Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Wednesday, November 25, 2015 — 7A

‘M’ embarks on “business trip”

By SIMON KAUFMAN

Daily Sports Editor

PARADISE ISLAND, The 

Bahamas 
— 
The 
Atlantis 

Paradise 
Island 
resort 
has 

all the makings of a perfect 
weeklong 
getaway 
spot. 

Palm trees line the property, 
balconies overlook the ocean, 
and get this: 
the 
resort 

doesn’t 
just 

feature a lazy 
river — it has 
a crazy river, 
too. But don’t 
tell 
that 
to 

Caris 
LeVert 

as 
his 
team 

gets 
ready 

for the Battle 
4 
Atlantis 

tournament. 
The 
senior 

guard 
didn’t 

come to the 
Bahamas 
so 

the Michigan men’s basketball 
team could relax.

“They know we’re here on a 

business trip,” LeVert said of 
his teammates. “We know that 
we didn’t have a great game on 
Friday (against Xavier), and 
we’re here to redeem ourselves 
and play a great tournament.”

Michigan’s first test will 

be No. 18 Connecticut, a team 
that, like the Musketeers did 
on Friday, will challenge the 
Wolverines’ big men down 
low. The Huskies (3-0) feature 
center Amida Brimah, who’s 
averaging eight rebounds and 
nearly nine points per game.

Against Xavier, Michigan 

(2-1) got outrebounded, 47-29, 
and its bigs tallied 11 fouls and 
just nine points.

But Michigan coach John 

Beilein 
sees 
Brimah 
as 
a 

different kind of big man than 
what the Wolverines saw from 
the Musketeers.

“They’re not as apt to throw 

the ball in to (Brimah) the way 
that the traditional post-up that 
you saw with (Xavier forward) 
Jalen Reynolds,” Beilein said. 
“It’s more that he’s playing 
behind the defense. They’re 
lobbing it to him, so it’s a four 
(players) out, one (player) deep 
type of approach — very unique 
to what I’ve seen before.”

Beilein also knows Brimah 

will be a factor defensively, 
calling him “as good a shot 
blocker as there is.” The 7-foot 
junior is third in the country 
in blocked shots, averaging 4.3 
per game.

Offensively, Connecticut has 

been led by a duo of fifth-year 
graduate 
student 
transfers. 

Guard Sterling Gibbs comes 
to the Huskies after playing 
two seasons at Seton Hall, and 
forward Shonn Miller opted 
for Connecticut after playing 
four years at Cornell. The two 
are pacing 16 and 13 points per 
game, respectively, and Miller 

has also been a force on the 
boards, using a 6-foot-7, 220-
pound frame to grab more than 
six boards per contest.

“They hit the jackpot with 

the fifth-year guys,” Beilein 
said. “That’s a huge advantage 
to have guys that have those 
type of numbers and all of a 
sudden have for another year.”

Connecticut has also gotten 

major 
contribution 
from 

younger 
players 
in 
guard 

Rodney Purvis and forward 
Daniel Hamilton.

Purvis 
starts 
at 
guard 

alongside Gibbs and is the 
Huskies’ biggest threat from 
deep, shooting 47 percent from 
3-point range. Hamilton, while 
not as consistent a shooter, 
poses a threat solely in his 
versatility.

“He’s a point guard one 

minute,” Beilein said. “Then he 
can play a ‘1,’ a ‘2,’ a ‘3’ or a ‘4’. 
They can go small, and he can 
play ‘4’ or he can play the ‘5’ 

even. There’s a lot of versatility 
that you see.”

Hamilton’s ability to play 

different spots makes him a 
tough matchup, one that will 
likely fall to Michigan’s best 
defender: LeVert. Beilein said 
he has ideas as to how to stop 
Hamilton, but didn’t specify 
what they were.

If 
Michigan’s 
big 
men 

underperform again, Hamilton 
may 
be 
the 
least 
of 
the 

Wolverines’ 
worries. 
Junior 

forward 
Mark 
Donnal 
has 

started at the ‘5’ in each game 
so far, but Beilein hinted 
earlier in the week that he was 
reevaluating that spot in the 
starting lineup and wanted to 
shorten the rotation across the 
board. Sophomore Ricky Doyle 
has 
been 
Michigan’s 
most 

efficient big and could slide 
into Donnal’s starting spot.

If 
Doyle 
can’t 
step 
up, 

though, it could be a rocky start 
to the Bahamas business trip.

UConn vs. 
Michigan

Matchup: 
UConn 3-0; 
Michigan 2-1

When: 
Wednesday 
9:30 P.M.

Where: 
Paradise 
Island, 
Bahamas

TV/Radio: 
AXS TV

LEV FACHER/Daily

John Beilein’s team is treating its time in the Bahamas as a business trip and a time to improve.

Viewing guide to 
Battle 4 Atlantis

By LEV FACHER

Managing Editor

PARADISE 
ISLAND, 
The 

Bahamas — Don’t let the fancy 
resort and tropical destination 
fool you — the Michigan men’s 
basketball 
team 
views 
its 

southward swing to The Bahamas 
over the Thanksgiving holiday as 
a business trip.

The Battle 4 Atlantis, hosted by 

the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort 
just off the shores of Nassau, 
Bahamas, packs a punch in its 
lineup this year. The tournament 
features No. 10 Gonzaga, No. 18 
Connecticut, No. 25 Texas A&M, 
Syracuse, 
Texas, 
Charlotte, 

Washington and Michigan.

Round 1

Michigan takes on No. 18 

Connecticut at 9:30 p.m. EST on 
Wednesday. The game will be 
broadcast on AXS TV, and caps off 
the first tournament quadruple-
header of the week.

Round 2

If the Wolverines beat the 

Huskies, 
they’ll 
play 
either 

Charlotte 
or 
Syracuse 
the 

following day. A win would pit 
them against that game’s victor in 
a 3:30 p.m. matchup, broadcast on 
ESPN. Lose to Connecticut, and 
they’ll tip off once again at 9:30 
p.m. against the loser — another 
AXS Broadcast.

Round 3

With two wins, the Wolverines 

will play on Friday against 
whichever team in the group of 
Texas, Texas A&M, Gonzaga 
and Washington escapes the 
tournament’s first two days with 

a 2-0 record. Regardless, they’ll 
play one of those teams in the final 
round.

At 2-0, Michigan would play 

at 3:00 p.m. on ESPN. If the 
Wolverines beat Connecticut but 
lose on Thanksgiving Day, they 
would play at 12:30 p.m., also on 
ESPN. A first-round loss followed 
by a win would have them tip off at 
7:00 p.m. on AXS, and two losses 
would result in a 9:30 p.m. tip on 
AXS to close the tournament.

Breakdown:

Michigan faces another tough 

test Wednesday in Connecticut 
center Amida Brimah. At 7 feet, 
he presents another physical, 
low-post presence — he won’t 
score as much as Xavier’s 6-foot-
10 Jalen Reynolds did on Friday, 
and the Huskies’ offense won’t 
run through him, but he’ll present 
a major issue on the glass at both 
ends of the floor. 

The Wolverines should feel 

better about playing Syracuse the 
next day. Michigan got past Jim 
Boeheim’s trademark 2-3 zone last 
December at Crisler Center, and 
the Wolverines’ deep, experienced 
backcourt has the patience and 
shooting ability necessary to find 
space around the perimeter to 
win the game from the 3-point 
line. Charlotte, meanwhile, is a 
program looking to retool under 
first-year head coach Mark Price. 

And while Texas A&M posts 

a stiff secondary challenge in 
the other bracket, it’s tough to 
envision any team in the field 
handling 
Gonzaga 
and 
Kyle 

Wiltjer, a 6-foot-10 forward who 
has clear star potential in the 
NBA. The Bulldogs are the clear 
favorites in this tournament, and 
the Wolverines wouldn’t fare well 
against Wiltjer if they faced him.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Michigan announces 2016 
seven-man recruiting class

By KEVIN SANTO

Daily Sports Writer

With 
the 
conclusion 
of 

the early signing period, the 
Michigan hockey team has 
added seven players who will 
don the maize and blue sweater 
for the 2016-17 season.

During 
the 
past 
two 

campaigns, the Wolverines have 
brought in freshman classes 
that made immediate impacts 
on the ice.

In 2014, freshman forward 

Dylan Larkin was a catalyst 
behind 
a 
high-powered 

Michigan offense. He tallied 
47 points, good for second 
on the team in scoring. On 
the opposite end of the ice, 
freshman 
defenseman 
Zach 

Werenski finished seventh in 
points and had the highest tally 
of any defenseman on the team. 
Werenski also finished plus-
nine and quickly established 
himself as one of the young 
leaders 
in 
the 
Wolverines’ 

defensive zone.

This season, the freshman 

impact is even more impressive.

Forwards Cooper Marody, 

Kyle 
Connor 
and 
Brendan 

Warren are Michigan’s top 
three point scorers with 11, 
10 and nine, respectively. And 
though freshmen defensemen 
Joseph Cecconi and Nicholas 
Boka’s statistics aren’t eye-
popping, the pair has stepped 
up to play every game so far.

Now, Michigan coach Red 

Berenson has brought in seven 
skaters that could likely have 
the same influence in 2016.

The 
seven-man 
group 

includes five players from the 
United States National Team 
Development 
Program 
— 

forwards Will Lockwood, Nick 
Pastujov and James Sanchez, 
along with defensemen Griffin 
Luce and Luke Martin.

Lockwood, 
a 
Bloomfield 

Hills, 
Michigan, 
native, 
is 

the son of former Wolverine 
forward Joe Lockwood. The 

young forward has accumulated 
13 points in 20 games with the 
U-18 squad. Though he may be 
considered undersized at 5-foot-
11, 172 pounds, Lockwood is 
said to have good hands and an 
impressive hockey IQ.

Pastujov has accumulated 

just two goals and three assists 
through 20 games with the 
USNTDP this year, but his 
performance on the ice in 2014 
is much more encouraging. 
The prospect from Bradenton, 
Florida, 
finished 
fourth 
in 

scoring last year after racking 
up 30 points in 
45 games.

Rounding 

out 
the 

forwards from 
the USNTDP, 
Sanchez — an 
Illinois native 
— has notched 
two goals and 
two assists in 
20 games this 
season.

The three forwards have 

all been classified as fourth- 
to 
sixth-round 
NHL 
Draft 

candidates on the NHL Central 
Scouting 
Preliminary 
2016 

Players to Watch list.

Martin 
and 
Luce, 
the 

defensemen, have each played 
every game of the season 
with the USNTDP and have 
tallied seven and three points, 
respectively.

Luce may be the most college-

ready recruit in the class, as he 
was projected to be a potential 
second- or third-round pick by 
NHL Central Scouting.

The five skaters earned a 

silver medal together during the 
U-17 World Hockey Challenge, 
and 
the 
chemistry 
they 

established could be invaluable 
during their transition to Yost 
Ice Arena next year.

This season, every freshman 

played with at least one other 
player on the team — whether 
fellow rookies or Wolverine 
veterans — prior to arriving in 

Ann Arbor, and it appears to be 
paying dividends.

The final two recruits — 

defenseman Christian Meike 
and forward Steven Merl — 
share experience in the United 
States Hockey League.

Merl currently plays for the 

Bloomington Thunder, but also 
spent time with the Muskegon 
Lumberjacks in 2014. Through 
15 games this year, Merl has 
lined up primarily at center, 
accumulating one goal and 
two assists. He hails from 
Bloomfield, making him one of 

two Michigan 
natives in the 
class.

Meike’s 

numbers have 
been the same 
as Merl’s after 
recovering 
from 
a 

significant 
injury in 2014. 
One 
concern 

is that he may 

be undersized for a defenseman 
at just 6-foot, 172 pounds. But 
his recovery from injury is 
encouraging, and he has scored 
one goal and notched two assists 
in 10 games this season for the 
Sioux City Musketeers.

While the 2016 class has big 

skates to fill after the production 
from freshmen in the last two 
seasons, 
Michigan 
associate 

head coach Billy Powers is 
confident in the group he has 
brought to Ann Arbor.

“You’re 
always 
recruiting 

based on your needs, and we 
feel strongly that we’ve added 
the right pieces and most 
importantly the right kind of 
kids,’’ Powers told MGoBlue.
com. “Our current freshman 
class has stepped in and had an 
impact on our team, and a big 
part of it is their character. We 
feel like we’ve found a group to 
come in next year with similar 
qualities. You’re going to see the 
right kind of kids, and that is 
going to help our program.’’

ICE HOCKEY

“We feel 

strongly that 

we’ve added the 

right pieces.”

Unbothered by struggles, 
Flaherty has career game

By BRAD WHIPPLE

Daily Sports Writer

Something felt a bit off 

about Katelynn Flaherty’s shot 
throughout the first couple 
games of the Michigan women’s 
basketball team’s season, so the 
sophomore guard put in a few 
more reps on the Crisler Center 
hardwood, sinking baskets late 
into the night.

She 
needed 
every 
extra 

minute she could get in front 
of the basket. Ten days ago 
against Detroit, Flaherty had 
her weakest performance of the 
season with a scoreless second 
half and four total fouls. After 
that win, though, senior guard 
Madison Ristovski said she 
believed Flaherty would fall 
back in line.

Four days later, Flaherty led 

the team with 19 points against 
Xavier. And four days after 
that, with more practice under 
her belt and a few extra nights 
of shooting, the upward trend 
continued in the Wolverines’ 
119-61 
victory 
over 
South 

Carolina Upstate.

That turnaround made quite 

a statement, too, as Flaherty 
etched 
her 
name 
in 
the 

program’s record book with a 
career-high 34 points.

With 

65-percent 
shooting, 
Flaherty 
joined 
seven 
other 

players in the 
program’s 
history 
to 

have 
scored 

at least 34 points in a single 
game — including former guard 
Shannon Smith, who scored 36 
points against Ohio State last 
season.

Despite small turbulence to 

start the season, the stat sheet 
will show that Flaherty has 
recuperated. For her, it has 
been a mental game that has 
progressed substantially.

“She’s an incredible player,” 

said 
Michigan 
coach 
Kim 

Barnes Arico. “(But) she’s kinda 
been disappointed in the first 
couple games that her shot 
hadn’t been falling the way that 
she’d been working on it.”

Against the Spartans, her 

shots did fall the way she 
wanted, but not initially. She 
started the game by missing 
three straight 3-pointers and a 
jumper before drawing a foul, 
stepping to the line and sinking 
two free throws. After that, 
Flaherty was unstoppable with 
the finesse of her dribbling and 
quick transitions on the fast 
break.

“I think that (Detroit) was 

a good game for me to go 
through,” Flaherty said. “It 
changed my whole mentality 
coming 
into 
games 
going 

forward. Especially going 0-for-
4 in the beginning (of Monday’s 
game), it doesn’t faze me. I just 
keep shooting.”

And Flaherty kept shooting 

Monday. It didn’t seem like she 
would miss.

It seemed that Flaherty just 

needed to see the swish of the 
ball through the basket — even 
if it was just a free throw. In the 
end, it’s about confidence with 
Flaherty, and one basket could 

be the tipping 
point 
for 
a 

phenomenal 
night.

“Maybe the 

free 
throws 

kinda calmed 
her down a bit, 
and she didn’t 
miss 
after 

that,” Barnes Arico said. “Every 
time she shoots it, I think 
it’s going in. I think probably 
everybody on our bench thinks 
it’s going in. When she misses, 
we’re surprised that she misses 
it.”

Flaherty missed just seven 

of 20 shots, but Barnes Arico 
thought her four assists were 
her most impressive stat line. 

Flaherty’s 
distribution 
set 

up 
freshman 
guard 
Boogie 

Brozoski 
for 
a 
career-high 

16-point night.

In turn, Brozoski had five 

assists, the most important one 
coming with 1:23 left in the 
game. Ten seconds after subbing 
in, redshirt senior guard Halle 
Wangler got wide open at the 
top of the key and scored a long 
jumper off a pass from Brozoski.

Wangler’s first career basket 

made the bench uproar in 
excitement, sending players and 
coaches jumping on their feet. 
Twenty-one seconds later, she 
added her first career rebound 
as 
well. 
Without 
Brozoski, 

Wangler wouldn’t have had 
that shining moment. Without 
Flaherty, there’s no telling if 
Brozoski would’ve produced 
similar results.

Ultimately, Flaherty’s career 

night paid dividends for the 
performance 
of 
her 
other 

teammates.

“She 
was 
making 
extra 

passes, and she wasn’t forcing 
her shot,” Barnes Arico said. “I 
was really happy with the way 
she moved the ball.”

Barnes Arico said she didn’t 

know how many points Flaherty 
had when she subbed out in the 
final six minutes, nearing 40 
points. The fourth-year coach 
said Flaherty would likely play 
all 40 minutes of a game if she 
could, but Flaherty admitted 
that it wouldn’t be to score more 
points.

“I just want to do what’s best 

for my team, and just help my 
team win in whichever way I 
can,” Flaherty said. “I think 
when (I) have high scoring 
games, I also want to work on 
other parts of my game, whether 
it’s sharing the ball, getting the 
ball in other people’s hands or 
working on defense.”

No matter how Flaherty 

spends every minute on the 
floor, though, she needs to do 
one thing. Just keep shooting, 
and the rest will fall in place.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

“She’s an 
incredible 

player.”

