MSU's Nick Ward gets more comfortable, honors
EAST LANSING – The ball found its way to Nick Ward in the paint in Sunday’s critical, waning moments, like it had almost all afternoon.
Wisconsin’s Zak Showalter had no other option than to wrap up Michigan State’s big man under the basket. His hard foul had minimal impact as Ward ripped through his grasp for a layup as the whistle sounded.
Ward’s teammates mobbed him. He flexed his left biceps to the crowd.
It was the kind of strength and finish of someone much older, but Ward continues to play more like an upperclassman as his freshman season winds down.
Ward won both Big Ten Player of the Week and his fourth Freshman of the Week honors Monday morning. He is the first rookie to sweep the weekly conference awards this season.
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Michigan State freshman Nick Ward improving at free-throw line
“You know, the Big Ten’s about comfort mainly,” Ward said after practice Monday. “Are you comfortable playing at a high level, at high speed against the best athletes in the world? Are you comfortable playing in this environment? Are you comfortable with the lights being on you, the attention? …
“It’s all about a process. I feel like I’ve grown more as a person and in maturity. Everything is about learning.”
The 6-foot-8 forward from Gahanna, Ohio, finished with 22 points and nine rebounds in just 19 minutes during Sunday’s 84-74 win over No. 15 Wisconsin. Ward also had 20 points and nine rebounds in 24 minutes during Thursday’s 88-72 win over Nebraska.
He’s sensed an internal attitude change since watching Eron Harris suffer a season-ending knee injury during a loss at Purdue on Feb. 18. Ward fouled out of that game with a season-low six points and just two rebounds in 12 minutes.
“It’s valuing the game more,” Ward said. “With E, it showed one play can ruin it, it can end everything. It’s just valuing every possession more and playing together as a team.”
The Spartans are 15-5 when Ward scores in double figures this season, which he has done in 19 of their last 23 games. They’re 5-0 when he eclipses 20 points.
In the two home games last week, Ward made 17 of 25 shots from the floor and 8 of 10 from the free-throw line. He ranks second to classmate Miles Bridges in both scoring (13.4 points) and rebounds (6.0) per game this season for the Spartans. Ward sits tied for 16th in the Big Ten in scoring and tied for 15th in rebounding.
Bridges and Ward have combined to win nine of the 16 weekly Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors this season.
“I think Nick is ready to take another big step,” MSU coach Tom Izzo said. “He’s been a lot more focused, a lot more coachable – and I don’t mean he wasn’t, but I mean now he just understands why, which is normal.”
Izzo has had few big men who have made such an impact in his 22 seasons, let alone as a rookie. Ward’s 390 points are the fourth-most by an MSU freshman in program history, trailing only Magic Johnson (511), Shawn Respert (474) and Gary Harris (439). His points-per-game average right now is only behind Johnson (17.0) and Respert (15.8), while his rebounding average is currently fourth-best for a Spartan freshman.
A few more strong games on the glass and 19-year-old Ward can catch Izzo’s best rookie big man, Zach Randolph, who averaged 6.7 a game in 2000-01. Randolph’s only season, which included 10.7 points mainly a game as a sixth man, was a Final Four trip that featured a more veteran-strong roster.
Ward displays similar soft hands and aggressiveness around the basket as Randolph, as well as a lethal left-handed shot that gets over opposing defenders quickly. Like Randolph, Ward also has redefined and sculpted his body since arriving on campus last summer, turning his baby fat into man muscle that allows him to play through contact like his critical basket with 1:44 to play against the Badgers.
That’s what brings the accolades. Ward also is making sure not to remain complacent, either, knowing how critical that type of play is for the young, undersized Spartans. He keeps working on improving his free throws, improving his high-ball screen and low-post defense, his jump shot and every other facet to become a more complete player.
“It’s very special, but I can’t be satisfied with it and I’m not satisfied with it,” he said. “I just gotta keep working and keep going at it.”
Contact Chris Solari:csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter@chrissolari. Download our Spartans Xtra app for free onAppleandAndroiddevices!