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.