8A — Wednesday, November 21, 2018
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Matthews adapting
as isolation scorer
Two and a half minutes into
Michigan’s
game
Saturday
against George Washington,
Charles Matthews caught the
ball on the left wing and faced
up against Colonials guard
Justin Mazzulla.
The redshirt junior wing
dribbled into the post and
turned to back Mazzulla down
before quickly spinning to his
right and launching a high-
arcing baseline jumper that
found nothing but net.
It was a typical isolation
setup: as Matthews received
the entry pass from point
guard Zavier Simpson, the
Wolverines cleared out for
their go-to-guy to do his thing.
It’s these situations — Mazzulla
on an island with a preseason
All-Big Ten honoree — where
individual talent, more than
anything, can shine through.
The result? Two points for
Michigan.
But while Matthews, the
Wolverines’ leading returning
scorer, came into the year
as
their
presumed
focal
point — and showed why on
that
aforementioned
play
— the reality is a bit more
complicated.
The 6-foot-6 forward from
Chicago indeed averaged 13
points per game last season
while shooting a respectable
49
percent.
But
at
other
times,
Matthews
delivered
inconsistent
performances
seemingly at odds with his
considerable
talent
and
athleticism.
Matthews’
inconsistency
with his jump shot and from
the foul line — he hit just 32
percent
of
his
3-point
attempts and 56
percent of his
free throws —
came
coupled
with
decision-
making
struggles, as he
led Michigan in
turnovers
last
season.
These
deficiencies
combined to create a lackluster
101.6
offensive
rating,
the
lowest among the Wolverines’
regular rotation.
The start of the season saw
more of the same. Against
Norfolk State and Holy Cross,
Matthews hit just 12 of 29 field
goals, including a meager 20
percent figure from behind the
arc, while turning the ball over
five times.
It’s worth noting, however,
that
Matthews’
struggles
coincided
with
an
overall
sluggish start for Michigan on
offense, in which it averaged
just 59.5 points per game on
just 36.4 percent shooting.
Meanwhile, Michigan coach
John Beilein never lost faith in
Matthews’ ability to get going.
“He was just 5-for-6 (on
free throws during Monday’s
practice),” Beilein said after
the win over Norfolk State.
“But he’s got to get through it,
and it’s not a physical thing,
it’s a mental thing. … Charles is
better than that, and he will be
as we go forward.”
Last
Wednesday
at
Villanova, Beilein’s faith was
rewarded.
Matthews
paced
the
Wolverines
with
an
unstoppable series of athletic
finishes
at
the
rim
and
midrange jumpers over smaller
defenders, finishing with 19
points on 7-for-13 shooting.
Against George Washington,
he was even better, dropping in
25 points while hitting 10 of his
13 attempts from the field, and
both from behind the arc.
Matthews’
offensive
excellence
didn’t
continue
against Providence on Sunday
as he scored just five points.
However, his performance over
the last week was only partly
about him finding his scoring
touch — against the Wildcats,
Colonials and Friars, Matthews
had clearly found a role.
Instead of having to rely
solely on Matthews as a source
of
playmaking,
Michigan’s
offense was expertly piloted
by Simpson, who dished out 22
assists in those three contests.
Meanwhile,
the
Wolverines
began to catch fire from outside,
shooting
44
percent
from
3-point range for the weekend.
These two developments, when
taken in tandem, helped to take
pressure off of Matthews in his
areas of weakness, and allowed
his strengths to rise to the
forefront.
In isolation play, Matthews
was just about unguardable
with his high release on his
jumper. He cleaned up on the
boards — half his rebounds last
week were on the offensive end
— thanks to his athleticism.
Perhaps most strikingly, he
didn’t turn the ball over once
last week.
“I play one-on-one a lot, and
I feel like we all
do,” Matthews
said
Saturday.
“…
Playing
one-on-one,
it
makes us better
defenders,
but
it also makes us
better isolation
players. There’s
going
to
be
times
where
you have to just
make a shot.”
Over
the
last
week,
Michigan’s
offense
has
begun to fire on all cylinders.
Simpson’s
emerged
as
the
facilitator.
Forward
Ignas
Brazdeikis is the downhill,
ever-aggressive slasher. Center
Jon Teske is the screen-and-
roll weapon and pick-and-pop
‘5.’ Forward Isaiah Livers is the
versatile, small-ball weapon to
run teams off the floor. Guard
Jordan Poole, after a sluggish
start to the year, appears to
have discovered his shooting
stroke.
That leaves Matthews as the
Wolverines’ isolation weapon
in the midrange; the player
they can turn to to get a shot
off against any defense. It’s
a role — judging by the last
three games, at least — that fits
him perfectly. It’s a role that
lets him do what he does best,
instead of having to do too
much.
And it’s a role that may just
allow him to become the go-to-
guy he’s long been projected to
be.
‘M’ to face first real test in No. 21 Missouri
The
Michigan
women’s
basketball
team
(3-0)
might
have rolled through its season so
far, but the Wolverines are still
heating up.
So far, they’ve faced Mount
St. Mary’s, Western Michigan
and Detroit Mercy. None of those
teams have posed any real threat
whatsoever to Michigan, who has
outscored opponents 262-144.
After Thanksgiving, though,
the Wolverines will head to
Estero, Fla. for their first test
of the season at the Gulf Coast
Showcase. Friday night, they are
set to play No. 21 Missouri (3-1) in
the tournament’s opening round.
Program-wise,
the
Tigers
are a step up from the squads
Michigan faced the last three
games. They are coming off a
24-8 season that culminated in
their third consecutive NCAA
Tournament appearance, where
they lost in the first round to
Florida Gulf Coast.
Missouri returns three capable
starters from last season — guards
Sophie
Cunningham,
Amber
Smith and Lauren Aldridge — all
of whom are upperclassmen.
Cunningham led the team
in scoring last year, averaging
18.5 points while boasting an
impressive 54.2 percent clip from
the field, and currently puts up
16.3 points a night. She is the
engine of her team’s offense.
Smith is also a key offensive
contributor, posting 13.5 points
a game, while Aldridge led the
Tigers in assists last season.
Combining those three veterans
will create a challenge for the
Wolverines’ young backcourt of
freshman guard Amy Dilk and
sophomore guard Deja Church.
Missouri also has two talented
freshmen, forward Grace Berg
and guard Akira Levy. The
former was a five-star recruit;
the latter, a four-star. Both have
logged significant playing time.
The Tigers aren’t without fault,
though. Following their first two
games, they were ranked 16th
in the nation but then fell after
losing to Green Bay. That loss was
primarily due to poor shooting.
Michigan
has
the
height
advantage, which has helped
the team succeed so far. Nobody
has been able to stop 6-foot-
5 senior center Hallie Thome
from
dominating
the
paint.
The Wolverines are also the
better shooting team, as they’ve
converted 51.5 percent from the
field for 11th in the country.
Much of the shooting success
can be credited to freshman
forward Naz Hillmon, who has
drained 23 of 27 shots on the
year. Right now, she’s the most
efficient shooter in the nation.
During the Wolverines’ 95-62
victory against Detroit Mercy on
Monday night, she dropped 22
points while also spearheading
the defensive press.
“I think Naz is incredible,”
said Michigan coach Kim Barnes
Arico
after
Monday’s
game.
“When you have that type of size
and length upfront, I really think
she’s able to pressure people and
get it going from the top.”
Added
Hillmon:
“It
was
awesome. It gives me a lot of
confidence knowing that my
coach, as soon as I get into the
game, trusts to put me at the
top of that press. It gives me
confidence that my teammates
and my coaches believe in me and
it makes me want to work harder
on both ends of the ball.”
It’s hard to judge how good
Barnes Arico’s team is because
it hasn’t faced a real test yet.
But Friday’s matchup against a
ranked opponent will provide the
perfect opportunity to see just
how well the Wolverines fare.
An unselfish play to define top-line chemistry
Most players, when presented
the opportunity, would go for the
goal.
Not Will Lockwood.
The junior forward stared
straight down the
empty net in front
of him and cocked
back
his
stick.
Instead of skating
in and shooting
the
puck,
he
instead gave it up
to junior forward
Jake Slaker, who
proceeded
to
score.
Think that was
unselfish?
Now imagine that empty-
netter Lockwood had passed up
was the dagger to end a come-
from-behind win against a top-
five team in the nation.
Because in the No. 16 Michigan
hockey team’s 6-4 win over No. 5
Penn State Friday, that’s exactly
what happened. And there didn’t
seem to be any room for unselfish
play.
“It just goes to show the
character and type of person
that Will is. Really unselfish play,
passed it to me for the empty net,”
Slaker said. “He made the play,
and
I
haven’t
stopped
to
think, not just
necessarily
for
giving me the
goal, but just the
unselfishness he
displayed there.”
Slaker
couldn’t describe
what had exactly
happened
and
struggled to find
the
words
to
explain it.
“You don’t see that often in
sports, an unselfish play like that,”
Slaker said.
But the situation presented
itself.
Right before the goal, the
Nittany Lions had made a push to
tie the game at 5-5, but Lockwood
skated in front of the shot and
blocked it. With the loose puck
leaking out, Lockwood took it and
skated down the ice.
There was little time to think.
Right behind them were Penn
State defenders looking to deny
the
easy
goal
and
keep
the
game close. But
Lockwood
and
Slaker, with the
early start, didn’t
relent.
“Him
and
I
were on a clear
two-on-(none),”
Slaker said. “And
I think we were
both
trying
to
skate as fast as
we could just so we wouldn’t get
caught. And he could have easily
kept on skating it and put it in the
net but he just passed it over to me
and made the easiest play, and we
got rewarded for it.”
And as much as it defined
Lockwood, he is not the only one
who would have made that play.
It’s the mentality that the team is
trying to incorporate, to show the
quality of players the Wolverines
have on the team.
“I’ve seen instances where a
guy won’t pass the puck,” said
Michigan coach Mel Pearson.
“He’ll just go on
and shoot it. I
think it says a lot
about the kind of
teammates you
have, but in this
case, it says a lot
about Will and
his unselfishness
and
the
team
player
he
is.
I
think
that’s
a
good
thing
for
your
team, it helps build your team’s
camaraderie and trust in that.”
If it had been Slaker in that
situation to choose between an
easy empty-net goal or a pass to
a teammate, he would have done
the same thing.
“He’s one of my best friends
on the team, and we have really
good chemistry on and off the
ice and just shows what type of
person he is,” Slaker said. “And it
meant a lot to me. Like I said, I’d
do the same situation if I had that.
If I could give him that, I’d give it
right back.”
Added Lockwood: “I’ve played
with Jake a lot, and I think he
would do the same thing for me.
I think it was more about just
setting an example of how we
need to play as a team. We’ve
gotta be thinking of the guy next
to us and not just ourselves.”
It’s an example for the rest
of the fourth-youngest team in
the nation to follow. As Pearson
noted, a person has to be willing
to put aside personal goals and
agendas to be part of a team, and
on Friday, no one exemplified that
mentality better than Lockwood.
“You can tell. If you don’t like
a guy or something, you probably
don’t pass it to him,” Pearson
joked. “But they have chemistry. I
just think that just speaks to who
they are and what they’re trying
to
accomplish
together.
And
they’re in it for each other and not
just themselves.”
ROHAN KUMAR
Daily Sports Writer
ANNIE KLUS/Daily
Freshman forward Naz Hillmon has hit 23 of 27 shots on the season, including on Monday, when she drained 22 points against Detroit Mercy in a 95-62 win.
KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Redshirt junior forward Charles Matthews is finding comfort in a new role.
JACOB SHAMES
Daily Sports Writer
“Really unselfish
play, passed it
to me for the
empty net.”
“Charles is better
than that, and
he will be as we
move forward.”
“If I could give
him that, I’d
give it right
back.”
TIEN LE
Daily Sports Writer
RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily
Junior forward Jake Slaker scored an empty-net goal in Friday’s 6-4 win with an assist from linemate Will Lockwood.