The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Friday, January 24, 2020 — 7

T

he problems plaguing the 
Michigan men’s basket-
ball team are supposed 
to be early-season kinks, not 
late-January 
shortcom-
ings.
But this 
roller coaster 
of a season 
didn’t have 
any initial 
kinks. It 
began with 
seven straight 
wins and 
a smooth 
ascension to the No. 4 spot in the 
national poll.
That was seven weeks ago. 
Now, the Wolverines are mired 
in the program’s longest losing 
streak since 2015. Their loss 
to Penn State on Wednesday 
pushed this year’s team into 
uncharted territory. Over the 
last three seasons, Michigan’s 
cumulative 89-27 record is 
among the country’s best. This 
year’s seniors have been to a 
national title game and a pair of 
Sweet Sixteens.
Yet on Wednesday, the Nit-
tany Lions marched into Crisler 
Center and, in a season when 
winning a road game in the Big 
Ten is a rarity, sat in the driver’s 
seat for much of the game en 
route to a 72-63 win.
In the process, the loss 
seemed to bring the Wolverines’ 
flaws to center stage. Energy 
lulls, failing to talk on defense 
and stretches of subpar focus — 
all elements within their control 
— were on full display.
Senior point guard Zavier 
Simpson tried to will his team to 
victory by hunting for his own 
shot and showing the passion 
that’s become synonymous with 
his name, but by the final buzzer, 
Michigan was left with its third 
consecutive loss.
More importantly, though, 
Wednesday provided a long look 
in the mirror for the reeling Wol-
verines.

They didn’t like what they saw 
staring back.
“In order to be able to grow, 
we really rely on (Simpson) to get 
us going and bring the energy,” 
junior guard Eli Brooks said. “I 
think that’s where, moving for-
ward, we could do a better job 
as a team if we have more guys 
bringing the fire. Being uncom-
fortable with that position, being 
vulnerable like (Simpson) is, it’s 
tough.
“Some people just don’t lead 
that way and I think we need 
more people to step up.”
To Brooks, it’s an identity 
issue beneath the surface. Fig-
uring out who can assume that 
type of leadership role is some-
thing most teams go through 
in November — not after falling 
to 2-5 in conference play in late 
January.
For Michigan, a blunt realiza-
tion set in on Wednesday: Simp-
son’s voice can’t be the only one 
making a difference.
“It’s just about people buy-
ing in,” Brooks said. “You can’t 
forfeit the games coming up, 
so something has to give at the 
end of the day. You have to fight 

through it and take pride in it.”
Granted, the Wolverines have 
been without junior forward 
Isaiah Livers — who was their 
leading scorer when he sustained 
a groin injury on Dec. 21 — for 
over a month. Surviving in a can-
nibalistic conference without 
an integral piece is difficult, but 
that should have no correlation 
with energy, focus and defensive 
communication.
“It’s too late in the season for, 
you know, I have to beg our guys 
to communicate on defense,” 
Michigan coach Juwan Howard 
said. “Not just on the defensive 
end, on the offensive end, too. It 
just so happens it’s a lost art in 
the game and we have to bring 
it back.
“Yes, I’m old school, but in 
order for us to forge ahead and 
move forward and improve, 
communication has to be a part 
of the process. That is surprising 
that some of our guys don’t like 
talking on defense. … There’s a 
lot of guessing going on, and I 
just don’t understand it.”
Howard often lauds his group 
for being solution-based, but 
it’s going to take more than 

just ideas for the Wolverines 
to reverse course after losing 
four of their last five conference 
games.
Coming up with the right 
ideas is one thing. Success-
fully putting them into motion 
is another. With March just 
five weeks away, Brooks knows 
Michigan must prioritize the 
latter.
“I feel like I can be a more 
vocal person,” Brooks said. “Just 
by being in the right spot and 
trying to get other people in 
the right spot and bringing that 
energy. I know that’s not who I 
am but I could be that.”
Now that the problem has 
been diagnosed, it becomes a 
matter of how quickly the Wol-
verines can solve it. At this point, 
the direction of their season 
hinges on it.
“It’s January 22,” an exasper-
ated Howard said at the post-
game podium, toeing the line 
between frustration and plea.
And that’s the point.

Dash can be reached on 

Twitter @DanielDash_ or by 

email at dashdan@umich.edu.

The wrong time for soul searching

DANIEL
DASH

ASHA LEWIS/Daily
Junior forward Eli Brooks said that Michigan needs people to step up after Wednesday’s loss to Penn State.

‘M’ hopes to stop threes

Ohio State is not a very good 
3-point shooting team. 
It’s made just 31.6 percent of 
its 3-pointers this season, the 
fourth-worst mark in the Big 
Ten. Most coaches wouldn’t 
have to worry about getting beat 
from beyond the arc against the 
Buckeyes. 
But against the Michigan 
women’s basketball team on Jan. 
9, they shot 11-for-22 from three 
en route to a 78-69 win.
Maryland’s a little better. It’s 
shot a respectable 36.8 percent 
on 3-pointers, good for third in 
the Big Ten. 
Just like Ohio State, the 
Terrapins exceeded their season 
average against the Wolverines, 
shooting 10-of-21 from three — 
and 6-for-8 in the second half — 
in their blowout win on Jan. 12. 
A week later, the same thing 
happened again, when Nebraska 
shattered 
its 
33.8 
percent 
average and went 12-of-24 from 
beyond the arc in their win over 
Michigan. 
The 
Wolverines’ 
inability 
to defend the three has been 
central 
to 
their 
struggles 
recently. They’ve lost three of 
their last four games, and with 
three of the Big Ten’s top teams 
— Rutgers, Northwestern and 
Iowa — up next on the schedule, 
they desperately need to resolve 
this problem to bounce back. 
“I think we have to just 
change our gameplan,” senior 
guard Akienreh Johnson said. 
“Most of the time going into the 
game (our opponent) had had 
a poor shooting night before, 
or 
multiple 
poor 
shooting 
nights. I’m not saying we don’t 
defend the three, but we don’t 
(emphasize) it as much as we 
should, and in the game when 
they start hitting them, we don’t 
adjust, so we’re not able to … take 
away the shot.”
Except for the Maryland 
game, Michigan has held its 

own well into the second half 
of all its recent contests. The 
Wolverines were tied with Ohio 
State entering the fourth quarter 
and led by one at the same point 
against Nebraska. 
But the Buckeyes hit both of 
their 
fourth-quarter 
3-point 
attempts, and the Huskers hit 
4-of-5 — winning by just three 
points. Michigan is putting itself 
in positions to win games, but 
its defense keeps faltering in big 
moments. 
Part of this stems from the 
Wolverines’ 
commitment 
to 
shutting down teams down low. 
They use their length to clog the 
paint and prevent opponents 
from getting easy buckets or 
offensive rebounds, and they’ve 
been successful in that regard. 
They 
reel 
in 
72.2 
percent 
of 
their 
defensive 
rebound 
opportunities, the best in the Big 
Ten. 
But against modern five-out 
schemes — where the offense 
starts with five players on the 
perimeter — clogging the inside 
leaves Michigan vulnerable to 
open threes on the drive-and-
kick. Essentially, the Wolverines 
gamble that their opponents 
won’t make their 3-pointers in 
favor of stopping the layup. 
They’ve been losing that bet. 
“I feel like a lot of teams in the 
Big Ten have balanced teams,” 
junior forward Hailey Brown 
said. “Everyone can kind of 
shoot the three, everyone can 
play inside, so when it comes to 
that it is harder to defend. Just 
because if everyone’s a 3-point 
threat then you gotta take away 
something, so do you want to 
give up threes or twos?”
If it was only one game, you 
could say that Michigan was 
just unlucky, but poor 3-point 
defense has become a theme over 
its last several losses. And with 
senior forward Kayla Robbins 
— one of the Wolverines’ best 
defenders — out for the season 
with a torn ACL, life will only get 
harder if Michigan can’t adjust.

Michigan looking to keep momentum 
going against Development Program

In October 2018, Johnny 
Beecher took the ice at Yost Ice 
Arena for the first time.
But 
the 
now-freshman 
forward wasn’t wearing the 
block ‘M’ and representing 
Michigan. He was wearing 
red, white and blue for the 
visiting team, the U18 team 
from the U.S. National Team 
Development 
Program 
(NTDP).
The 
Wolverines 
hosted 
the NTDP in an exhibition 
matchup, and Beecher got his 
first taste of playing at what 
would become his home rink in 
a year — and his first taste of a 
win at Yost, as the NTDP beat 
Michigan, 6-3.
“It was awesome,” Beecher 
said 
Thursday. 
“I 
was 
fortunate enough to get in the 
starting lineup, and when they 
called my name, 
the 
student 
section 
was 
cheering 
and 
everything. 
It 
was everything 
I could’ve ever 
dreamed 
of. 
It was a great 
crowd, and we 
actually 
came 
away with a win, 
so the guys were 
really pumped up about that.”
This Saturday, two more 
Michigan commits will have 
that same experience. Forward 
Thomas 
Bordeleau 
and 
defenseman 
Jacob 
Truscott 
will both join the Wolverines 
in the fall, and they’ll get their 
first experience playing at Yost 
in this year’s exhibition.
“Both good players, both 
good kids,” Michigan coach 
Mel Pearson said. “I know 
they’re gonna want to do well 
and show the Michigan faithful 
why they’re coming here and 
why they have the opportunity 
to come here. They’re good 
players, so I’m anxious to see 
them both play.”
Added 
Beecher: 
“They’re 

a great team. I came from the 
program the last two years, 
so I know that they’re gonna 
be really excited about it, and 
it’ll be a great 
atmosphere.”
For 
Michigan, 
Saturday’s 
exhibition has 
the makings of 
a classic trap 
game, albeit a 
slightly 
non-
traditional 
one. 
It’s 
a 
meaningless 
matchup, 
sandwiched 
in 
the heart of the Wolverines’ 
conference schedule. Michigan 
has started to build momentum 
in recent weeks, and now, 
they’re faced with a game that 
could be a serious stumbling 
block to that momentum.
“There’s 
no 
implications 
as far as either your Big Ten 
points or NCAA, so it’s why 
are you playing?” Pearson said. 
“What’s the purpose? I think 
that’s the thing that we’ve tried 
to convey to our guys. We have 
to get better. It’s a week we can 
take advantage of. We put it on 
the schedule at this time so we 
would have a game and not just 
have an open weekend.”
The Wolverines’ recent run 

came after a disappointing first 
half, in which the Michigan 
went 7-11-2 overall and just 
2-7-1 in the Big Ten. And 
despite the success the last two 
weeks, Pearson knows his team 
still has a lot to improve upon.
In 
Saturday’s 
exhibition, 
he’s looking for the Wolverines 
to 
continue 
to 
build 
and 
grow into a team that can be 
competitive across the Big Ten.
“We’ve 
only 
played 
six 
games since we’ve been back 
from the long break we had,” 
Pearson said. “We have some 
new 
line 
combinations 
we 
want to work out, the power 
play needs work.”
With No. 6 Ohio State — a 
team that swept Michigan 
in the first half of the year — 
coming to town next weekend, 
the Wolverines are looking to 
build on their momentum on 
Saturday against the NTDP 
and keep things rolling into the 
series against the Buckeyes.
“I 
think 
with 
all 
the 
momentum we have going right 
now, we don’t want to lose it,” 
Beecher said. “Unfortunately, 
we can’t continue in Big Ten 
play this weekend, but it is 
what it is. It’ll be a good test 
for us, and we’ll be able to work 
on the stuff that we need to get 
better at.”

BAILEY JOHNSON
Daily Sports Editor

ALEXIS RANKIN/Daily
Freshman forward Johnny Beecher played for the USNTDP last year.

There’s no 
implications as 
far as ... Big Ten 
points or NCAA.

Wolverines rally to upset Gophers

In front of an enthusiastic 
and inspired Crisler Center 
crowd Sunday afternoon, the 
Michigan wrestling team (4-2) 
went on an impressive run. It 
won four of the meet’s final 
five matches to clinch a 22-15 
comeback victory over No. 11 
Minnesota (7-4). 
Despite 
underdog 
status 
in the meet, Michigan coach 
Sean Bormet and his team 
were confident and motivated 
to clash with stiff Big Ten 
competition. 
“We thought it was a great 
opportunity individually for 
our guys to go in and win some 
matches against guys that were 
ranked higher than them,” 
Bormet said. “As a team to 
go in and beat a team ranked 
higher than us. Our guys were 
just looking at it as a great 
opportunity to compete.”
Sunday’s first half of bouts 
left 
the 
Wolverines 
in 
a 
precarious 
position 
moving 
forward. In a series of highly-
defensive and tightly-contested 
spars early on, Michigan took a 
6-3 advantage with help from 
redshirt junior Kanen Storr 
and redshirt freshman Will 
Lewan. 
Momentum began to shift 
Minnesota’s way, as Golden 

Gopher 
redshirt 
sophomore 
Bailee O’Reilly and No.7-ranked 
fifth-year senior Devin Skatzka 
dominated 
their 
Wolverine 
opponents. Both were awarded 
bonus points en route to a 12-6 
lead at intermission.
At 
the 
break, 
Bormet 
stressed 
to 
his 
team 
the 
importance of rebounding in 
the final five matches by being 
both aggressive and composed. 
In the locker room, Bormet 
specifically looked to redshirt 
sophomore Jelani Embree, who 
was scheduled to wrestle first 
after intermission. 
“Jelani needed to come out 
and get that momentum going 
back our way, using his speed 
and power,” Bormet said. “I 
was just making sure he had his 
composure and he was ready to 
go.”
Embree responded to his 
coach’s wisdom well, defeating 
Owen 
Webster 
in 
sudden-
death overtime and sending the 
Crisler faithful into a frenzy. 
The afternoon’s most thrilling 
match also came with some 
controversy, as a last-second 
takedown ruling by Webster 
was overturned at the end of 
the third period, setting up 
Embree’s overtime win. 
“In that moment, I was 
trying to stay calm,” Embree 
said. “Thankfully, it worked out 
in my favor and I was able to 

take advantage of that second 
life that I was given.”
In the 197-pound matchup, 
fifth-year 
senior 
Jackson 
Striggow was in full control 
of his opponent – Minnesota’s 
fifth-year senior Hunter Ritter 
– finishing with a pair of 
takedowns in a hard-fought 6-4 
win. Following the final buzzer, 
Striggow seemed to feed off 
the excitement of the crowd, 
raising his arms in elation after 
the Wolverines had knotted the 
overall score at 12 apiece.
Striggow competed with a 
little more on his mind than 
his teammates when peering 
across the mat at the Golden 
Gophers bench. 
“I grew up 15 miles from 
the University of Minnesota,” 
Striggow said. “So I always 
wrestle with a little bit of a 
chip on my shoulder because 
Michigan gave me a chance and 
Minnesota didn’t. So it’s always 
fun to beat them and it’s really 
cool to know that the state of 
Michigan has kind of adopted 
me as one of their guys.”
Following 
Striggow’s 
match, 
Michigan 
continued 
its 
run 
of 
dominance 
on 
the mat with victories from 
sophomore Mason Parris in 
the heavyweight division and 
redshirt freshman Joey Silva in 
the 133-pound class to secure a 
22-15 team win.

FILE PHOTO/Daily
Fifth-year senior Jackson Striggow scored two takedowns in Michigan’s 22-15 win over the Golden Gophers.

CHRIS SULLIVAN
Daily Sports Writer

BRENDAN ROOSE
Daily Sports Writer

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