his fault. And I make no bones about it. I sat him for a while. I don’t even know if I’m going to start him next game,” Izzo said. “I stood up for him, too. Because what happened in the last game was handled poorly, too, and that starts everything. But Jeremy’s got to grow up a little bit.”
After Fears drained a pull-up jumper with 14:10 left to cut Minnesota’s lead to 45-40, he drew a foul as Reynolds knocked him off balance as he closely guarded the ball. But Fears, with his back turned to his defender, reared his leg back and hit Reynolds in the groin area after the whistle. The officials missed it initially, but charged the technical after a replay review.
Cade Tyson sank both free throws for the Gophers, who got in a groove after that and stretched their lead to 16 points before a late surge by the Spartans closed the gap.
“He’s a guy you’d love to have on our team, but also you can’t do what he did, and I guarantee you he knows that,” said Minnesota coach Niko Medved, who argued vehemently for the technical foul while the officials were sorting out the call.
The Gophers were also upset during the game by a handful of other actions by Fears toward Reynolds, including an apparent tripping attempt during a loose ball scramble in the paint and a forearm to his opponent’s neck while he was trying to set up the offense.
“He’s taken a lot of heat and all that. He’s a great player,” said Medved, vouching for Fears’ character through assistant coach Armon Gates, who coached his brother, Jeremiah Fears, last season at Oklahoma. “I know he’s a great kid. He’s a competitor. That’s who he is. Yeah, he gets a little carried away, and we saw that on film.”
Izzo, for the most part, felt Fears was just matching the physical tone set by Reynolds, a typical midseason clash in this rugged conference much like the game against Lendeborg and Michigan last week. But the 31-year coaching veteran and all-time Big Ten wins leader also seemed to be still stewing about the way May went to the media with his concern.
“Things got blown up in the last game. When that stuff goes public, then you’ve got to really deal with it,” Izzo said before pivoting to defend his program. “I’ve had it with that, too. That’s not what I teach. That’s not what I coach. I told him about it. He’s got to quit.”
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