8 — Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

RUBY WALLAU/Daily

Freshman Moritz Wagner (right) has worked his way into Michigan’s rotation.
Michigan’s big men 
getting opportunity

By SIMON KAUFMAN

Daily Sports Editor

After his team’s regular-season 

opener on Friday, Michigan men’s 
basketball coach John Beilein 
said earning minutes at the ‘5’ 
spot would be “very competitive.” 
He never said it would be a blood 
battle.

But that didn’t stop freshman 

forward Moritz Wagner from 
stiffening his 6-foot-10 frame and 
setting his feet to take a charge 
midway through the second half 
of the Wolverines’ win against 
Elon on Monday. When he stood 
up, blood dripped down from a 
gash in his forehead. He slapped 
his chest twice and returned to 
the bench to wipe away the blood.

Wagner was one of four big 

men whom Beilein rotated in 
during the Wolverines’ 88-68 win 
over the Phoenix. In each half, the 
situation down low looked more 
or less like this: Junior forward 
Mark 
Donnal 
started, 
then 

redshirt freshman D.J. Wilson 
and sophomore Ricky Doyle 
subbed in after five minutes, then 
Wagner for a few. And then, late 
in each frame, Beilein mixed it up.

After getting the start for the 

second game in a row, Donnal 
grabbed 
an 
offensive 
board 

early in the first half and put it 
back in. Two minutes later, he 
committed an off-ball foul, and 
soon after that Beilein pulled him 
and sophomore guard Kameron 
Chatman in exchange for Wilson 
and Doyle, with Doyle playing the 
‘5’ and Wilson playing as a stretch 
forward.

Wilson nailed his first 3-point 

attempt, but then, like Donnal, 
he committed a foul on the other 
end. Beilein opted to go with a 
smaller lineup and pulled Wilson. 
Then, in keeping with the theme, 
Doyle committed his first foul 
and found himself on the bench 
with Wilson taking his spot.

Wilson scored on a layup 

quickly after reentering, then 
committed 
his 
second 
foul. 

Wilson out. Wagner in.

It was a big-man merry-go-

round.

Wagner lasted less than three 

minutes in the first half, but 
his physical play was enough to 
impress Beilein. He did a nice 
job of boxing out his man on 
the defensive end and fought 
for a rebound off the offensive 
glass, forcing the ball off an Elon 
defender and giving Michigan 
possession.

Each big earned his turn on the 

floor on Monday. Donnal tallied 
15 minutes, Doyle and Wilson 
13 each and Wagner seven. But 
Beilein knows it isn’t realistic to 
play four bigs every game.

“We hope we’ll get a rotation,” 

Beilein said. “We can’t be rotating 
four guys there. Somebody’s 
gonna beat somebody out, and 
we’ll go with two or three (big 
men). Usually you need three, 
but we’ll go with two primarily 
and a third guy will back up, and 
a fourth guy will have to wait his 
turn.”

Based 
on 
minutes 
alone, 

Donnal has been Beilein’s most 
trusted manut Doyle has been 
the most productive. Doyle went 
3-for-4 from the field, including 
a big dunk. On the defensive side, 
he grabbed three boards. 

Wilson struggled against the 

Phoenix. He had twice as many 
fouls (four) as he had field goals 
(two). But in Michigan’s first 
game, he looked more poised, 
going 2-for-4 from the field and 
dishing out three assists in 23 
minutes.

The biggest wild card is still 

Wagner. 
The 
Berlin 
product 

was an option to redshirt at the 
beginning of the year, but Beilein 
opted to play him. In two games, 
he’s just 1-for-3 from the field but 
has shown an ability to step up on 
defense, which he demonstrated 
by taking a charge on Monday.

“That was awesome,” said 

redshirt 
sophomore 
Duncan 

Robinson. “He brings a ton of 
energy, to get up and pump his 
chest like that. That was a lot of 
fun. … He’s talking a lot, bringing 
a lot of energy, so he’s a great 
teammate.”

Results mixed across Big Ten

Wisconsin’s upset 
of North Dakota 

stands out, but most 
teams still mediocre

By JASON RUBINSTEIN

Daily Sports Editor

The Michigan hockey team 

has been quite an enigma this 
season. While a 5-1-1 record 
looks great on paper, the team is 
far from satisfied.

Once again, it appears the 

12th-ranked Wolverines boast 
one of the nation’s top offenses 
— Michigan is second in the 
country with 4.43 goals per 
game — while the defense ranks 
45th out of 60 teams, allowing 
3.29 goals per game.

Regardless, the Wolverines 

are currently in the top 16 in the 
Pairwise Rankings heading into 
their 
biggest 
non-conference 

series of the year, a two-game set 
at Boston University.

Michigan aside, no other Big 

Ten team is ranked.

The Daily gives a team-

by-team breakdown of what 
the Wolverines’ five Big Ten 
counterparts have (or have not) 
accomplished in the season’s 
first five weeks:

Michigan State (4-4-1)

The Spartans have to be 

disappointed with their start to 
the season. Michigan State went 
winless in its three marquee 
games: two against Denver and 
one against Boston College.

Prior to the season, Spartans 

coach 
Tom 
Anastos 
knew 

his team would win with its 
goaltending. 
They 
returned 

the reigning Big Ten Goalie 
of the Year, Jake Hildebrand, 
who has a career .926 save 
percentage and 2.23 goals per 
game average. Through nine 
games, the netminder’s stats 
are below his career mark, but 
he still has an impressive .916 
save percentage while allowing 
2.44 goals per game.

Michigan State had a real 

chance to bump its RPI when it 

traveled to play Boston College. 
In a game that boasted arguably 
the nation’s top two goalies 
in Hildebrand and the Eagles’ 
Thatcher Demko, there were 10 
goals allowed. Boston College 
escaped with a 6-4 win.

The Spartans’ win column 

stems from a sweep of New 
Hampshire and two wins over 
Lake Superior State.

Wisconsin (3-4-1)

It’s been another wild start 

for the Badgers after they tallied 
just four wins a season ago.

Wisconsin garnered the Big 

Ten’s biggest non-conference 
win, beating No. 4 North Dakota 
on the road, 3-1. That means 
each 
Michigan-Wisconsin 

tilt is of great importance for 
the Wolverines, as a win over 
the Badgers would improve 
Michigan’s RPI.

Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves 

said after the game: “To have 
that signature win really could 
be something special for this 
group as we move forward.”

Aside from their win in Fargo, 

North Dakota, the Badgers’ only 
other wins came against Arizona 
State, which is in its first season 
as a Division I program.

Minnesota (4-5)

Minnesota lost most of its 

premier players in the offseason 
due to graduation or to the NHL. 
How the Gophers replace those 
players will define their season.

First, 
coach 
Don 
Lucia 

needed to fill the void left by 
netminder Adam Wilcox, who 
gave the Wolverines fits in the 
past. It appears he has done that 
successfully, starting freshman 
Eric Schierhorn, who has a .931 
save percentage and 2.11 goals-
allowed average.

A sluggish start to the season 

has held Minnesota back — the 
Gophers lost to Vermont and 
were 
swept 
by 
Minnesota-

Duluth to begin the year — 
but the team is starting to 
trend upward. Just recently, 
Minnesota 
stole 
one 
from 

Minnesota State on the road.

Penn State (6-2-2)

After losing Casey Bailey, 

who led the Nittany Lions in 
goals (22) and points (40) last 
season, to the Toronto Maple 
Leafs, Penn State’s offense had 
multiple question marks.

However, the Nittany Lions 

haven’t skipped a beat. They 
boast the nation’s third-best 
offense, scoring 4.40 goals per 
game. Freshman forward Chase 
Berger is leading that charge, 
already having tallied eight 
goals.

Penn State has been aided by a 

porous non-conference schedule, 
with its best win coming over 
Notre Dame at home.

Ohio State (3-7)

The Buckeyes had an ultra-

slow start to the season, losing 
their first seven games. Ohio 
State was swept by both Miami 
(Ohio) and Providence — its 
toughest 
non-conference 

opponents.

Forward Nick Schilkey has 

come out of the gates firing, 
registering six goals and six 
assists, and the junior has been 
a large reason for the Buckeyes’ 
current 
three-game 
winning 

streak.

Still, it’s looking like it could 

be a long season for the Buckeyes.

LUNA ANNA ARCHEY/Daily

Michigan coach Red Berenson’s team has the best offense in the Big Ten.

BY THE NUMBERS
Big Ten Hockey

12

Points Ohio State’s Nick Schilkey has 
through 10 games, good for first in the 

Big Ten
2.22

Goals per game allowed by Minnesota 

(best in the Big Ten)
4.40

Goals per game scored by Penn State 
(second in the Big Ten behind Michigan)
25-23-5

The conference’s combined record, 

including Michigan

‘M’ pulls away from Elon

Walton, Robinson 

combine for 43 
points to power 
another home win

By KELLY HALL

Daily Sports Writer

Duncan Robinson sank a 3 

from the corner. Then he did it 
again. And again. By the end of 
the 
first 

half, 
the 

redshirt 
sophomore 
was 4-for-4 from the field.

Robinson and junior guard 

Derrick Walton Jr. combined 
for 43 points Monday in the No. 
24 Michigan men’s basketball 
team’s win over Elon, with 33 
of those coming on 3-pointers. 
The offense shot 51.7 percent, 
and though it looked explosive 
at some times, it looked sloppy at 
others. 

But the Wolverines didn’t have 

trouble dropping the Phoenix, 
88-68, in a Battle 4 Atlantis 
Mainland 
Game 
just 
three 

days after defeating Northern 
Michigan. 

Though Elon didn’t provide a 

true test of his team’s talent, the 
game gave Michigan coach John 
Beilein more time to work out his 
starting lineup. 

On 
the 
first 
possession, 

sophomore forward Kameron 
Chatman threw the ball to an 
open Derrick Walton Jr. as the 
shot clock dwindled to four 
seconds. 
The 
junior 
guard 

threw it up from beyond the 
arc without hesitation, and the 
student section erupted as the 
Wolverines won an early lead 28 
seconds into the game.

“(Walton) 
played 
great,” 

Robinson said. “That’s a big thing 
for him, just staying aggressive. 
That’s when he plays his best. He 
was finding people all over the 
floor and was really efficient at 
scoring the ball as well.”

But 
minutes 
later, 
the 

Wolverines went on a six-minute 
scoring drought to allow Elon to 
tie it up at 12, only to snap out 
of it by hitting their next three 
attempts. 

Redshirt 
freshman 
D.J. 

Wilson ended the drought with 
a tip-in, and then, seconds later, 
Robinson scored his first points 
as a Wolverine with a dunk to 
get Michigan to a 16-15 lead. 
Robinson 
got the ball 
again 
after 

picking off an 
inbounds pass 
and fed it to 
sophomore 
guard 
Muhammad-
Ali 
Abdur-

Rahkman, 
who took it 
the length of 
the court for a layup. 

There 
were 
still 
clumsy 

moments, though. Four minutes 
into the game, sophomore guard 
Aubrey Dawkins let the ball slip 
through his fingers and go out 
of bounds after LeVert threw it 
to him from half-court. LeVert 

was burned by Phoenix guard 
Steven Santa Ana, who stole 
the ball and drove it to the net 
for a layup. Elsewhere, junior 
big man Mark Donnal missed 
multiple shots from under the 
basket. Junior forward Zak Irvin 
played his first minutes since his 
early-September back surgery 
and went 0-for-5 from the floor. 
Michigan entered halftime with 
just a 10-point lead. 

“The 
funny 

thing about Zak 
is that one shot 
doesn’t 
phase 

him, so until he 
gets his rhythm 
back, you can 
expect him to 
get 
‘em 
up,” 

Walton 
said. 

“So we know 
we can expect 
him to make 

the right play, but until then, 
we’re trying to get him back to a 
rhythm to find his niche and get 
his condition back.”

The Wolverines came out of 

the locker room on a 10-0 run by 
correcting some of those mistakes 
and continuing what they had 

been doing well. Walton and 
Robinson had more 3-pointers, 
and LeVert had two monster 
dunks. Forward Ricky Doyle 
came in and outplayed Donnal by 
making all three of his second-half 
shots and looking more composed 
on the defensive end. 

“(Elon) played a really, really 

fast pace,” Robinson said. “From 
that standpoint, we definitely 
have a lot of room to grow 
defensively, just being a little bit 
closer in communication, but it 
was definitely a step in the right 
direction.”

In a high-scoring game where 

Walton led with 24 points, 
seven assists and six rebounds, 
Beilein took full advantage of his 
team’s depth. Against Northern 
Michigan, Dawkins and LeVert 
led the charge, but against Elon, 
it was Walton and Robinson.

“I mean, any night it could 

be anyone else, which is a great 
quality to have in a team,” 
Robinson said. “We all know 
that. 
Last 
Friday, 
everyone 

was excited for those two, and 
tonight, everyone’s excited for us. 
It’s whoever can get it done on a 
given night.”

RUBY WALLAU/Daily

Redshirt sophomore forward Duncan Robinson scored 19 points on 6-for-7 shooting in Michigan’s win over Elon.

“Any night it could 

be anyone else, 
which is a great 
quality to have.”

ELON
MICHIGAN 

68
88

