College basketball rankings: Jeremy Fears makes Michigan State vs. Wisconsin a must-watch Big Ten showdown
The Spartans, the No. 12 team in Friday's CBS Sports Top 25 And 1, face the Badgers in a Big Ten battle.
By
Gary Parrish
•
1 min read
The Jeremy Fears Show will make its next stop Friday at the Kohl Center. Will the Michigan State point guard go big again and get something like the 26 points and 15 assists he recorded last time out? Will he get another technical for doing something basketball players aren't supposed to do in basketball games?
No idea what to expect.
Everything's on the table!
Michigan State-Wisconsin is the latest Friday game in primetime worthy of our attention. It's a Big Ten showdown between the schools currently tied for third (Michigan State) and tied for sixth (Wisconsin) in a conference projected to get 10 teams into the 2026 NCAA Tournament. Oddly, both are coming off of victories over Illinois. Michigan State's was Saturday, 85-82, in overtime. Wisconsin's was Tuesday, 92-90, also in overtime.
Now back to Fears.
I think I speak for everybody when I say I hope the goofy things the All-American candidate has done in recent weeks to damage his reputation are fully behind him (just like I hope Darryn Peterson's cramping-issues and hamstring-issues and ankle-issues and flu-like symptoms are fully behind him). If I have to spend a minute on Sunday's episode of the Eye On College Basketball Podcast talking about Fears for reasons other than points, assists or rebounds, it'll be disappointing.
Either way, can't wait to watch!
Michigan State, which is No. 12 in Friday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings, is listed as a 1.5-point favorite on the road. If the Spartans win, they'll improve to 21-4 overall and 11-3 in league games. That would push them into a tie for second with Illinois in the Big Ten. Both the Spartans and the Illini would then wake up Saturday two games back of Michigan in the conference standings.
Michigan, of course, is No. 1 in the Top 25 And 1. The Wolverines will host UCLA Saturday on CBS. Tip for that one is scheduled for 12:45 pm ET.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
Biggest Movers
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | L.J. Cason finished with 18 points and four steals in Wednesday's 87-75 win at Northwestern. The Wolverines' next game is Saturday against UCLA. | -- | 23-1 |
| 2 |  | Koa Peat missed nine of the 11 shots he attempted in Monday's 82-78 loss at Kansas. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday against Texas Tech. | -- | 23-1 |
| 3 |  | Solo Ball finished with 24 points and one rebound in Wednesday's 80-70 win at Butler. The Huskies' next game is Saturday against Georgetown. | -- | 23-2 |
| 4 |  | Isaiah Evans finished with 21 points and two rebounds in Tuesday's 70-54 win at Pitt. The Blue Devils' next game is Saturday against Clemson. | -- | 22-2 |
| 5 |  | Emanuel Sharp finished with 27 points and three rebounds in Tuesday's 66-52 win at Utah. The Cougars' next game is Saturday against Kansas State. | -- | 22-2 |
| 6 |  | Milan Momcilovic missed eight of the 12 shots he attempted in Tuesday's 62-55 loss at TCU. The Cyclones' next game is Saturday against Kansas. | -- | 21-3 |
| 7 |  | Flory Bidunga finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds in Monday's 82-78 win over Arizona. The Jayhawks' next game is Saturday at Iowa State. | -- | 19-5 |
| 8 |  | Fletcher Loyer finished with 18 points and three rebounds in Tuesday's 80-77 overtime win at Nebraska. The Boilermakers' next game is Saturday at Iowa. | -- | 20-4 |
| 9 |  | Pryce Sandfort missed eight of the 12 shots he attempted in Tuesday's 80-77 loss to Purdue. The Cornhuskers' next game is Saturday against Northwestern. | -- | 21-3 |
| 10 |  | Zvonimir Ivisic missed both of the 3-pointers he attempted in Tuesday's 92-90 loss to Wisconsin. The Illini's next game is Sunday against Indiana. | -- | 20-5 |
| 11 |  | Graham Ike finished with 20 points and seven rebounds in Tuesday's 83-53 win over Washington. The Zags' next game is Saturday at Santa Clara. | -- | 24-2 |
| 12 |  | Jeremy Fears Jr. finished with 26 points and 15 assists in Saturday's 85-82 overtime win over Illinois. The Spartans' next game is Friday at Wisconsin. | -- | 20-4 |
| 13 |  | Xaivian Lee finished with 18 points and seven assists in Wednesday's 86-66 win at Georgia. The Gators' next game is Saturday against Kentucky. | -- | 18-6 |
| 14 |  | Jacari White finished with 19 points and four rebounds in Tuesday's 61-58 win at Florida State. The Cavaliers' next game is Saturday against Ohio State. | -- | 21-3 |
| 15 |  | Tyler Tanner finished with 25 points and six assists in Tuesday's 84-76 win at Auburn. The Commodores' next game is Saturday against Texas A&M. | -- | 20-4 |
| 16 |  | Zuby Ejiofor finished with 25 points and seven rebounds in Monday's 87-82 overtime win over Xavier. The Red Storm's next game is Saturday at Providence. | -- | 19-5 |
| 17 |  | JT Toppin finished with 16 points and 18 rebounds in Wednesday's 78-44 win over Colorado. The Red Raiders' next game is Saturday at Arizona. | -- | 18-6 |
| 18 |  | Darius Acuff Jr. finished with 28 points and five assists in Tuesday's 91-62 win at LSU. The Razorbacks' next game is Saturday against Auburn. | -- | 18-6 |
| 19 |  | Ishan Sharma finished with 15 points and two rebounds in Saturday's 82-58 win over La Salle. The Billikens' next game is Friday at Loyola Chicago. | -- | 23-1 |
| 20 |  | Derek Dixon missed eight of the nine shots he attempted in Tuesday's 75-66 loss at Miami. The Tar Heels' next game is Saturday against Pitt. | -- | 19-5 |
| 21 |  | Mikel Brown Jr. finished with 45 points and nine rebounds in Monday's 118-77 win over NC State. The Cardinals' next game is Saturday against Baylor. | -- | 18-6 |
| 22 |  | Jestin Porter missed seven of the eight shots he attempted in Wednesday's 76-66 loss to Virginia Tech. The Tigers' next game is Saturday at Duke. | -- | 20-5 |
| 23 |  | Eian Elmer finished with 18 points and nine rebounds in Saturday's 90-74 win at Marshall. The RedHawks' next game is Friday against Ohio. | -- | 24-0 |
| 24 |  | AJ Dybantsa finished with 36 points and seven assists in Tuesday's 99-94 win at Baylor. The Cougars' next game is Saturday against Colorado. | -- | 18-6 |
| 25 |  | Latrell Wrightsell finished with 21 points and three assists in Wednesday's 93-74 win at Ole Miss. The Crimson Tide's next game is Saturday against South Carolina. | -- | 17-7 |
| 26 |  | Otega Oweh finished with 21 points and four rebounds in Saturday's 74-71 win over Tennessee. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday at Florida. | -- | 17-7 |
