8 — Tuesday, January 10, 2017
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Michigan looking for answers after slow start 

The 
Michigan 
men’s 

basketball team is three games 
into its Big Ten season, and there 
are already questions swirling 
about the Wolverines’ (1-2 Big 
Ten, 11-5 overall) conference fate 
this season.

Projected to be a relatively 

average team before the year 
began, Michigan made a fairly 
big impression instead, going 
10-3 in non-conference play 
and capturing a 2K Classic 
championship in New York City. 
Aside from obvious hiccups at 
South Carolina, against Virginia 
Tech and at then-No. 2 UCLA, 
the 
Wolverines 
combined 
a 

recalibrated 
defense 
with 

emerging offensive options to 
notch a double-digit win tally — 
a majority of which were decided 
by at least 20 points.

Sophomore forward Moritz 

Wagner and redshirt sophomore 
forward DJ Wilson have played 
the role of breakout starters, 
taking the place of the expected 
pair of seniors Duncan Robinson 
and Mark Donnal. Wagner and 
Wilson have burst onto the scene 
in full force, averaging 11.9 points 
and 10.3 points, respectively, and 
serving as a reliable combination 
of big men. Robinson and Donnal, 
meanwhile, have become dual 
sixth men, boosting Michigan 
with a strong dose of energy 
and effort off the bench while 
averaging 8.8 and six points, 
respectively. 

The cast of characters fit their 

parts and created a cohesive 
unit that steamrolled its non-
conference opponents, though 
admittedly they weren’t elite 
foes. But Big Ten play has been 
an entirely different story.

The first two weeks of the 

conference season have been 
filled 
with 
surprises 
across 

the board. Notably, Minnesota 
already has more wins and 
Indiana already has almost as 
many losses as they had all of 

last year with three and two, 
respectively. 
What 
is 
most 

striking about the situation the 
Wolverines find themselves in 
is just how easily it could be so 
different.

In 
a 
seven-day 
span, 

Michigan 
faced 
off 
against 

Iowa on the road and Penn 
State and Maryland at home. 
In falling 86-83 in overtime to 
the Hawkeyes and 77-70 to the 
Terrapins on opposite ends of 
a 72-69 win over the Nittany 
Lions, the Wolverines revealed 
a 
crucial 
flaw 
that 
could 

potentially determine their fate 
this season. 

“The edge that a lot of great 

teams have has been lacking 
in some games, and there’s no 
way we can win without that 
edge,” said Michigan coach John 
Beilein. “There’s just no way.”

In Iowa City, the outcome of 

the game may have gone down 
to the wire, but Michigan had set 

the tone much earlier, and not in 
a good way. While Iowa notched 
a 53.3 shooting percentage from 
the floor in the first half, the 
Wolverines made just 40 percent 
of their shots. Michigan had 
Wilson 
and 
his 

19 points in the 
stanza to thank 
for keeping the 
Wolverines within 
three 
at 
the 

halftime break.

While Michigan 

turned the tables 
on the Hawkeyes 
in the second half, 
rediscovering 
its 
shooting 
stroke 
with 
a 

51.6 shooting percentage, key 
defensive mistakes and late-
game mismanagements downed 
the Wolverines in overtime. It 
didn’t help that they couldn’t 
stop Iowa guard Peter Jok from 
going off for 25 points, including 
four threes. Not even Wilson’s 

career day of 28 points and 14 
rebounds could save Michigan in 
the end.

When 
the 
Wolverines 

returned to Ann Arbor to take on 
Penn State, they brought those 

shooting 
woes 

back with them. 
Struggling 
to 
establish 

itself early in 
the 
ballgame, 

Michigan 
shot 

42.3 
percent 

from the floor 
and 
knocked 

down 
just 

one 
3-pointer 

on 10 attempts. The offense 
looked stagnant all half, as the 
Wolverines failed to spread the 
floor, move the ball and make 
good decisions. Beilein could 
be seen on the sideline growing 
more and more irritated every 
time a low-percentage shot went 
up early in the shot clock, only to 

clank off the rim and bounce out.

It took until the halfway 

mark of the second stanza 
for 
Michigan 
to 
turn 
its 

fortunes around. Following an 
impassioned speech from senior 
wing Zak Irvin at the media 
timeout, the Wolverines put 
together a 20-6 run kicked off by 
a quick five points from Robinson 
and punctuated by an alley-oop 
slam from Wilson to take the 
lead. Irvin then put his money 
where his mouth was, pairing 
with 
senior 
guard 
Derrick 

Walton Jr. to score Michigan’s 
final 10 points and close out the 
comeback victory.

Though 
the 
Wolverines 

managed to pull out the win in 
the end, it very easily could have 
gone the other way, a fact that 
was apparent to the team the 
following day.

“We gotta have that sense of 

urgency from the tip, and it can’t 
be a reaction to going down,” 

Robinson said. “I think we’ve 
done it well some games. … But 
it’s gotta be an everyday mindset, 
every game mindset.”

Less than 72 hours after that 

grand escape, Michigan put 
itself in the position of needing 
to replicate the feat against 
Maryland. 
While 
posting 

another 
40-percent 
shooting 

performance in the first half, the 
Wolverines also let the Terrapins 
bully them around in the paint. 
They fell behind by nine points at 
the break — the largest halftime 
margin of the three games.

Over the course of the second 

half, Michigan attempted to 
generate 
enough 
momentum 

to mount a second straight 
comeback. 
Scratching 
and 

clawing their way back into the 
game, the Wolverines narrowed 
the deficit to three or fewer 
points 
multiple 
times, 
but 

each time they did, Maryland 
had a response at the ready. 
Eventually, 
Michigan 
simply 

ran out of gas.

“We had some moments there 

where we don’t play with the 
same IQ, the intensity that you 
need,” Beilein said. “It just bites 
you in this game. … What was 
tough was when we made a big 
play and cut it down, they made 
one right back. It’s hard to keep 
doing that.”

In their opening week of 

Big Ten play, the Wolverines 
played three close contests in 
which they sat back and let the 
opponent take the driver’s seat. 
And as a result, they sit just 
four points away from a winless 
start.

After the turbulent week, Irvin 

declared that Michigan can’t 
afford to wait to be “punched in 
the mouth” in order to fire up its 
engine. In a conference season 
as unpredictable as this one is 
shaping up to be, the Wolverines 
would be wise to heed his advice. 
Until they learn how to execute 
from start to finish, the questions 
about their destiny this year 
won’t be going anywhere.

Wolverines look to rebound against Hoosiers

The 
Michigan 
women’s 

basketball team is looking for 
redemption.

After traveling to No. 11 

Ohio 
State 

and 
dropping 

their last game 
96-87, 
the 

Wolverines (2-1 
Big Ten, 13-4 
overall) 
are 

eager to move 
past their rival 
loss. 
A 
win 

against Indiana 
(2-1, 
12-4) 

Tuesday night 
could 
prevent 

a 
season-

jarring loss of 
momentum for 
Michigan.

The 
Hoosiers 
played 
the 

Buckeyes on Dec. 31, also losing, 
92-82. Their common loss, and 
the closeness of the two team’s 
records, make Indiana and the 
Wolverines almost equals — the 
perfect matchup for an exciting 
game.

But 
Michigan 
may 
take 

the 
edge, 
as 
junior 
guard 

and leading scorer Katelynn 
Flaherty is expected to bring a 
missed intensity to the court. 

While 
Flaherty 
has 
been 

essential 
in 

every 
game 

this 
season, 

she 
recently 

went 
through 

a 
lackluster 

period compared 
to 
her 
usual 

high-scoring 
self; 
against 

Wisconsin 
on 

Jan. 1, Flaherty 
managed 
just 

eight 
points. 

But she found 
her mojo once 
more 
against 

Ohio State, when she stunned 
everyone with a career-high 
38-point performance.

Her eight 3-pointers against 

the Buckeyes set a new school 
record, 
and 
her 
post-game 

attitude showed that she was 
confident in her capabilities — it 
all stemmed from hard work.

“I just try to do what my team 

needs me to do,” Flaherty said 
Saturday after the game. “And 
today it was scoring. So I think 
I was really persistent with that, 
and I knew that I need to score 
to help us be successful.”

Added 
Ohio 
State 
coach 

Kevin Gruff: “That’s one of the 
byproducts of letting (Flaherty) 
get so comfortable early in the 
game, now all the sudden you’re 
dealing with her feeling good 
the whole way out. I thought our 
effort on her got better as the 
game went, but she was feeling 
so good that she was making 
really tough shots. She’s a great 
player.”

While a repeat performance 

might 
be 
tough 
to 
attain, 

Flaherty will have momentum 
and confidence, which will be 
a dangerous combination for 
Indiana to defend against.

Junior 
forward 
Jillian 

Dunston and senior guard Siera 
Thompson were also game-
changers for Michigan against 
Ohio State, and while they did 
not sink quite as many baskets as 
Flaherty, the duo was effective 
in other areas of the court.

Dunston 
has 
been 
an 

important defensive presence 
for the Wolverines all season, 

and 
with 
her 

double-double 
last 
game, 

she 
reminded 

onlookers 
that 

she is effective 
on 
both 
ends 

of 
the 
court. 

While 
her 

eight 
defensive 

rebounds and 10 
points 
weren’t 

enough 
to 

shift 
the 
tide 

of the game in 
Michigan’s favor, 
Dunston earned 

double the defensive rebounds 
as the next highest Wolverine.

Thompson 
was 
the 
only 

Michigan player to stay on 
the court for all 40 minutes — 
unsurprising to anyone who 

has heard Michigan coach Kim 
Barnes Arico discuss the impact 
of her co-captain on the rest of 
the team.

Against 
the 
Buckeyes, 

Thompson dished out 10 assists, 
and was just two points shy of her 
own double-double. Thompson 
currently has a team-high 92 
assists on the season, and will 
need to continue playmaking in 
order for the Wolverines to win 
against Indiana.

While Flaherty, Dunston, and 

Thompson will attempt to build 
on their successes of last game, 
sophomore 
forward 
Hallie 

Thome will be trying to rectify 
her impact. 

“Hallie Thome picked up her 

second foul,” Barnes Arico said. 
“I thought that was critical. We 
were out-rebounding them in 
the first quarter, and then we 
lost our 6-foot-5 inside presence 

and then we drastically dropped 
down and went small. We 
didn’t have the 
same 
defensive 

or 
offensive 

presence that we 
did with her in 
the game.”

Despite 

fouling 
out, 

Thome 
picked 

up 
13 
points, 

making her 23 
minutes 
still 

the 
second-

most offensively 
productive 
performance for 
Michigan.

Having Thome on the court is 

necessary for the Wolverines to 
win. Her field goal percentage 
this season is 63.5 percent — 
higher than any team average 
in the NCAA. Thome’s Jan. 1 

performance against Wisconsin 
netted her 37 points, which 

was 
by 
far 

Michigan’s best 
performance 
of 

the night, and 
Thome’s 
own 

career high. 

Even without 

Thome, 
the 

main reason that 
the 
Wolverines 

could not defend 
against 
the 

Buckeyes 
last 

game 
was 
the 

sheer 
depth 

that Ohio State 
possessed, with 

six different players scoring in 
the double-digits. While that 
type of game is an anomaly, it 
proves that an entire team effort 
is needed to be successful in this 
league.

Michigan 
cannot 
rely 
on 

just 
its 
starting 
five. 
The 

players coming off the bench, 
like sophomore guard Nicole 
Munger, have to be ready to 
perform at their peak.

It 
would 
also 
help 
the 

Wolverines 
if 
Flaherty 
and 

Thome played their best game 
at the same time. Lately, it 
seems as though they have been 
alternating strong showings and 
more restful games. Though 
each player is capable of leading 
Michigan on her own, a standout 
performance from both leading 
scorers in the same game could 
certainly seal a win for the 
Wolverines.

If Flaherty and Thome can 

manage 
that, 
the 
Hoosiers 

should be ready for a barrage 
of some of the most accurate 
shooting they have faced thus 
far. 

CLAIRE MEINGAST/Daily

Junior guard Katelynn Flaherty is looking to build off a season-high 38-point performance against the Buckeyes when Michigan faces Indiana on Tuesday night.

I just try to do 
what my team 
needs me to do. 

And today it 
was scoring.

Hallie Thome 
picked up her 
second foul. I 
thought that 
was critical.

Indiana at 
Michigan

Matchup: 
Indiana 12-4; 
Michigan 
13-4

When: 
Tuesday 
6 P.M.

Where: 
Crisler 
Center

MAGGIE KOLCON

Daily Sports Writer

SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily

Senior wing Zak Irvin believes that, after a slow start to Big Ten play, the Wolverines need to begin games with more intensity as the conference season unfolds.

BETELHEM ASHAME

Managing Sports Editor

That edge that a lot 

of great teams have 

has been lacking in 

some games