But the chance to get to see his Michigan State basketball team in an in early October scrimmage before walking across the street to the annual Izzone Campout is both intriguing and exciting for the 72-year-old Hall of Fame coach.
And the chance to do both presents itself Friday, Oct. 2 (7 p.m., streaming only on Big Ten+), when the Spartans tip off against Incarnate Word at Breslin Center in their first of three exhibition games this month.
“I’m looking forward to seeing if the improvement I saw in the summer and fall with certain guys continues when the lights go on,” Izzo said after practice Wednesday. “And I’m anxious to see how the freshmen respond to bigger crowds and different things that they haven’t so far dealt with.”
Izzo said sophomore forward Cam Ward will not play as a precaution as he mends from a sprained ankle, though he has been practicing. Junior guard Kur Teng also will be limited, Izzo said, as he progresses from foot surgery he had right after the Spartans completed their 2025-26 eason with a Sweet 16 loss to Connecticut on March 27 to finish No. 11 in the final coaches poll.
For Teng, who averaged 7.3 points and shot 38.1% from 3-point range last season, it is a chance to test his health and stamina before MSU’s two bigger exhibition tests – at home against UConn (Oct. 20) and on the road at Marquette (Oct. 25).
“I’m trying to work my way back, but yeah, I feel good overall,” Teng said Wednesday. “This is my first injury I ever had in my life, like with surgery and all that. It could be tough, but I got some guys behind me just helping me with the whole process.
“I feel like I worked a lot, and it’s gonna show.”
Izzo said he expects to use Jesse McCulloch at forward with Ward sitting out, citing the redshirt sophomore’s strong offseason as a reason. McCulloch should be in the starting lineup alongside redshirt junior point guard Jeremy Fears Jr., sophomore shooting guard Jordan Hall, senior Coen Carr on the wing and transfer Anton Bonke at center.
In years past, college basketball teams couldn’t even practice until Oct. 15. Now, Izzo will have a gauge of how his team looks against another opponent by then.
“I personally like it,” said McCulloch, who averaged 2.4 points and 1.3 rebounds in 7.4 minutes over 28 appearances last season. “I feel like it’s a time to compete against other people and see how we can bond even earlier. It kind of reminds of the Spain trip when we went,” in August 2024.
The Spartans open the regular season at home against Quinnipiac on Nov. 2, then host Toledo on Nov. 5 before taking on Duke in the Champions Classic in Chicago on Nov. 10.
Izzo enters his 32nd season as MSU’s coach with one of his deepest and most versatile groups he’s had. With Ward out and Teng limited, he'll be able to shuffle combinations throughout the exhibition. It will be the first game back for guard Kaleb Glenn after a knee injury in June 2025 cost him all of last season. And it will be the first time for freshmen Jasiah Jervis, Ethan Taylor, Carlos “C.J.” Medlock and Julius Avant to get to experience playing in front of MSU’s fans before they all head across the street to join their classmates in the annual Izzone Campout.
Izzo said he plans to “mix and match” his lineups in this debut exhibition, particularly with a distinctly older starting group and a relatively younger second unit.
“With two guys that I know how [they] can play that won’t play much or none [Friday], I’ll get to use some of those other guys at different positions,” he said. “It’s a little early. But at the same time, that’ll give us a couple weeks to really see what we’re not good at or are good at to a certain extent. … We’re gonna have to see a lot of combinations. No matter what – win, lose or draw – we’ll probably play guys 15-22 minutes and see if we can play everybody.”
With MSU volleyball and women’s hoops also sharing Breslin, that made finding dates difficult for a third exhibition, Izzo said. He wanted to possibly schedule a Division II program, but that level does not begin early enough under NCAA rules. So Izzo turned to some prior connections to add Incarnate Word, which went 12-19 last season.
Izzo assistant Doug Wojick has a brother, Dave, who is an assistant coach there under fourth-year coach Shane Heirman. Heirman coached former MSU star Jaren Jackson Jr. at La Lumiere School in high school and spent two seasons as associate head coach at Central Michigan before taking the job with the Cardinals.
“Getting three exhibition games was hard,” Izzo said. “Wanted to go a little earlier, but not this early.”
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: From court to campout, Tom Izzo gets early peek at Michigan State basketball