The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Wednesday, December 11, 2019 — 7A

Birthdays and Santa: Quick hits with Jack Summers and Keaton Pehrson

The Daily hockey beat used 
to run a video series during the 
2011-12 season called “Quick 
Hits.” They were one-on-one 
interviews with players that 
covered everyday life and all of 
its funny moments. But now, for 
budget reasons, it’s in written 
format.
For the last edition of the 
semester, The Daily’s Molly 
Shea and Tien Le sat down 
with 
linemates, 
sophomore 
defenseman 
Jack 
Summers 
and 
freshman 
defenseman 
Keaton Pehrson, to discuss the 
upcoming holiday season and 
their teammates.
***
Molly: We heard that it’s your 
birthday today. So, what’s your 
favorite birthday that you’ve 
ever had?
Keaton: Oooh. That’s tough. 
It’d probably be one when I was 
younger. Oh! I know which one 
it is. It’s my Golden Birthday 
when I was 10, and we went 
to the Water Park of America 
in Minneapolis. Got to stay 
overnight at the water park with 
a bunch of my buddies. 
Tien: What about you, Jack?
Jack: Uhhhh. Probably just 
going to Zap Zone. Me and my 
buddies used to always go every 
year for my birthday and their 
birthdays, so that was always a 
fun time.
Tien: Molly just turned 19 the 
other week.
Jack: Oh really? What did you 
do for your birthday?
Molly: No. I’m 22. And I went 
to Rick’s.
Molly: 
You 
guys 
are 
a 
defensive pairing, if you had to 
come up with a nickname for 
your pairing what would it be?
Jack: Probably something like 
salad.
Keaton: Salad guys?
Jack: The salad men?

Keaton: Salad men!!!!
Tien: Why?
Jack: The hair. Long hair.
They both run their hands 
through their hair.
Keaton: Because the salad. 
It’s greasy.
Jack: Long hair. It’s called 
salad.
Molly: Ohhhhhhhh.
Tien: Fair enough. So you 
guys played juniors together, do 
you have any fun memories from 
that time together?
Keaton: I think it was fun 
just getting to play with him. 
Knowing we were both going to 
Michigan, build some chemistry 
early and then know we’re going 
to go to college together was 
pretty cool.
Jack: Yeah we played together 
that first year as a D-pair, so it 
was just good getting to know 
him early.
Molly: 
Favorite 
holiday 
tradition?
Jack: 
The 
team 
always 
gets together for a Christmas 
gathering before we all leave 
for break. So that’s pretty fun. 
Otherwise, just being able to go 
home for a week and spend time 
with the family and catch up 
with everyone and see everyone 
is always a good time.
Keaton: Yeah, getting to see 
family. I have a little pond in my 
backyard so we’ll shovel it off a 
rink and everyone will go skate 
out there. Which is pretty fun.
Tien: 
Favorite 
Christmas 
song?
Jack: That’s tough.
Keaton: 
All 
I 
Want 
for 
Christmas.
Jack: Mariah Carey!
Keaton: Yeah, Mariah Carey. 
That’s a good one.
Molly: If you had to switch 
lives with someone on the team, 
who would you pick?
Keaton: Oooh. I’d go Cam 
York. I’d wanna know what it’s 
like to have all those Instagram 
followers.
Freshman 
Cam 
York 
has 
12.5k followers on Instagram, 
meanwhile Keaton has 1,475 and 

Jack has 794. Oof.
Jack: Man, I don’t know. 
Probably the same. He lives a 
pretty good life.
Keaton: 
See 
what it’s like to 
be famous. It’d 
be nice.
Molly: 
When 
did 
you 
stop 
believing 
in 
Santa?
Jack: 
Oooh. 
I think I was 
pretty 
old 
honestly. 
Keaton: Mine 
was pretty late, too.
Jack: Maybe 10?
Keaton: Oh mine was later 
than that. It was probably, wait 
when’s middle school? 
Jack: Eighth grade?
Keaton: No.

Jack: Freshman year?
Keaton: No. Probably like fifth 
or sixth grade. Right around 
when you’re getting ready to go 
to middle school. 
People 
would 
always tell me 
but 
I 
would 
always say, “No. 
He’s real!”
Molly: If, for 
whatever reason, 
the pilot couldn’t 
fly 
the 
plane, 
who would you 
trust the most?
Jack: Probably 
(Jack) Becker. He’s definitely 
the smartest guy on the team for 
sure.
Keaton: I’d say him, or Strauss 
(Mann). Strauss is just … not 
weird but … he’s a little different. 
So that’d be something he’d 

know how to do maybe. Just fly 
a plane. 
Molly: Are you superstitious 
about any pregame routines?
Jack: Not really. I just do 
everything the same, every time. 
It’s not really a superstition. It 
just gets my mind right. It’s not 
too much.
Keaton: Yeah, not really.
Molly: 
Nick 
Blankenburg 
mentioned you like to sit in 
seat six in the stands before 
warmups.
Jack: Yeah. Row six, seat six. I 
just always do that. 
Because 
that’s 
not 
superstitious at all… 
Molly: Why’d you choose six 
as your jersey number?
Jack: So I grew up playing 
baseball, and that was always 
my baseball number. So when I 
had to choose between hockey 

or baseball, I picked hockey. So 
I always kept six in memory of 
baseball.
*Nick Blankenburg enters the 
room*
Nick 
*panicking*: 
We’re 
about to start lift. Can’t be late. 
Or else I’m screwed.
Tien: Alright, last question. 
So if you were stranded on a 
deserted island with someone 
from the team, who would you 
pick?
Keaton: I’m going to go with 
Winny (Adam Winborg). He 
seems like he’s got survival 
skills, and he’s a pretty big man. 
We could fend for ourselves, I 
think.
Jack: Yeah, definitely him.
Keaton *has an epiphany*: Oh! 
Ooh! Is it (the recording) still 
going? Luke Morgan actually. 
That guy is a survival man.

Illinois bigs the focus for Wolverines

Last Friday, the Michigan 
men’s basketball team scored 
103 points against Iowa. One-
hundred-and-three.
Under former coach John 
Beilein, the Wolverines had only 
scored above 100 points six times 
— and never against a Big Ten 
opponent. Michigan seemingly 
only managed to crack triple 
digits against low-level non-
conference foes, and based on 
Beilein’s more elaborate, drawn 
out offensive plays, it seemed to 
be almost on accident.
But things are different under 
new 
coach 
Juwan 
Howard. 
The Wolverines are launching 
3-pointers in transition, playing 
with pace and 
getting 
shots 
off early in the 
shot clock. So 
when Michigan 
treks down to 
Champaign 
on Wednesday 
to 
square 
off 
against Illinois 
— the Big Ten’s 
highest scoring 
offense — the 
game is sure to be a barn burner.
For those not familiar with 
the term, a barn burner indicates 
a high-scoring affair for one of 
those inexplicable reasons that 
only locals understand. But 
Wednesday’s 
matchup 
has 
the potential to 
not just light the 
barn on fire, but 
take the rest of 
the farm with it.
The 
Illini 
have 
already 
put up over 100 
points 
twice 
this 
season, 
highlighted 
by a 120-point smackdown of 
Hampton. In the effort, Illinois’ 
prolific offense was led by 
its two bright stars — center 
Kofi Cockburn and guard Ayo 
Dosunmo, who both dropped 20.
Cockburn has been having 
a monster season, averaging a 
double-double with 16.3 points 

per game and 11.2 rebounds per 
game. Also averaging 1.3 blocks 
per game, the 7-footer has a 
physical skill set that reads like 
a grocery list.
“Strong, 
tough, 
physical, 
inside presence, 
plays 
extremely 
hard, very good 
on the low block,” 
Howard 
said. 
“Another 
thing 
that stands out is, 
(he’s an) excellent 
offensive 
rebounder. Built 
with 
a 
lot 
of 
toughness 
and 
his 
frame 
just 
breathes toughness all over him. 
So we have to, of course, match 
his toughness. Our guys are very 
competitive, and they’re not 
afraid, but they love competing 
against any big that steps on the 
floor.”
In short, he’s 
going to be a 
problem.
The last time 
Michigan saw a 
physically gifted, 
dominant 
big 
down low — the 
Hawkeyes’ Luka 
Garza on Friday 
— he destroyed 
his career high 
and bruised the Wolverines for a 
whopping 44 points. Then again, 
the big man took 32 shots and 
no one else in a black and yellow 
jersey could hit a cloud from an 
airplane, leading to a 12-point 
Michigan win.
While Cockburn undoubtedly 
presents a challenge, senior 

center Jon Teske is certain that 
the big man is nothing he hasn’t 
seen before. 
“It’s another big body,” Teske 
said. “In the Big Ten, you play 
against a big center every night. 
He’s another one. We gotta 
be ready for him. He’s a big, 
physical big man down there, 
and we just gotta hold our own. 
He’s gonna get his looks, he’s 
gonna get his touches and he’s 
gonna score points. We’re not 
gonna shut him out, he’s gonna 
get his, and we just gotta limit 
what he does.”
Teske’s answer is fairly telling 
in how the Wolverines are 
going to look to play Cockburn. 
In 
previous 
games 
against 
prolific bigs, Michigan’s game 
plan has been to limit the fouls 
called on Teske and backup 
bigs sophomore Colin Castleton 
and senior Austin Davis, letting 
the opponent pad the stat sheet 
while trusting the Wolverines’ 
offense to inflict maximum 
damage on the other end of the 
floor.
And if Michigan does get in 
foul or injury trouble — as was 
the case Friday with Teske on 
the bench and Castleton in the 
locker room with a lip injury — 
the Wolverines have the depth to 
respond and maintain pressure 
in the low post on both ends of 
the floor.
It worked Friday, when the 
third digit of the scoreboard 
was lit up for just the seventh 
time in nearly 13 years. And on 
Wednesday, Michigan is hoping 
— between Teske, Castleton, 
Davis and a bit of luck — to tack 
another one in the win column.

‘M’ bench limiting scoring droughts

Midway through the third 
quarter on Sunday, Michigan 
found itself on the wrong end of 
an Oakland run. 
After hitting only one field 
goal 
in 
four 
minutes, 
the 
Wolverines 
saw 
their 
once 
13-point lead dwindle down to 
just four with 2:18 remaining 
in the quarter. Meanwhile, the 
Grizzlies were on fire, scoring 
13 points over that same stretch. 
Michigan needed a spark. 
Sophomore 
forward 
Naz 
Hillmon delivered, notching six 
points in two minutes. With her 
help, the Wolverines closed the 
third quarter with an 8-0 run 
of their own, re-establishing 
the lead and putting an end to 
Oakland’s upset bid. 
Runs are a normal part of 
basketball. For various reasons, 
practically every team will go 
through stretches where the 
shots just aren’t falling. On 
Sunday, physical and emotional 
fatigue likely came into play 
for Michigan, as it was coming 
off of an overtime win against 
Syracuse just three nights prior. 
“That was a really tough 
recovery after Thursday,” said 
Michigan coach Kim Barnes 
Arico. “I knew that today we 
were still kind of physically 
and emotionally exhausted and 
that it was gonna be a little bit 
of a grind, but we figured out a 
way to do it and it was a great 
victory.”
The key to surviving these 
scoring droughts lies in damage 
control. When the Wolverines 
go through stretches where 
they struggle to score points, 
they need to rely on their strong 
defense, hit a couple easy layups 
or make substitutions to give 
their starters a rest and allow 
fresh players a chance to make 
a difference. 
On Sunday, it was Hillmon 
who snapped the Grizzlies’ run 
with two layups and two free 
throws. Limiting the damage 
becomes a lot easier when 
Michigan relies on its leading 
scorer to pick up easy baskets 
when they desperately need 

them. 
“I don’t even know her 
numbers, but I know they’re 
high,” said sophomore guard 
Amy Dilk. “Every day we try to 
get the ball to Naz and let her 
do her work — especially if it’s 
one-on-one, they can’t handle 
that.”
But the Wolverines can’t 
always count on Hillmon to 
provide that spark — especially 
since she is currently nursing 
a minor ankle injury. They’ll 
have to get it from some other 
options 
down 
the stretch, and 
with a lot of 
players 
seeing 
significant 
playing time so 
far this year, the 
prospects seem 
pretty good. 
Michigan’s 
freshmen 
in 
particular 
provide 
great 
scoring options off the bench. 
Guard Michelle Sidor has been 
capable from three so far, 
shooting 13-for-33 — the most 
makes on the team. She has not 
been afraid to shoot the ball in 
her various appearances this 
season, and her high-energy 
style of play makes her a great 
spark off the bench when shots 
aren’t falling.
Center Izabel Varejão has 
also been a solid change of 

pace 
as 
a 
substitute. 
Her 
6-foot-4 
frame 
makes 
her 
incredibly difficult to guard in 
the post, and she’s sunk a pair 
of threes this year as well. If 
she can continue to develop 
her post game and cut back on 
turnovers, she’ll be a reliable 
weapon when the starters are 
struggling to score points. 
It’s not just the freshmen, 
either. Junior guard Priscilla 
Smeenge and sophomore guard 
Danielle Rauch both played 
meaningful minutes on Sunday, 
demonstrating 
the Wolverines’ 
depth 
and 
providing 
Barnes 
Arico 
with even more 
options 
when 
the team needs 
a spark.
“We’re 
only 
as strong as our 
weakest 
link,” 
Smeenge 
said. 
“I feel like our 11th person 
and whoever’s coming off the 
bench can do a really good job 
of contributing”
Michigan will need those 
contributions from the bench 
even 
more 
as 
the 
season 
progresses. Its opponents will 
go on runs — after all, they’re 
just part of the game — and it 
will have to hope that its depth 
can continue to produce in 
high-pressure situations.

MOLLY SHEA
Daily Sports Writer

TIEN LE
Daily Sports Writer

ALEC COHEN/Daily
Sophomore defenseman Jack Summers still wears the number six as an homage to his childhood days playing baseball, before he committed to hockey full-time.

Strauss is just 
... not weird but 
... he’s a little 
different.

BRENDAN ROOSE
Daily Sports Writer

JACOB KOPNICK
Daily Sports Writer

ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily
Sophomore forward Colin Castleton will be key against Illinois on Wednesday.

EMMA MATI/Daily
Sophomore forward Naz Hillmon helped Michigan fight off Oakland last week.

(Cockburn is) 
an excellent 
offensive 
rebounder.

We gotta be 
ready for him. 
He’s a big, 
physical big.

I feel like our 
11th person ... 
can do a really 
good job.

