Sneaker Rivals: Michigan State vs. UConn

For only the third time in NCAA men’s basketball tournament history, the University of Connecticut Huskies will face off against the Michigan State Spartans, with the matchup set for this Friday. The two prestigious programs split their previous tournament meetings, with Michigan State defeating UConn in the 2009 Final Four while UConn got its win back in the 2014 Elite Eight. Friday’s matchup in the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. will be a battle for a spot in the Elite Eight. The winner will also break the tie in their overall series, as both teams have four wins over each other.

While UConn and Michigan State are not blood rivals on the level of North Carolina and Duke, their success leading into the 21st century - both teams have made the Final Four at least seven times since 1999 - makes each time they face a must-watch. Tom Izzo has the longest-running NCAA tournament appearance streak at 28 years, while Dan Hurley has been a coaching darling who constantly gets interest from the NBA since leading UConn to back-to-back National Championships in 2023 and 2024.

As a Laker fan, there’s an interesting sliding doors moment where Hurley is the current coach of Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and LeBron James while J.J. Redick is still a broadcaster trolling Richard Jefferson. Guess we have Coach Izzo to thank (or blame) for that.

Interestingly, despite these achievements, both schools are still not considered among the mythical “blue bloods” of men’s college basketball like North Carolina, Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, and UCLA. Not sure what the criteria would be that would finally get them over the hump, but they certainly have made their case on the sneaker side based on their respective timelines.

Nike has outfitted UConn for as long as I have been alive, while Michigan State moved around from brand to brand before settling in with Nike in the 2000s. From NBA Hall of Famers like Magic Johnson and Ray Allen to college legends like Mateen Cleaves and Kemba Walker, their legendary runs have been complemented by equally iconic sneakers.

Considering it’s a #2 versus #3 seed matchup, Friday’s game looks like it should be evenly matched on the court. On the sneaker side, we’ve seen both teams rock player-exclusive colorways of the Nike Ja 3, Nike Sabrina 3, and Nike Book 2 this year. Let’s break down each school’s historical PEs and figure out who would move on to the next round. With so much overlap among their modern lineups, the key to who will win might come down to who had more interesting kicks before they were firmly established as Nike schools.

UConn

Starters: Nike Kobe 8, Nike Kyrie 6, Nike PG 6, Nike Sabrina 2, Nike Ja 3

Sixth Man: Air Jordan 14 Candy Cane

Ja Morant’s third signature shoe continues to amaze on the court with the wild variety of player exclusives that are possible. UConn’s Ja 3 player exclusive is one of the best we’ve seen so far, with its blue and white upper that’s complemented by a metallic red Swoosh that pops off the screen. And even though Sabrina Ionescu is an Oregon Ducks legend, her signature kicks have been popping off for every Nike school throughout the tournament. Other standout player exclusives from previous years include the Nike Kobe 8, Nike Kyrie 6, and Nike PG 6.

For the Sixth Man, we’re taking it back to the days when Richard Hamilton wore a pair of the Air Jordan 14 en route to the school’s first National Championship in 1999. While not a player exclusive for the school, the rules appeared to be way more lax for Hamilton’s generation all the way up to Kemba Walker’s run. Alongside the Nikes were plenty of Huskies who also wore Air Jordans. Fittingly, Hamilton would stick with Jordan for the majority of his professional career as he played with Michael Jordan during his short-lived stint with the Washington Wizards before going on to be a part of the Detroit Pistons 2004 NBA Championship as a member of Jordan Brand.

For what it’s worth, UConn’s women’s team, also receive their share of PEs that stand out from the men’s size. They also benefited from Paige Bueckers being the first Nike NIL athlete to receive a PE that was released to the public. Adding them to this match-up wouldn’t be fair to Michigan State or any other school short of North Carolina.

Michigan State

Starters: Bata John Wooden, Nike Kobe 11 Elite, Nike LeBron 15, Nike Book 2, Reebok Question

Sixth Man: Nike Shox BB4

Michigan State’s advantage in this face-off is its brand variety. While Magic Johnson wore the Nike Blazer during his time as a Spartan, he actually wore the Bata John Wooden when he beat Larry Bird and Indiana State in the 1979 National Championship Game. Bata is a Swiss brand that dates back to 1894, a little over a decade before Converse was born.

The Spartans’ second National Championship would come in the year 2000 when the Flintstones, a group of players who grew up in Flint, Michigan, would beat the Florida Gators in the Finals. Mateen Cleaves was the most famous of the Flintstones, and his sneaker of choice was a green and white Reebok Question that would become one of the sneaker’s most iconic colorways.

Nike would take the reins from Reebok following their National Championship, and the school has been treated to a number of classics. Jason Richardson’s Nike Shox BB4 PE was the perfect pairing of athlete and sneaker, making it an early favorite in the school’s run. The Nike LeBron 15 and Nike Kobe 11 Elite stand out for their smart use of school as an accent color to distinguish themselves from other Nike schools with a green color scheme like Oregon.

And if the UConn Nike Ja 3 is popping off in this year’s tournament, the Spartans have a fantastic counter with the Nike Book 2. Even though Devin Booker played for Kentucky for one season before moving on to the NBA, he has been a fan of the Spartans since childhood and was even recruited by Coach Izzo. His support of the Spartans shows with his Nike Book 1 PE and now this Book 2 pair that hopefully gets a retail release.

Juan Martinez

From video game journalism to veteran of the sneaker blog era to podcasting about well, everything, Juan is smiling through it all and can't believe this is his life. After recently getting into Formula 1, he now has hot takes about who the greatest driver of all time is. Email: juan@soleretriever.com