Foster Michigan State Rent looked like Mr. Basketball again

What did it mean to see the shot come in? .

"A big sigh of relief," said Loyer.

Relief? Nah. It was an exorcism.

Indeed, he had not made a pointer to three since mid-January. Heck, he had only taken four. Mainly because he was sitting on the bench and it was not easy to shoot from there.

Although Rent was able to make it one of the seats during his performance on Friday, at the end of the week. He played this freely.

What few have seen coming. Except his teammates, who see what Loyer did against the Ohio State almost daily in practice. And with the exception of his coaches, who saw this kind of shooting while he was in high school in Clarkston, brightening up the stronger players, with an assortment of floating bodies, shooters and flat bombs of the perimeter.

As his third game score on Friday, when two Buckeyes converged on him, he took a retirement dribble, settled four feet behind the line and let it slip.

Cassius Winston was sitting at the marker's table when Rent hit her. He bounced and fell through the net, a smile on his face.

He was waiting to see that since his lining. Rent was waiting to see him for himself. It was not easy. Because he heard the noise. He swears that he ignored it.

Looking at him on Friday, it's hard not to believe him.

"People's comments will not bother me," he said after the match. "I know I can play. I know what I have inside of me. I know what I can do. "

After hitting the first pointer at 3, he relaxed. You could see it on his face.

Mike Garland, assistant of MSU, also said that this single shot "brought (Rent) back to who he was. As our guys said, that's what it is. They see it. We all saw him in high school. "

Rent, listed at 6 feet, arrived in East Lansing as a 4-star rookie and with one of the best CVs in high school in Michigan's recent history. His teams at Clarkston have won two consecutive titles. He scored 40 points per game in the playoffs. He was named Mr. Basketball.

Yet even then, while he was tearing up the preparation scene in the state, he never submerged anyone physically. He changed gears. He relied on balance, quick release and underestimation of his defender.

As in: how is he going to be 40 years old? Or even get a shot?

It's a good question this season to see Rent trying to dribble against the toughest guards in the league. And yet, while his first three 3-points were open on Friday, he found himself in the second period after slipping around a screen and he still had a defender on his hip.

It seemed familiar to everyone watching him play at Clarkston. It's like that that he had buckets.

He just needed a whole regular season to show that he could do it here. At least for a match.

"It's the same as in our program," said Garland. "Tom, the staff, we're teaching these guys to play basketball. Once they learned to play basketball and they learned to play basketball, they became confident in themselves. Talent begins to show. "

Foster Loyer (3) celebrates after scoring a basket of 3 points. (Photo: Nam Y. Huh, AP)

The same thing happened with Kenny Goins, he said.

"It takes time," said Garland.

And it may take a little longer. It was only a game. In addition, Rent is still not strong enough to defend systematically. But he showed that he was mentally ready to make a difference.

He will not always be 14, or even double the rest of the season. But he could. Because he just did it.

He can also make a shot. An MSU shot may need in the next match or next week when the NCAA tournament begins.

That's what Friday afternoon did for Rent. His performance now goes to his memory bank. He can access it from now on.

He can see it. Sense it. And remember how it was the day he showed his belonging.