In front of hometown crowd, Coen Carr vital in Michigan State’s Sweet 16 victory

ATLANTA In his two years at Michigan State, only Coen Carrs parents and sister have made the two-hour flight to Michigan to see him play at Breslin Center.

Thats what made Fridays Sweet 16 game special, as his extended family packed into State Farm Arena to watch Carr and No.

2 seed Michigan State take on No.

6 seed Mississippi.Related ArticlesTop-seeded Auburn rallies in 2nd half, beats Michigan 78-65 in Sweet 16 of March MadnessElite great! Michigan State hangs on to top Ole Miss in NCAA TournamentWheres Mel Tucker? Former MSU coachs disappearance holding up lawsuit, plaintiff claimsWestern Michigan womens basketball hires Kate Achter away from Detroit MercyTop-seeded MSU hockey knocked out in first round of NCAA TournamentTheyll get to watch Carr play again Sunday in the Elite Eight, and he had a big hand in making it there.

He scored 15 points in the Spartans 73-70 victory, including a one-handed dunk that brought the crowd and his family to its feet.I definitely was amped up, Carr said.

To be honest, I think it made me play a little worse, especially in that first part of the game.

I definitely was hyped.

Ive got a lot of family that hasnt seen me play in forever.Not since the 10th grade, the last time he played for Dutchtown High School.

After growing up in Stockbridge, Georgia about 22 miles south of Atlanta Carr left home his junior year of high school to attend Legacy Early College in South Carolina.

Four years later in his second season with the Spartans, Carrs homecoming in the Sweet 16 is the second time hes played at home this season, the other game being a loss to Kansas in Novembers Champions Classic.Compared to that third game of the season, Carrs dominance against Mississippi is a game-changer.

Hes a source of instant offense, capable of breaking the energy of a game with a single dunk.

Theres hardly a lob he cant cradle, whether it be high or low, ahead or behind him.

And those dunks are explosive, like the one-handed jam fed by Jeremy Fears Jr.

in the second half.I told him to just go dunk that, Fears said.Carr has even added the 3-pointer to his game, a floor-stretching effect he showed with a corner 3 in a string of four vital Michigan State treys to end the first half.

Teams that play the baseline to prevent his dunks have to consider the trade-off of leaving him open now, a risk his recent form might have them second-guessing.Defensively, Carr has turned the athleticism that fuels his dunks into the springs that get him to rebounds amid other defenders, like the three he hauled in Friday.

Hes also a skilled shot blocker, including a Davon Barnes shot he blocked while Fridays game was tied 55 all with 5:41 to play.Coen Carr (55) of the Michigan State Spartans dunks the ball against the Ole Miss Rebels during the second half in the South Regional Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament at State Farm Arena on March 28, 2025 in Atlanta.

(ALEX SLITZ Getty Images)Coen is coming into his own, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said Tuesday.

I mean, you all saw him in practice last year.

You all saw him this summer.

He couldnt make a free throw, he couldnt make a shot.

And its just amazing how much hes improved that in about five months....

Hes going to, I think, get better this next couple of weeks.

Spring, summer and fall will be big to him, because if he continues to improve that, hes going to be a star, not just a great player.Carr has looked like a star at the very least a hometown hero in Michigan States NCAA Tournament run so far.

His 18-point game was key to a first-round win over Bryant, and he added eight points and six rebounds in 25 minutes of the second-round win over New Mexico.

In both games, he started in the second half.Friday posed a different challenge for Carr.

For most of the season, hes been positioned at small forward.

Against an undersized Mississippi frontcourt, Izzo gave Carr much of his run at power forward.

He struggled to handle the change in role at first, particularly in his role grabbing boards.The way Izzo sees it, starting Carr in the Sweet 16 wasnt too big of a change.

He considers Carr and Tre Holloman as figurative sixth starters.(Carr is) ready for the moment, Izzo said Friday.

The problem is we moved him from the three to the four, then he played some three.

And thats not easy.

He deserves a lot of credit for that, especially in such a big game.As Michigan State continues into the Elite Eight, Carrs gamebreaking talent will continue to be an important resource.

Auburn is a lot bigger and more physical than Mississippi, who already gave the Spartans some trouble.

The Tigers can take over games with their energy, like the headspinning 20-2 run that turned a nine-point deficit into a runaway win against Michigan.But so can Carr, especially in his recent March Madness form.

If Friday is any indication, he should feel right at home..

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