Jeremy Fears Jr. Runs the Show as No. 5 Michigan State Beats No. 2 Duke 79-73 in the Champions Classic

By The Arena Staff

CHICAGO, Nov. 10, 2026 — Michigan State never trailed. Duke never figured out why.

Jeremy Fears Jr. had 18 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds, and No. 5 Michigan State smothered No. 2 Duke for a 79-73 win in the Champions Classic at the United Center on Tuesday night, according to The Associated Press. The Spartans held the Blue Devils to 20-of-60 shooting, 33.3%, and forced 13 turnovers.

The final score was closer than the game. Michigan State led wire to wire, according to the school's official recap, and was up 34-25 at halftime after Duke made just 7 of its 27 first-half shots. The Spartans stretched it to 50-36 on a three-point play by Fears with 13:37 left and still led 64-51 after a Coen Carr putback dunk with 8:22 to go.

Duke made one real push. The Blue Devils scored eight straight points to get within 73-68 with 2:03 left, but Jordan Scott answered with a driving layup and Fears made 3 of 4 free throws over the next two trips to push it back to 10. Duke got within five in the final seconds before Fears iced it at the line.

Fears scored 15 of his 18 points after halftime. Cam Ward added 14 points and six rebounds, and freshman Jasiah Jervis scored 10. Scott, a sophomore forward, scored only five points but grabbed a game-high nine rebounds and blocked a career-high six shots, part of eight Michigan State blocks.

"Jordan is the X factor on defense," Ward said, according to CBS Sports. "He's everywhere, all the time."

Jon Scheyer did not hide his frustration. "That wasn't Duke basketball," the Duke coach said, per CBS Sports. "Bottom line, we weren't connected, and we're gonna fix it, I can promise you that much. The amount of times we just went one-on-one, against a set defense, put our head down, got our shot blocked or turned the ball over. I thought that's how they got separation."

John Blackwell led Duke with 17 points, many of them late, and Patrick Ngongba II had 11. Caleb Foster went 2 of 10 from the field, and 17-year-old freshman Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje finished with five points and four rebounds. "We gotta look for him. We gotta put him in better positions," Scheyer said.

It was Michigan State's first win over Duke since a 75-69 victory on Dec. 1, 2020, the AP reported, and it snapped a three-game losing streak in the series. The Spartans are 3-0. Duke fell to 2-1.

Sourcing: AP, Michigan State Athletics and CBS Sports.