Michigan State basketball player AJ Hoggard: 3 things to know
As the Michigan State season came barreling toward the end, one thing became clear: whether or not the Spartans won came down to AJ Hoggard's performance.
He has only started six games this season and is averaging 6.8 points per game, but when he limits turnovers and is distributing the ball well, that's when the Spartans are humming. And with starting point guard Tyson Walker's availability unknown heading into Friday night's NCAA tournament game vs. Davidson, it may be Hoggard's time to shine.
Let's get to know the sophomore guard.
1. OK, so Malik Hall isn't the only MSU player getting endorsement deals
On Thursday, Michigan State's Malik Hall posted a sponsored ad on Instagram promoting Ritz crackers. On the same day, Hoggard did the same.
While Hall was laying in his bed surrounded by multiple bags of crackers, Hoggard opted for a more upright position, holding bags of ranch toasted chips, cheese crispers and sour cream & onion toasted chips.
One of the people who commented on the post — Memphis star Jalen Duren, within an hour or two after Memphis' first-round NCAA tournament win over Boise State.
This appears to be Hoggard's first name, image and likeness deal, other than the United Wholesale Mortgage one, of course, which gives a monthly stipend to every MSU men's basketball and football player.
Hoggard has more than 34,000 followers on Instagram.
2. AJ Hoggard's commitment to Michigan State caused Jalen Terry to back out
AJ Hoggard committed to MSU in October 2019, shortly before his senior season at Huntington Prep (West Virginia) was to begin. What made the commitment — and MSU's continued pursuit of Hoggard — interesting was that the Spartans already had a point guard for the 2020 class in Flint (Michigan) Beecher's Jalen Terry.
Eight days after Hoggard's commitment, Terry decommitted.
Terry eventually went to Oregon, but transferred to DePaul after his freshman year. This season with the Blue Devils, Terry started the final 17 games, finishing with averages of 8.2 points and a team-high 3.1 assists.
Hoggard has had an up-and-down sophomore season but has played well down the stretch and MSU fans are likely pleased about which point guard the Spartans ended up landing.
3. Aaron Henry gave up the number 11 jersey to Hoggard despite being two years older
Even before Hoggard committed to MSU, he jokingly told leading scorer Aaron Henry that he wanted his No. 11 jersey. And when Hoggard actually did commit, he went to Henry again.
Henry at first said he'd play him for it one-on-one, but that never happened. And to the then-freshman's surprise, Henry actually agreed to give up the number.
"And then one day, he came to me. He was like, bro, you can wear No. 11, because it means so much more to you than it means to me," Hoggard told Spartans All-Access. "And that just kind of was surprising. It just made me so happy because he did it out of the kindness of his heart when he didn't have to."
Henry wore the number 0 last season.
Contact digital sports reporter Phil Friend at 517-377-1220 or pfriend@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @Phil_Friend.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU guard AJ Hoggard: 3 things to know about the Spartan
