At some point for Zavier Simpson, something clicked. It could have been before the Michigan men’s basketball team took on UCLA, when Simpson’s defense against Bruins guard Aaron Holiday earned him extra minutes. He took advantage by adding a career-high 15 points in the comeback win. Simpson matched that total against Iowa last week, and it got him the starting spot that he’d lost after a lackluster start to the season. On Tuesday, against No. 5 Purdue, Simpson dropped 15 points again in a last-minute, one-point loss. And it was the manner in which Simpson scored those points that was most impressive. With 5:34 left and the Wolverines down by three, junior forward Moritz Wagner corralled an offensive rebound off a missed free throw. He kicked it out to Simpson, who calmly waved Wagner over to set a screen. When Wagner did set the screen, Simpson dribbled to his right, drawing 7-foot- 2 Boilermaker center Isaac Haas — who was guarding Wagner — to pick him up. A few passes later, Simpson had the ball again with the towering Haas guarding him. Simpson eyed him, rose up and drilled a 3-pointer. Tie game. A little under a minute later, with the score still tied, senior guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur- Rahkman drove into the lane and kicked it out to Simpson, who was deep behind the 3-point line. The sophomore calmly rose up again and hit another. They were clutch shots that you might expect to come from Wagner or redshirt sophomore guard Charles Matthews, but maybe not Simpson. Yet, with the improvements Simpson has made in his offensive game, and the control he’s beginning to take over his position, the shots shouldn’t come as a surprise. “Every day he’s learning he needs to evolve as a player, and he’s doing that,” said Michigan coach John Beilein. “I like how receptive he is to it, but he’s never gonna give in. He’s gonna be more hardworking than anyone we have. And it paid off a little bit tonight.” At the beginning of the season, Simpson struggled. After a game against Southern Mississippi where he was held scoreless with only one assist in 22 minutes, his minutes were severely chopped. Simpson started the next game against LSU, but he played just 10 minutes and again had 0 points. Meanwhile, freshman Eli Brooks began to look more and more comfortable. He took Simpson’s starting spot just five games into the season, and it wasn’t until recently that Simpson took it back. But now Simpson’s beginning to command respect. His 3-point percentage of 43.3 is the second-highest mark for the Wolverines, and his 5.7 points per game are a respectable sixth-best on a team that has plenty of other offensive options. “He’s just learning right now how you play at this level as far as a big-time high school player (who) really had success and all those things,” Beilein said. “But just like when you go to the pros, there’s a whole other level of understanding of the game.” With all that being said, Simpson will likely never be a go-to offensive player. But nobody’s asking him to be. Michigan just needs some sort of offensive threat from its point guard position in order to have a well-rounded offense. That could mean hitting a tough layup in traffic, like he did in the first half against Purdue. It could mean distributing and protecting the ball — Simpson’s 2.77 assist-to- turnover ratio ranks him 39th among all NCAA Division 1 players. Or, it could mean a clutch 3-pointer when his team needs it most. Tuesday’s game may not be enough to prove that Simpson can be that kind of point guard all season, but if his recent performances are any indication, he may be as sure a bet as the Wolverines have. 8 — Thursday, January 11, 2018 Sports The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com HAILEY’S COMET It was just another inbounds pass after just another shot during just another game. Senior forward Jillian Dunston to senior guard Katelynn Flaherty, like always, towards the end of the third quarter as Michigan held onto a one-point lead. Except for one twist: on this inbounds pass, Flaherty was knocked down by the player defending her, falling to the ground as Dunston tossed the easiest pass in basketball out of bounds. It was a crescendo of frustration in a game that seemingly featured nothing but. Still, the No. 23 Michigan women’s basketball team (3-2 Big Ten, 14-4 overall) escaped Crisler Center with an 84-79 win over Indiana (1-4, 8-10) on Wednesday night — a victory the Wolverines didn’t especially deserve and shouldn’t be especially happy about. Michigan came into the fourth quarter down by one and came all too close to finishing behind an inferior Hoosier squad. The two teams went back and forth to start the final quarter, trading baskets until the 7:07 mark. That was when — after grabbing her own offensive rebound — junior forward Nicole Munger drew a foul on a putback attempt, the fifth on Indiana’s Amanda Cahill. Cahill hadn’t just been providing an offensive spark — 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting — she was also one of the few Hoosiers able to compete with the Wolverines on the glass. Without her, a major advantage turned into a area of utter dominance for Michigan, which finished the contest with a 38-18 rebounding advantage, including six in a row to end it. Munger hit both free throws to tie the game at 61 and, without Cahill, the game’s complexion changed. Though Indiana took the lead its next time down, the Wolverines grabbed it right back off a Munger 3-pointer that fell through the basket after two offensive rebounds extended the possession. Next time down, junior center Hallie Thome found Dunston out of a double-team in the post, who promptly swung it to freshman forward Hailey Brown in the corner for another triple. Michigan wasn’t out of the mud, yet though. The Hoosiers led the Wolverines with as few as four minutes to go in the game after a Buss layup gave Indiana a 71-69 lead. With Indiana face-guarding Flaherty — a now-common deterrent to the program’s all- time leading scorer — and double- teaming Thome in the post, the Wolverines turned to Brown. She delivered, nailing an elbow jumper off the catch to tie it at 71 for her 22nd and 23rd points of the night, a career-high. At that point, it was Flaherty’s turn to get in on the action, drawing a foul in transition and hitting both free throws. The Hoosiers didn’t hold another lead the rest of the way. Make no mistake, however, Michigan got away with one. The Wolverines turned the ball over 22 times, their highest mark since November, while coughing up over 75 points for the third time in four games. “I just think we weren’t locked in and focused,” Munger said. “... Ohio State, we came out extremely locked in and extremely focused, and I think we just need to do a better job of taking that next step and being mature — like a mature team — and taking every scout and knowing every scout like completely.” Barnes Arico touched on the seeming lack of preparedness as well, attributing it to a tightly packed schedule. “We played (last) Thursday — so we traveled Thursday — we played Sunday, we played Wednesday, we play Saturday, we play Tuesday,” she said. “Count those days and count how many games and travel — three of those on the road — that (isn’t) that much time. “Not a lot of time to practice, not a ton of time to prepare. Trying to figure out the fine line between rest and preparation. And using our experience to make sure we’re prepared and following the scout instead of reps. And tonight, I didn’t think we did a great job of that and I even called our older kids out on that. ‘Hey, we gave you a day to rest your legs, but then you gotta follow the scout. Or else we’re gonna practice.’ ” One thing is clear: Michigan can’t deliver a similar performance again and expect to get away with it consistently. The Wolverines are about to embark on a two-game road trip, facing a solid Nebraska team and Ohio State, a top-10 program that beat Michigan in Ann Arbor on Sunday. Simply, if the Wolverines play like they did Wednesday, they’ll return home under .500 in Big Ten play. AARON BAKER/Daily Freshman forward Hailey Brown scored a career-high 23 points, as Michigan barely defeated Indiana on Wednesday. Zavier Simpson bringing steadiness to Michigan’s point guard position Wolverines eke out tight, 84-79 win over Hoosiers Freshman Hailey Brown gets career-high 23 points Following an exhilarating overtime loss to then-No.10 Ohio State, the No. 23 Michigan women’s basketball team looked to clinch a routine win against Indiana Wednesday night. But there was nothing routine about it. With under four minutes remaining in a tied game, senior guard Katelynn Flaherty passed the ball to freshman forward Hailey Brown, who nailed an elbow jumper to give her team the lead. The Wolverines went on to win, 84-79, at Crisler Center, but it didn’t come the way they expected. The team’s stars — Flaherty and junior center Hallie Thome — were closely guarded from the start and struggled to score early on. Meanwhile, Michigan’s defense couldn’t seem to limit the Hoosiers, causing a close game. But two of the Wolverines’ three freshmen — Brown and guard Deja Church — stepped up, leading the team to victory on a night that reeked of upset. Brown started hot, accounting for eight of Michigan’s first 10 points. She went on to finish with a career-high 23 points, while grabbing eight rebounds. It was a special night for the Canada- native. “It felt good,” Brown said. “It was different cause a lot of people were asking if I was in my zone, but every shot just felt good. I guess once you start hitting them you become more confident.” Added Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico: “I thought Hailey was terrific. … It’s incredible when you have different people step up.” Church’s contributions were also impressive. Though she finished with just nine points, a few of her baskets helped prevent the Wolverines from falling behind early. The contributions from these two freshmen couldn’t have come at a better time, as Michigan looked out of sync from the beginning of a contest it couldn’t afford to lose. But Brown’s stellar performance along with Church’s contributions gave Michigan the spark it needed, creating breathing room for others in the process. The duo’s success shows how much they have grown throughout the season. Though Church is a reserve, she has already established herself as the first player to come off the bench and receives significant playing time. Whenever the Wolverines find themselves in a slump, they look to her to energize the team with her quick, confident style of play. “Deja Church is key for us,” Barnes Arico said. “She runs our team. She is a good defender, she’s the fastest kid we have on our team, so she provides a lot of things for us and tonight we saw her again getting better and better. I think as the season progresses, she’s gonna be a kid that just improves the more experience she gets and the more the basketball is in her hand. But she’s a sponge — she’s willing to learn and she really contributed great minutes to us tonight.” Brown, on the other hand, has started every game this season, and her improvements have been crucial to her team’s success. In her first game for Michigan — against George Mason back in early November — she went 2-for-11 from the field to finish with just four points. But she improved week by week, and Wednesday she thrived, going 10-for-12. Her confident shooting made the difference. “(Brown) missed like two shots all night,” said junior guard Nicole Munger. “You can’t guard that. You can’t guard that at all.” Though the Wolverines faced problems against Indiana, the quality play from the freshmen saved them from a potentially devastating defeat, while also providing a promising glimpse into the future. EVAN AARON/Daily Sophomore guard Zavier Simpson has brought stability to the point guard position with his play in recent games. MIKE PERSAK Managing Sports Editor ETHAN SEARS Daily Sports Writer With 15 points in two of his last three games, Simpson seems to have added reliable offense to his stellar defense “Every day he’s learning he needs to evolve as a player.” “There’s a whole other level of understanding of the game.” ROHAN KUMAR Daily Sports Writer