The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SportsMonday
December 9, 2019 — 3B
All game, the No. 4 Michigan
men’s basketball team had one
roadblock to an otherwise easy
win: Iowa big man Luka Garza.
On his way to an astounding
44 points, Garza was a force to
be reckoned with in the low post,
dominating in his back-to-the-
basket play. The Wolverines (8-1
overall, 1-0 Big Ten) saw early that
Iowa’s (6-3, 0-1) offense started and
stopped with Garza, but they were
helpless to stop it.
In the end, it didn’t matter,
seeing as Michigan’s offense was
firing on all cylinders and strode
past the Hawkeyes en route to a
103-91 win on Friday night.
Seemingly every time the ball
touched his hands, Garza was
unstoppable in his efforts to put
the ball in the basket. By the end
of the game, Iowa’s offense felt
unmistakingly routine. Push the
ball up the floor. Get it to Garza.
Garza goes up for two points.
Repeat.
“Well, he’s a guy who’s got
a ton of different moves,” said
Iowa coach Fran McCaffrey. “I
thought we did a really good job
of getting him the ball, made a
concerted effort to do so. He never
stops moving. He sprints hard in
transition and posts hard, so he’s
a handful for any defender who’s
trying to guard him.”
The
Wolverines’
response
seemingly
prioritized
keeping
their big men out of foul trouble
as opposed to making Garza’s
path to a bucket as difficult as it
could’ve been. Michigan coach
Juwan Howard was operating
under a near auto-bench policy
for his big men after picking up a
foul with senior center Jon Teske,
sophomore center Colin Castleton
and senior center Austin Davis all
seeing the floor.
Teske, known for his defensive
prowess in the lane, picked up four
fouls and was unable to contain
Garza’s post presence. Castleton
and Davis fared much the same
throughout the game.
Fouls were a recurring problem
for the Wolverines, with the
team picking up 19 in the game
and Teske and Simpson both in
foul trouble. The crowd at Crisler
Center looked to be a factor in the
game, letting the refs hear their
discontent following every blow of
the whistle — a number that kept
building for Michigan’s key players.
On the other side of the court,
the
Wolverines’
offense
was
everything that it lacked in its first
loss of the season against Louisville
last
Tuesday.
Senior
guard
Zavier Simpson was effective in
distributing the ball, totaling seven
assists and the team found its
offensive balance again with shots
falling from behind the arc and the
guards feeding the big men down
low to get points in the paint.
Everyone got in the action, too,
with six of Michigan’s players
scoring in double digits. The
Wolverines got there by taking
advantage of Iowa’s lax zone
defense and were able to find lots
of easy looks in the paint. Leading
the charge was freshman forward
Franz Wagner led the charge with
18 points — nine of which came
from the free throw line.
“I shot like 10 free throws, so I
got to the line,” Wagner said. “It’s
always good to find a rhythm. I
just try to take what the defense
gives me, just getting to the basket
helped us today, getting some easy
ones early.”
The bench players provided
a spark in the game offensively,
highlighted by sophomore forward
Brandon Johns Jr. who led the
team at half with 10 points and
finished with 12. After coming into
the game in the middle of the first
half, Johns drilled two 3-pointers
and threw down a ferocious slam
upon entering in the second. Johns
was also a menace on the glass,
totaling eight rebounds.
On a night where Michigan’s
defense wasn’t up to the task, its
offense carried the load.
“Well, we played with pace,”
Howard said. “One thing that we
did not do was just walk the ball up
the floor. We knew that they were
gonna come with a lot of pace, too …
Just kept encouraging our guys to
stay in the moment. Can’t celebrate
after a bucket, get back, and make
sure you talk on defense, so on the
offensive end, we’re able to get out
in transition.”
This mentality manifested itself
with Davis’ play. With Castleton
sitting after taking an elbow to the
face in the first half, Davis got the
crowd excited with back-to-back
dunks later in the second half, then
sprinted down to the other end of
the floor rather than revel in his
play.
The difference in the offensive
performance for the Wolverines
came down to Simpson’s ability to
control the game from halfcourt
as well as the other guards finding
success controlling the basketball
and finding good taking advantage
of Iowa’s zone defense.
Simpson picked up three quick
fouls in the half’s opening four
minutes, but quick to respond,
junior guard Eli Brooks drove to
the lane and found a wide-open
Teske for the easy slam.
When it was all said and done,
Garza was left with nothing to
show for his legendary numbers
other than a spot in Iowa’s record
books.
Michigan teams of years
past have at times tended
to rely on a few players
– the Jordan Pooles and
Moritz Wagners – for much
of their success. But so far
this season, the fourth-
ranked
Wolverines
have
been winning more on the
strength of the many than
the success of a few. Friday
night’s 103-91 win over
Iowa, their first conference
matchup and Big Ten victory
of the season, was the
perfect example.
“I saw great production
out of (the bench) tonight,”
said Michigan coach Juwan
Howard. “I saw them playing
with a lot of energy, a ton
of effort, and just playing
inspiring basketball. It was
great to see that.”
Some
of
the
most
impactful players weren’t
starters on Friday night.
Sophomore
center
Colin
Castleton has also seen his
fair share of time off the
bench this season, especially
when senior center Jon Teske
has been in foul trouble, and
he looked good when Teske
again racked up a few fouls
early
before
exiting
the
game to get stitches in his
lip.
But bench players with
less
in-game
experience
were just as much of a
factor in the game. With
Teske in foul trouble and
Castleton injured, redshirt
junior forward Austin Davis
saw
extended
playing
time for the first time this
season. Sophomore guard
Brandon Johns Jr. saw more
minutes
than
he
normally
does as well.
Davis
had
eight
points
and
three
rebounds
on
the night and
put up a dunk
from
behind
the net around
the
eight-
minute
mark
and two more on either
side of the seven-minute
mark, to the delight of the
fans in the crowd at Crisler
Center. Johns accounted for
12 points – his first career
double digit night and a
new career high – and threw
down a massive dunk of his
own at the 12-minute mark.
“Before the game, I was
really thinking to myself, I
can contribute more,” Johns
said. “I can help out my
teammates – just being out
there on the floor. I’m not
doing
anything
different.
The rebounding’s good, for
sure, but I felt like I can be
there – I can be a presence
on both ends, so I always just
really want to be aggressive,
on
offense
and defense.”
It
was
a
stark contrast
to
the
Hawkeyes,
whose
nine-
man rotation
was
about
what
the
Wolverines
had expected
it
to
be.
Michigan looked effective
all night on defense, even
successfully putting a lid
on Iowa’s star guard, senior
Jordan Bohannon.
Although the bench lacks
size to a certain extent, with
the exception of Davis, a
6-foot-10 behemoth, and
especially compared to both
Michigan’s
starters
and
Iowa’s very physical team,
the defense was solid all
night, no matter who was
on the floor. Michigan held
Iowa to just 20 percent on
their 3-point attempts and
came up with 38 rebounds in
a dominant first conference
victory.
“We have this motto on
our team: ‘Stay ready so you
don’t have to get ready,’”
Howard said. “That’s how
our guys responded tonight.
I’m just so proud of their
effort.”
Although there have been,
and certainly will continue
Hawk hunters
ABBY SNYDER
Daily Sports Writer
JACOB KOPNICK
Daily Sports Writer
ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily
Junior guard Eli Brooks was one of six Wolverines to finish in double figures in Michigan’s 103-91 win over Iowa.
I saw great
production out
of (the bench)
tonight.
Garza raises questions about defense
As the modern style of men’s
basketball continues to evolve
with an emphasis on 3-point
shooting,
teams
across
the
collegiate
and
professional
ranks
have
ditched
the
traditional ‘5.’
But not in the Big Ten, and
not in Ann Arbor.
In a conference ruled by some
of the country’s most talented
big men, traditional centers are
alive and well. The short list of
testaments includes Michigan’s
Jon Teske, Iowa’s Luka Garza,
Ohio State’s Kaleb Wesson,
Purdue’s Matt Haarms, Illinois’
Kofi
Cockburn,
Minnesota’s
Daniel Oturu and Penn State’s
Mike Watkins.
In Friday night’s 103-91 win
over the Hawkeyes, the fourth-
ranked Wolverines saw the
impact of a dominant Big Ten
center firsthand. Garza entered
the game as the nation’s only
Power Five player averaging
20 points and 10 rebounds,
and promptly poured in a
career-high 44 points against
Michigan.
Garza
showcased
one
of
the
conference’s
best
low-
post repertoires Friday night,
using his full arsenal of reverse
layups, post hooks and mid-
range jumpers to record the
third-most
points
in
Iowa
history.
“He’s a guy that’s got a
ton
of
different
moves,”
said Hawkeyes’ coach Fran
McCaffery after the game. “I
thought we did a really good
collectively of getting him the
ball, (we) made a concerted
effort to do so. He never stops
moving, he sprints hard in
transition and posts hard, so
he’s a handful for any defender
that’s trying to guard him.”
Throughout the night, the
Wolverines had no answer for
Garza. Michigan coach Juwan
Howard initially tried stopping
him by assigning three different
defenders, but when Teske,
sophomore
forward
Colin
Castleton and senior center
Austin Davis tried their hand at
halting Garza’s big night, they
found themselves out-muscled
or in foul trouble. Castleton,
in particular, took an errant
elbow to the face that required
stitches on his lip before he
made a second-half return.
By
halftime,
Garza
had
already racked up 27 points.
He was responsible for 11 of
Iowa’s 15 field goals, while
24 of its 38 points came in
the paint. Howard tried to
draw up different defensive
assignments, traps and double-
teams against Garza, but none
of it seemed to matter.
“We were just trying to make
it tough on (Garza),” Davis said.
“Tough to get the ball, tough
once he got it, just tried to make
it as hard on him to score as
possible. … We know he’s a great
player, we knew that coming
in.”
Friday could very well have
been an outlier. Regardless of
whether it was, Michigan is in
a good place to learn from it.
The Wolverines’ porous interior
defense allowed Iowa to post 91
points, even as it shot just 3-of-
15 from beyond the arc. With an
influx of frontcourt depth this
season, it’s best to learn such a
lesson in December as opposed
to March.
At 7-foot-1, Teske has been
an impactful paint presence
since stepping into the starting
center role last season. He’s
averaging
2.1
blocks
per
game across 46 starts, while
Castleton is averaging just over
two rejections per 36 minutes in
his career to date.
But their real value lies in
altering close-range looks with
their
size.
Against
driving
guards
and
fellow
centers
around the rim, the presence
of Teske or Castleton often
forces
opposing
players
to
take off-balanced shots from
uncomfortable angles.
Without a reliable backup
center last season, there was
pressure on Teske to remain
on the floor. That wasn’t the
case the season before, when he
averaged just 12.3 minutes while
playing behind Moritz Wagner.
Teske’s minutes more than
doubled
following
Wagner’s
departure, which brought about
a necessary learning curve in
staying out of foul trouble.
He
answered
the
call,
improving from one foul per
7.6 minutes to 12.6 minutes,
but Michigan still struggled
without him on the floor.
After beginning the season as
the primary backup center,
Davis fell out of the rotation as
Castleton and forward Brandon
Johns Jr. spent much of their
freshman seasons adjusting to
the college level.
This
season,
though,
Michigan is better equipped
to weather stretches without
Teske than it was a season
ago. And as a result, he and
the centers behind him are
afforded the luxury of defensive
aggression.
With a long line of strong Big
Ten centers on the upcoming
docket,
that
aggression
has to become a staple of
the
Wolverines’
interior
defense.
Otherwise,
Garza’s
performance could be just the
beginning.
‘M’ finishes second in crowded field
While there was an admitted
talent gap between the Michigan
women’s swim and dive team and
its rivals, the Wolverines relied on
long-term development to power
past more highly-ranked opponents
at this weekend’s Minnesota Invite.
No. 19 Michigan came in second
out of seven, falling 422.5 points
shy of first-place No. 3 California.
Michigan (3-0) came out of the
weekend with 10 top-three finishes
and seven athletes qualifying for
NCAA Championships.
The second-place finish was
better than Michigan coach Mark
Bottom was expecting facing the
Golden Bears, No. 5 Texas and
other top teams.
Bottom had reason be worried
after losing a dominant senior
class last spring, comprised of
Siobhán Haughey, Catie DeLoof
and Jamie Yeung, who led the
team to a third-place finish at the
NCAA Finals. But after this week,
it’s clear this won’t be a rebuilding
year for the Wolverines. The
team’s depth was evident in its
relay — made up of seniors Chloe
Hicks and Miranda Tucker, as well
as junior Daria Pyshnenko and
sophomore Maggie MacNeil — in
which they placed third behind
California and the Longhorns.
Junior diver Christy Cutshaw
secured valuable points for the
team with her first-place finish on
the platform dive.
In recent years, Michigan has
been a dominant program, but
has yet to best the Golden Bears in
the postseason. Bottom attributes
the gap to different levels of
recruiting. California typically
has a top-10 recruiting class in
the county, while the Wolverines
focus on developing their athletes
once they get to Ann Arbor — a
strategy Bottom thinks will be
integral to the team’s future
success.
“We recruit well and develop
greater athletes,” Bottom said.
“That’s kind of what we’ve done
in the past and will continue to
do. We won’t always get the best
athletes — as a matter of fact, we
get very few, but we get some and
we develop a great team.”
That development seems to
have paid off. Friday, MacNeil tied
the NCAA and U.S. Open records
on the 100-yard butterfly with a
time of 49.26 seconds. While she
already has a lot to show for her
time at Michigan, including the
Big Ten of the Year accolade and
four Big Ten Championship titles,
Bottom stresses that MacNeil’s
success is a product of the work
she’s put in since joining the team.
“She
didn’t
come
in
a
superstar,” Bottom said. “She
came in a good swimmer, just like
a lot of our girls. They have hope
that they can achieve some of the
things she’s achieved. She’s real
good about understanding where
she came from and encouraging
others to follow that path.”
Many other members of the
team followed MacNeil’s lead,
setting
personal-best’s
and
approaching school-wide records.
Hicks clocked in at 1:53.12 minutes
on
the
200-yard
backstroke,
trumping her previous record by
almost 10 seconds. Pyshnenko
just edged out her previous record
of 50.20 seconds on the 100-yard
freestyle with a time of 48.12.
“We’re getting better, and
that’s what we want to do,”
Bottom said. “Every time we get
to a mid-season meet like this,
the idea is that you want to be as
close to your best in season times
and better than last year’s end of
season times. That’s where we’re
moving.”
DANIEL DASH
Daily Sports Writer
ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily
Iowa forward Luka Garza scored a career-high 44 points against Michigan.
LANE KIZZIAH
Daily Sports Writer
CAMERON HUNT/Daily
The No. 19 Michigan women’s swim and dive team finished second at the Minnesota Invite this weekend.
We’re getting
better and
that’s what we
want to do.