8A — Thursday, February 23, 2017
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Wolverines survive on the road against Rutgers
After a tough loss in overtime
to Minnesota on Sunday, the
Michigan men’s basketball team
had the opportunity to bounce
back at Rutgers — by any metric
the worst team in the Big Ten.
Not only was it a chance for
the Wolverines to recover from
a crushing loss, it was a virtually
a must-win game against a team
outside the Rating Percentage
Index top-100. With Michigan on
the NCAA Tournament bubble, a
loss would’ve been a big blow.
The
Wolverines,
despite
the
high-pressure
situation,
prevailed, winning 68-64 in
Piscataway.
It
wasn’t
a
dominating
performance for Michigan (8-7
Big Ten, 18-10 overall) — not
even close. While the Wolverines
jumped out to multiple double-
digit leads, the Scarlet Knights
continued to claw back, even
taking a four-point lead with
6:46 left in the game.
But a 10-0 Michigan run late
in the game proved to be too
much for Rutgers (2-14, 13-16),
and the Wolverines escaped with
a victory.
“There was nothing pretty
about this game,” said Michigan
coach John Beilein on Michigan
IMG Sports Radio Network.
“This was all gritty. We just got
enough done.”
Added redshirt sophomore
forward DJ Wilson on Michigan
IMG Sports Radio Network:
“(The key) was we stayed locked
in for all 40 minutes. We knew
they were a gritty team, and they
fight to the end, and they did
today. We fought to the end too,
and when it came down to the
end to get crucial stops, we did.”
The
Wolverines
had
to
overcome some early ailments,
though, as they struggled early
with turnovers. They would
commit 11 in the game, mostly
the result of sloppy passes,
coming in nearly two above their
season average of 9.4 per game.
Michigan also shot just 40.7
percent
from
the field, a far
cry from their
season average
of 47.5 percent.
But — perhaps
unexpectedly
— what kept
the Wolverines
in the game was
their
offensive
rebounding.
Michigan
finished
the
game
with
12
offensive
rebounds,
scoring
seven second-chance points.
It was an especially impressive
performance
given
Rutgers’
pedigree on the glass. The
Scarlet Knights, coming into the
game, were No. 4 in the NCAA
in rebounds per game with
41.1. Rutgers was held to just 33
boards in the game.
“In the first half they had
one offensive rebound,” Beilein
said. “I think in the second half
they probably had
more during that
time, they got all
those at the end
there.
We
just
had to scrap and
continue to scrap
and just see what
we could do to find
a way to win that
game.”
Wilson
led
the way for the
Wolverines with 11 rebounds,
including six offensive boards.
He also finished with 10 points
for the fourth double-double of
his career.
“Coach
emphasized
rebounding because I haven’t
been on the boards these last few
games,” Wilson said. “I think I
only had two offensive rebounds
in the last five games. So I tried
to get there as much as possible
today.”
While senior guard Derrick
Walton Jr. finished with 13
points, he shot just 3-of-10 from
the field, with nine of his shots
coming from beyond the arc.
“Everybody did it,” Beilein
said.
“Don’t
forget
(junior
guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur-
Rahkman), he did a tremendous
job as well. (Sophomore forward
Moritz Wagner) made a big play
down the stretch. We still had
some lapses. I think we’re really
tired right now, I mean really
tired. We had to gut that one out,
and we did.”
On the other side of the court,
Rutgers put up a valiant effort
led by guard Corey Sanders,
who had 15 points in the game.
The Scarlet Knights also got
contributions from guard Mike
Williams, who put up 14 points
and grabbed 8 rebounds.
“(Rutgers) showed a lot of
fortitude by being able to stay in
there when nothing could go our
way down the stretch,” Beilein
said.
While the victory didn’t come
in the most impressive fashion,
Michigan stays on the right side
of the bubble, something that
wouldn’t have been certain had
the Wolverines lost.
It was crucial for Michigan
to get a win at Rutgers, and now
with that done, the Wolverines
will need to elevate their game
as their matchup with No. 15
Purdue looms on Senior Day.
“This is definitely a learning
experience for us,” Wilson said.
“We’ve been in a lot of close
games that we’ve kind of just
gave up at the end, but today,
we fought hard and we stayed
consistent on defense, and it paid
off.”
CAROLYN GEARIG/Daily
Redshirt sophomore forward DJ Wilson recorded the fourth double-double of his career with 10 points and 11 rebounds against the Scarlet Knights.
With time running out, Kile has a shot to salvage senior season
Expectations were high for
Alex Kile entering this season,
and deservedly so. The senior
forward was the Michigan hockey
team’s returning leading scorer
and had increased his offensive
production between every season
of his career.
Kile first earned consistent
playing
time
his
freshman
year before breaking out as a
sophomore whilst on the same
line as two future NHL forwards
in Dylan Larkin and Zach Hyman.
He began his junior year playing
with Tyler Motte and JT Compher
— another pair of future pros —
before settling onto a line with a
pair of experienced seniors in Boo
Nieves and Justin Selman.
By all accounts, this was
supposed to be his year. As
a captain and one of the few
holdovers from last year’s NCAA
Tournament team, Kile was as
close to a sure thing as possible.
“I
think
the
expectations
for him were higher than (for)
the team,” said Michigan coach
Red
Berenson.
“The
team’s
expectations had a lot more
question marks. There weren’t
many question marks around Alex
Kile. He was experienced, he was
a senior, he was a captain, he was
our returning leading scorer. So
there was no doubt that he was
going to have a great year.”
But with just six games left in
the regular season, that hasn’t
been the case — or even close to
it. In 21 games played, Kile has
tallied just six goals and four
assists. He struggled through a
six-game pointless streak earlier
this year. He was ejected from the
Wolverines’ 7-4 loss to Wisconsin
on Dec. 9. And then, just as he
was starting to heat up following
the series against the Badgers —
which he deemed a ‘wake-up call’
— Kile suffered an ankle injury in
practice.
It took him nearly three and
a half weeks before he could
practice again. He returned to the
ice Tuesday and Wednesday, but
but still hadn’t been cleared for full
contact. Kile won’t be traveling to
Columbus this weekend either,
marking the seventh and eighth
consecutive games that he will
miss. Even then, there is still no
guarantee that he will return
before the Big Ten Tournament,
despite his best hopes.
“I’m not the best right now,” Kile
said. “I’m just trying to get through
(the injury). I’m not going to play
this weekend, and hopefully (I’ll)
get ready for my last four games at
Yost. That’s the plan.
“I don’t think I’ll be full
strength by the end of the year.
It’s unfortunate, but I’m a senior,
so I’ve just got to play through
the pain. It’s my last three weeks
at Michigan. I’ve just got to take it
all in.”
He has dealt with the injury in
different ways. Rehab has been
the one constant — a daily regimen
of physical therapy, stimulation,
icing, and a couple of things even
Kile doesn’t know how to describe.
Before he was cleared to practice,
he would sit in the bleachers
at times, a lonely figure in an
otherwise empty
Yost Ice Arena
silently watching
his
team
on
the ice below.
And when the
team
traveled
without him, he
would
kill
all
the downtime he
never expected
to have, waiting
patiently for the
games to come on TV.
“You know, the last couple
weekends at Yost have been
emotional for me, realizing that
my time is coming to an end,” Kile
said. “We’ve got two weekends
here left. Just got to make the most
of it. Being out and watching the
team play while you’re a senior is
tough. ... It’s probably the toughest
thing I’ve gone through as a player,
knowing it’s coming to an end. So
I’ve just got to get through it.”
Added
Berenson: “I think
it really hit (Kile)
hard. He expected
he was just going
to be a dominant
player, and I was
hoping he would be
a dominant player,
everyone thought
he would be a
dominant
player,
and it didn’t work
out that way. Maybe it was without
Cooper, and too much onus was on
Alex and then he gets injured, and
now he’s looking at the end of his
career facing him in the upcoming
month.”
Kile, it appears, is in an
unexpected position as the clock
on his career winds down. He may
have envisioned himself as the
lynchpin of a team still fighting
for the Big Ten at this point of the
year, and Berenson likely did too.
Instead, Kile has been confined to
the sidelines, while Michigan sits
just two points ahead of last-place
Michigan State.
“It sucks that our team isn’t
doing as well as we’d like,” Kile
said. “My linemates last year were
two seniors. One of them played
in the NHL this year, one of them
in the AHL, so it’s just different
transitioning
from
that
high
offensive group to this year. It’s
tough, and it’s not what I expected
of my individual success. But
we’re a team, and it’s not about me.
It’s about the team, and we’ve got
to try to turn things around right
now.”
With any chance of punching a
ticket to the NCAA Tournament
in
the
regular
season
long
expired, Kile and the Wolverines
are now focusing on the Big Ten
Tournament, where just three
wins stand between them and a
guaranteed postseason bid.
Just how much of a long shot
that may be depends on whether
Kile can make an impact, injured
ankle and all.
“He’s got a chance to jumpstart
our
offense,”
Berenson
said.
“He’s been out for awhile, and he
can’t wait. It’s his senior year. It
should be no question about his
inspiration to this team.
“You look and see who’s our
leading
scorer
against
Ohio
State, and it’s Alex Kile. And to
no surprise, that would probably
be true with most teams, but
particularly Ohio State. So yeah,
it’s a big loss but we can’t dwell
on the loss. We’ve got to dwell on
what we have, and who’s playing
and how hard they’re playing …
but we know we aren’t as good
offensively without Alex Kile, so
we’ve got to be better defensively.
Somebody’s got to pick up the
slack.”
One thing is clear, though: Kile
has come to terms with how things
have gone this year. What matters
now is the opportunity to leave
the trainer’s table, reclaim a lost
senior season and attempt to push
his team back into the postseason
— no matter how unlikely that
may be.
“My individual success is a
big part of this team,” Kile said.
“If I can get rolling and get some
confidence going into the Big
Ten Tournament, it’s only going
to help. All it takes is one good
weekend, and that’s what we need
to do. I don’t like to say it, but
we’re not going to win the Big Ten.
We’re probably going to be a fifth
seed, so (we) gotta focus on the
Big Ten Tournament, upset some
teams and be the underdog.”
Added Berenson: “No question.
If Alex gets hot — just like our
team if our team gets hot — then
you forget about how you started.
You just remember how you
ended.”
JEREMY MITNICK/Daily
Senior forward Alex Kile’s final season has taken an unexpected trajectory, but he is still relishing the opportunity to spark life into the Wolverines.
ORION SANG
Daily Sports Editor
“There weren’t
many question
marks around
Alex Kile”
MINH DOAN
Daily Sports Editor
“This was all
gritty. We just
got enough
done”