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SPARTANS

MSU flies past St. Cloud State in exhibition

Joe Rexrode
Detroit Free Press
Michigan State's Gavin Schilling dunks against St. Cloud State during the first half of an NCAA college basketball exhibition game, Friday, Nov. 7, 2014, in East Lansing, Mich.

EAST LANSING – Tom Izzo's 20th season as head coach was a week away, but his 20th exhibition had ended in superlatives late Friday night at Breslin Center – this was by far the most sentimental week of basketball that didn't count in his career.

Before Monday's 97-56 win over The Master's College, MSU brought back Russell Byrd, who transferred in the offseason to the NAIA school near Los Angeles. The Spartans honored Byrd before the game and watched him kiss center court in senior night tradition.

On Friday night, it was St. Cloud State out of St. Cloud, Minn., and a second chance for Izzo to coach against his nephew, St. Cloud State senior guard Kevin Levandoski.

Dozens of Izzo relatives were in town for MSU's 101-46 win, which saw Levandoski – son of Izzo's sister Anne – collect six points and four rebounds. The teams also met in the 2012 exhibition season.

"I'm proud of what he's done," Izzo said of the former walk-on, though he added that Levandoski – who sported a pony tail on the top of his head – "needs to get a haircut."

And the No. 18 Spartans need to get healthier, a story line they hoped to avoid after last season's slew of injuries. Izzo said freshman wing Javon Bess, a contender to start before requiring foot surgery Oct. 28, is now looking at a return closer to Christmas. The initial timetable was about a month.

Junior transfer guard Bryn Forbes got news this week that he has a broken third metacarpal in his left hand. Forbes played with a brace Friday, going 2-for-7 for four points, and said the injury should not hinder him.

Now the Spartans are on the verge of their real season, which starts Nov. 14 at Navy in the Veterans Classic. That's immediately followed Nov. 18 against No. 4 Duke in the Champions Classic in Indianapolis, so the time to get things together from here is short.

Through two warmups against massively overmatched competition, the Spartans saw encouragement in the all-around play of Denzel Valentine, who followed up his 24-point Monday with a triple-double Friday – 15 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.

"I can't ask much more out of a kid than that," Izzo said of Valentine's all-around game.

Senior forward Branden Dawson was decently peppy again Friday – though Izzo said he just "existed" at times -- with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Senior point guard Travis Trice has run the team effectively in two games and had a game-high 20 points Friday. He had 12 assists and one turnover in the two exhibitions.

MSU's center tandem got some offensive confidence Friday, albeit against little resistance inside. Starter Matt Costello had 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Gavin Schilling had 15 and five. Incoming 2015 big man Deyonta Davis of Muskegon and prime 2015 big man target Caleb Swanigan of Fort Wayne, Ind., were both in attendance to watch.

Rebounding and interior dominance don't mean much in these games, and it's hard to tell how MSU will defend against legit foes – though the attention to detail improved from Monday to Friday, as Izzo promised.

The Spartans are sharing the ball impressively already, though. MSU had 25 assists on 38 baskets Monday and followed that up with 30 assists on 41 baskets Friday.

"That's what's so scary about this Michigan State team," St. Cloud State coach Matt Reimer said, "how unselfish they are."

Though Forbes was off the mark, freshman Marvin Clark Jr. chipped in with a pair of threes and was MSU's sixth scorer in double figures with 10.

Contact Joe Rexrode: jrexrode@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @joerexrode.