8 — Thursday, February 6, 2020
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Austin Davis a bright spot in loss

It’s been just over three weeks 
since Austin Davis first started 
showing poise as a reliable 
backup big man. And now poise, 
as it turns out, may have been a 
bit of an understatement.
This may be the Austin Davis 
breakout season, or at least as 
close to it as could have been 
reasonably expected.
It’s not as if he’s going to 
replace his fellow senior center, 
Jon Teske, in the starting lineup 
(at least barring any injuries). 
But Davis is continuing to get 
significant playing time, and 
has 
surpassed 
sophomore 
forward Colin Castleton in the 
rotation.
As he’s continued to get 
those significant minutes, he’s 
continued to do significant 
things with them.
A 
surprising 
twist 
this 
season, to be sure. Davis has 
given 
Michigan 
a 
reliable 
presence in the low post and 
a few buckets when it needed 
them most.
But when you get down to it, 
it’s not hard to see from where 

this sudden production has 
emerged. 
“He’s 
a 
tough-nosed 
competitor,” Michigan coach 
Juwan Howard said Tuesday 
night. “He does a really good 
job of using his body. He’s not 
afraid of contact. He loves 
the contact. He welcomes the 
contact. And not just tonight, 
but a lot of the other games 
we 
played 
throughout 
the 
year. He’s always accepted the 
challenge.”
In a 61-58 loss to Ohio State, 
Davis finished with 11 points, 
on 4-for-4 shooting from the 
field and 3-for-3 from the free 
throw line. He pulled down 
three rebounds, two on offense 
and one on defense. Not bad for 
14 minutes.
In fact, it’s not that hard to 
compare Davis’ stat line from 
last night — a career high for 
him — to some put up by Teske, 
the starter at the position.
“I’m 
just 
trying 
to 
be 
aggressive, play within our 
offense, play within myself,” 
Davis said. “I’ll take open looks 
when they’re there, and just put 
our team in the best position to 
win.

“I think it’s just confidence. 
Confidence in my teammates, 
confidence in myself. That’s the 
biggest thing.”
Perhaps this takeoff from 
Davis 
— 
who, 
it’s 
worth 
mentioning, 
was 
recruited 
and 
oft-praised 
by 
former 
Michigan coach John Beilein 
— is a reflection on, or maybe a 
result of, Howard’s new tenure 
at the helm of the program. 
Howard has worked intensively 
with all four bigs on the roster 
throughout the course of the 
season, 
watching 
film 
and 
teaching them post play. 
The fruits of that labor are 
probably clearest when looking 
at Teske. But they’re becoming 
more and more evident in 
Davis, too. For both Davis 
and Howard, the hard work is 
paying off. 
“It 
started 
back 
in 
the 
summer, when we had some 
player 
development 
time,” 
Howard said. “I work with 
all our bigs. Austin, just like 
all the bigs, has been working 
extremely hard leading up to 
this point in practice, spending 
time learning post play. 
“Austin has always had it.”

Two weeks that changed the season

The 
Michigan 
women’s 
basketball team had one week 
without a game, its season on the 
brink of disaster. One week to 
right the ship.
First came the Jan. 9 road 
loss to Ohio State, where the 
Wolverines led for 27 minutes 
total, even up to halfway through 
the fourth quarter. Then it was 
the 28-point home loss to No. 17 
Maryland on Jan. 12, just two 
weeks after Michigan played 
a tight game through three 
quarters on the road against the 
Terrapins.
But what looked like the 
dagger came a week later against 
Nebraska. Senior forward Kayla 
Robbins — the Wolverines’second-
leading scorer — went down in the 
first minute with a season-ending 
ACL tear, and Michigan lost after 
blowing a 13-point third-quarter 
lead. 
The 
loss 
dropped 
the 
Wolverines to 3-4 in the Big 
Ten and out of ESPN’s NCAA 
tournament prediction, and the 
loss of Robbins just prior to a 
three-game stretch against three 
of the Big Ten’s top five teams 
looked like it would be difficult 
to overcome. Michigan knew 
the challenge it would face in 
overcoming Robbins’ absence, but 
it stayed optimistic.
“Don’t let today knock you out 
of the water,” Michigan coach 
Kim Barnes Arico said after 
the loss to Maryland. “All our 
games this year have been really 
competitive. It’s been a tough 
stretch, but we’ve got to grow 
from it, we’ve got to learn from it.”
Lucky for the Wolverines, 
though, they had a week off 
between the Nebraska loss and 
their next game against Rutgers 
— a rare occurrence in Big Ten 
play. And for Michigan it was no 
ordinary week of practice. The 
bench players had to adjust to the 
new roles they would play. Senior 
guard Akienreh Johnson had 
to prepare to guard opponents’ 

top offensive threat — typically 
Robbins’ job.
The Wolverines had to adapt to 
life without Kayla Robbins.
“We just talked about one-
through-10 has to step up on the 
court, off the court, in practice,” 
sophomore forward Naz Hillmon 
said. “Somebody needs to take on 
the little things she did. Anything 
they can do to be a part of what 
Kayla was to this team because 
she was just such a huge part, 
whether she was talking, or 
scoring or rebounding.”
From 
the 
opening 
tip-off 
against the Scarlet Knights, it was 
clear Michigan took the message 
to heart. It shot 50 percent from 
the floor and excelled on the 
defensive end, forcing 15 first-half 
turnovers. Johnson held Rutgers’ 
leading 
scorer, 
guard 
Arella 
Guirantes, below her season 
average. Johnson didn’t shut her 
down — she still finished with 16 
points — but she filled in well in 
place of Robbins.
While beating the Scarlet 
Knights at home was a good 
start for the Wolverines without 
Robbins, they still had two tough 
games against the Big Ten’s best, 
No. 23 Northwestern and No. 
18 Iowa. Winning either would 
be huge for Michigan’s NCAA 
Tournament chances.
Against 
the 
Wildcats, 
the 
Wolverines came out flat and 
couldn’t overcome an early deficit, 
but a strong final three quarters 
in an eight-point loss gave them 
optimism entering Sunday’s game 

against the Hawkeyes. It would 
be one of their last chances to pick 
up the signature win that Barnes 
Arico has talked about needing so 
much of late.
Sunday, Michigan came out 
strong and for much of the game 
looked as good as it had all season. 
The loss of Robbins was barely 
even noticeable. A combination 
of 
Johnson, 
Hillmon 
and 
sophomore guard Amy Dilk held 
Iowa’s leading scorer Kathleen 
Doyle below her season average, 
and the Wolverines’ bench and 
sophomore guard Danielle Rauch 
— who replaced Robbins in the 
starting lineup — combined for 17 
points, as Michigan won by 15.
“We’ve had a little bit of a 
rocky start to the Big Ten season,” 
Hillmon said. “So just getting 
these wins, it’s very important to 
us and our confidence. The Big 
Ten is a tough league and to get 
this one is huge, and it’ll definitely 
help us later on.”
Even though the Wolverines 
have played three good games 
without Robbins, her absence 
could still play a factor going 
forward. Teams may find holes in 
the way Michigan plays without 
Robbins and expose them. But 
after an injury that could have 
sunk the team just over two 
weeks ago, the Wolverines look 
rejuvenated and motivated.
And looking back, the most 
important week of Michigan’s 
season might have been the week 
in which it didn’t play a single 
game.

Michigan’s defense gives leadership

When Mel Pearson looked at 
the roster at the beginning of the 
season, he viewed it through two 
lenses.
The first was strengths. In 
Pearson’s eyes, Michigan was 
stacked with offensive weapons. It 
would be a goal-scoring team. An 
offensive powerhouse.
But the defense and goaltending 
were potential weaknesses, or at 
least question marks. Sophomore 
goaltender Strauss Mann hadn’t 
yet emerged as the Wolverines’ 
starter. On the blueline, they’d 
have to replace three skaters — 
last season’s point leader Quinn 
Hughes, Joseph Cecconi and Nick 
Boka. 
The 
only 
upperclassmen 
returning were seniors Griffin 
Luce 
and 
Luke 
Martin. 
Sophomores Nick Blankenburg 
and Jack Summers accounted 
for another third of the blueline. 
Michigan’s final two pieces were 
incoming freshmen Cam York and 
Keaton Pehrson. 
Someone 
would 
have 
to 
show them the ropes, and that 
responsibility fell on the shoulders 
of Martin and Luce. It was their 
job to pave the way for the younger 
players. To lead by example. 
And they’ve done exactly that. 
As the season’s progressed, 
Pearson’s concerns about the 
Wolverines’ defense vanished. It 
emerged as the strongest part of an 
otherwise struggling team.
“They’ve done great,” Pearson 
said. “Real pleasant surprise. 
We’re committed more as a 
team to playing better team 
defense overall. That’s helped us 
immensely. … We haven’t been 
giving up as many outnumbered 
rushes like we did last year or 
turnovers. We’ve done a much 
better job of managing the puck 
this year.”
Until 
recently, 
Michigan’s 
record didn’t reflect the defense’s 
success. Earlier in the season, it 
went winless through a period 
of 
seven 
games. 
When 
the 
Wolverines couldn’t rely on their 
offense to produce, they relied 
on the defense to keep the games 
within reach. And they did just 

that, losing four of the games by 
only one goal.
After that string of games, 
Michigan started collecting wins. 
It split series with Wisconsin and 
Penn State, largely because of its 
defense. The Wolverines almost 
posted a shutout against the sixth-
ranked offense in the nation, 
beating the Nittany Lions, 4-1. 
While the team wasn’t climbing 
in the rankings, its defense 
— currently ranked seventh in 
scoring — was. Allowing just 2.14 
goals per game, Michigan owes a 
large part of its sustained success 
to its six defensemen and Mann.
“Up until after Christmas, we 
didn’t really score much,” Pearson 
said. “We needed to be good 
defensively to sort of hang around 
until we got our legs underneath 
us and started running instead of 
crawling.”
Much 
of 
the 
Wolverines’ 
defensive success is attributed to 
its anchor, Mann. Rightfully so, as 
there’s a handful 
of games where 
he was the reason 
Michigan 
won. 
But the skaters in 
front of him have 
played a pivotal 
role too.
York 
and 
Pehrson 
have 
found their roles 
on 
the 
team. 
They’ve 
settled 
in and managed the pressure 
well. They’ve avoided getting 
overwhelmed — something that’s 
often a challenge for younger 
players to do when their team’s 
struggling. 
Summers and Blankenburg have 
made strides, too. Both of them add 
offense from the blueline. 
And then there’s Martin and 
Luce. Through the loss of three key 
defenders and all the Wolverines’ 
struggles, their roles increased 
exponentially. With the team 
relying on them and the spotlight 
pointed their way, they’ve shown 
nothing but confidence and focus.
“I’ve gotten a lot more confident 
with the puck and with my feet,” 
Martin said. “And just working 
on my mental game. (Director of 
Athletic Counseling) Greg Harden 
has been unbelievable for me. He’s 

just helped me in so many areas. 
Just growing mentally and taking 
strides there. It’s done wonders for 
my game on the ice.”
All these factors — Mann, 
Martin, Luce’s confidence and the 
underclassmen’s efforts — are the 
reason why Michigan’s defense 
has found so much success in its 
last three weekend series. 
On the road against then-No. 
14 Notre Dame on Jan. 10-11, the 
Wolverines allowed only one goal 
on the weekend. After giving up a 
goal in the first few minutes of the 
Saturday game, the defense settled 
down and paved the way for 
Michigan to make its comeback.
This trend continued the next 
weekend at then-No. 6 Penn State. 
In the Friday night game, the 
Wolverines kept the Nittany Lions 
off the scoresheet. The following 
night, the defense lagged a bit, 
allowing four goals, but Michigan 
managed to steal the extra point in 
double overtime.
“It’s 
nice 
to 
score 
six 
goals 
like we did at 
Penn 
State,” 
Pearson 
said. 
“But it’s the zero 
that’s important. 
If you do that, 
you’re going to 
win some games. 
Defense has to be 
paramount to this 
team.”
Last weekend, the Wolverines 
split with then-No. 11 Ohio State. 
They surrendered four goals to the 
Buckeyes on Saturday night, after 
giving up only one the night before. 
Even so, Michigan significantly 
limited 
Ohio 
State’s 
scoring 
chances. 
Four goals is uncharacteristic 
for Michigan’s blueline, but a 
bad game hasn’t ever rattled the 
defense. It’s always been able to 
bounce back and come out strong 
the next night.
“You can’t put enough emphasis 
on it,” Pearson said. “You’re going 
to go through stretches like that 
where you don’t score and you’re 
pressing. But if you don’t give 
anything up then you don’t need 
as much. It’s critical. It’s vital to 
having success and for us to turn it 
(the season) around.”

‘M’ looking to follow success of 2019

Sometimes having the best 
season in program history may 
lead to a feeling of complacency — 
satisfaction in a day’s work.
Not for the Michigan women’s 
lacrosse team. After a 2019 
campaign that saw a shattered 
record in the win column and 
first NCAA Tournament bid, the 
team is approaching 2020 with 
the ambition to build on what it 
did last year.
“I think the team has returned 
with even more hunger than we 
had last year,” Michigan coach 
Hannah 
Nielsen 
said. 
“And 
they know and have that belief 
from last year of what we can 
accomplish.”
It’s pretty easy to transition to 
a new season when there aren’t 
a lot of questions surrounding 
the team. And when you return 
eight starters who contributed 
to 77 percent of your team’s 
points, there really aren’t a lot of 
questions to be asked. 
One of those starters, junior 
attacker 
Caitlin 
Muir, 
broke 
both the program single-season 
goals and assists records last year 
with 59 and 21, respectively. This 
returning offense means the team 
can spend less time adjusting to 
new additions and simply carry 
the momentum from last year. 

The list of returning starters 
also includes all three of the 
Wolverines’ captains — senior 
defenseman Maggie Handlan, 
senior goalie Alli Kothari and 
senior midfielder Molly Garrett. 
“Being a captain last year was 
a very big honor just as it is this 
year, too,” Garrett said. “And I 
think having that experience and 
a year under my belt especially 
with Allie and Maggie, who are 
also returning captains makes us 
stronger, more experienced and 
have that knowledge of how we 
should handle things.”
This knowledge will help a 
lot with the transition for the 
younger players — either from 
high school to college games or 
from a less prominent role to 
carrying more of the load.
Nielsen also thought there 
were a lot of younger players 
who were ready to step into more 
prominent roles this season.
“(Sophomore 
midfielder) 
Kaitlyn Mead is one that I think,” 
Nielsen said. “Just her body size 
and her strength and her athletic 
ability alone, she’s capable of so 
much and is improving with the 
game-sense side as well.”
Nielsen 
seemed 
optimistic 
about many of the other young 
players as well, and thinks by the 
end of the season a lot of them 
should be able to contribute even 
more.

These players, in combination 
with all of the returning starters, 
have the chance to shoot even 
higher than they did last year. 
Though, there is still one thing 
that stands in their way.
The Big Ten has been ruled 
lately by two national powers: 
Northwestern 
and 
defending 
national 
champion 
Maryland. 
All three of the Wolverines’ 
conference losses last season 
were to these teams.
“We certainly want to be 
competing with Maryland and 
Northwestern, who have been 
the top dogs in the conference 
for the last five years,” Nielsen 
said. “It seems so with how we’ve 
been performing, I think it’s a 
possibility.”
Last season, the Wildcats 
ended Michigan’s conference title 
hopes with a 19-9 victory in the 
Big Ten Tournament semifinal. 
This is the type of game that 
the Wolverines hope to not only 
compete in this year, but win.
The Terrapins, though, are 
a whole different animal. The 
defending national champions 
dominated Michigan, 14-3, in 
College Park last season.
“Obviously, we want to be 
competing at the top,” Nielsen 
said. “We got our minds set on 
going one further and making 
that 
Big 
Ten 
Championship 
game.”

ABBY SNYDER
Daily Sports Writer

MILES MACKLIN/Daily
Senior center Austin Davis scored 11 points with three rebounds against Ohio State on Tuesday night in a 61-58 loss.

JACK KINGSLEY
Daily Sports Writer

EMMA MATI/Daily
The Michigan women’s basketball team turned its season around.

HOCKEY

MOLLY SHEA
Daily Sports Writer

We’ve done a 
much better job 
of managing 
the puck.

SPENCER RAINES
Daily Sports Writer

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Michigan coach Hannah Nielsen says making the Big Ten Championship game is her team’s goal this season.

