Atlanta – The hugs and tears were numerous. The emotions were raw and real.
A brutal end to Michigan state basketball Deep run in the NCAA tournament, with Sunday 70 to 64 defeat against Auburn in the Elite Eight, closed the books in the season.
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And opened the questions on what comes next. In particular for Jase Richardson and Xavier Booker, at different ends of the spectrum.
After joining MSU’s starting program in early February, Richardson became the essential Spartan in attack, playing his way on the first rounds of NBA Draft simulations. The first year, 6 -inch 3 -inch and 185 pound combo custody collected an average of 16.1 points, starting the last 15 Spartans games, pulling 42% from the 3 -point beach while entering 4.6 rebounds and depositing 1.7 assists per match.
Asked about his plans, Richardson – who has an average of 12.3 points for the season – said he would think about the opportunity to test the NBA project or not when he returned to East Lansing.
“I’m going to talk to my family, to talk to my teammates, to talk to my coaches, in a way simply understand what is the next best step for me, given this,” he said in the oppressed changing rooms of MSU. “Especially when you lose this way, when you are so close to a goal you really want to achieve, it’s a lot. I mean, just coaches staff, everyone who was here, I really like it. So it will play a lot.”
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MSU coach Tom Izzo said he was impressed by the way Richardson’s family – his father is the former star of Msu and Jason, and his mother is Jackie Paul -Richardson, who led Jase – drew additional attention as their son collapsed as a pro prospect this season.
“I have already talked to Jason and his mother,” said Izzo. “I think he has to test the waters, just because it’s like that now. But they will do what they want. … It will still be something that will still be in months, so it would be stupid for me to speculate.”
Richardson scored only six points on a 1 per 10 shot in the victory of the second round of MSU on the New Mexico, recovered for 20 points during the victory of Sweet 16 against the Mississippi, then again found shots difficult to come on Sunday against Auburn, going 4 for 13 for 11 points.
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“It will just encourage me to work harder,” said Richardson. “You lose games like this, and it will sit in the bottom of your mind for the rest of the offseason. You will watch the Final Four, and we will think that we were supposed to be there. It will certainly be used as fuel.”
The last MSU player from his first year season was Max Christie in 2022; He is now with the Dallas Mavericks After being taken in the second round (n ° 35 in total) of the NBA 2022 draft by the Los Angeles Lakers.
Michigan’s state goalkeeper Jase Richardson (11), made a boost against the Auburn Denver Jones (2) goalkeeper during the first half of the Elite Eight tournament of the NCAA tournament at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Sunday March 30, 2025.
Jason Richardson played two seasons in Msu before becoming a pro, winning the national title in the first year and returning in 2000-01 to go to another Final Four. His then teammate, Mateen Cleaves, waited a year to go for the NBA, winning the title with MSU in 2000. Others also chose to remain Spartans and pursue these objectives, the things Jase Richardson said is in his mind as he treats the decision before him.
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“I always wanted to be in the last four. I have said to myself since I was 6 years old, I will play in the Final Four,” he said. “So really, it’s a big goal that I really want to achieve.”
As for Booker, whose second season did not go as planned, the question is whether it will remain at MSU or will look for transfer opportunities.
The recruit of 6-11 and 240 pounds and old recruit five stars – which finished on average 4.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 12.8 minutes in 33 games – went from a starter at the start of the season to a player during the Big Ten matches, the 10th man of the conference tournament, then only played 3 minutes of NCAA tournament against Bryant.
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After a third consecutive DNP in the defeat of the Spartans against Auburn, Booker was questioned in the locker room of next year.
“Right now, I’m just trying to take it, take everything and especially to cherish these last moments with the elders,” said Booker. “It was a long year. We have all built great links between us throughout the year, so it really fears to see everything ends as it did.
“You look back in a few days or in a week and be proud of the overall image and everything we had accomplished this year. … It’s sad to see that it ends, but we had more work to do during the summer.”
Contact Chris Solari: [email protected]. Follow him @chrissolari.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State Basketball: Jase Richardson, Xavier Booker Talk Futures
