T
urning points are often
arbitrary. They are
judged retroactively, fre-
quently in an attempt to ascribe
meaning to results rather than
default to the
randomness
of sports.
But if the
Michigan
men’s bas-
ketball team
finds itself
and rounds
into form
here, we will
look back on
Saturday’s
77-68 win over Michigan State
as a catalyst. Not just because
the Wolverines beat the Spar-
tans for the first time in nearly
two years, nor simply because
Michigan stopped a two-game
skid and added an all-important
conference win over a KenPom
top-15 team.
But because, four months into
the season, we still don’t know
how good this team can be with
Isaiah Livers on the floor. Liv-
ers returned Saturday from
an injury; he’d sat eight of the
previous nine games, of which
Michigan lost six. With Livers
in the lineup, Michigan started
the year by winning 11 of 14
games, including a win over No.
2 Gonzaga in the Bahamas.
In 31 minutes against the
Spartans, Livers scored 14
points and made 2-of-5 attempts
from 3-point range. He did not
play in the teams’ first matchup
on Jan. 5, an 87-69 loss in East
Lansing.
“We already said it after —
(with) me or not, this game was
going to be a tone-setter,” Liv-
ers said. “... We didn’t get rat-
tled at all. We were just excited
to come out with the ‘W’. It was
meaningful for us.”
Livers did not play in the Jan.
5 loss, but Saturday he helped
direct a defensive game plan
that was executed to perfection.
His defensive prowess aside,
Livers’ steadying presence
alone adds a layer of comfort
this team needs right now.
“When you’ve got coaches,
players, especially, that’s been
around for a little bit, like me,
(Zavier Simpson) and (Jon
Teske), we’ve been here,” Livers
said. “We can adjust.”
Livers, to his credit, has been
just about everywhere and done
just about everything in his
three years at Michigan. He
took a starting gig from a senior
midseason and then started in
the Final Four during his fresh-
man campaign; he was subse-
quently upended by a freshman
the year after, and so he moved
back to the bench without a
fuss. He’s won conference titles;
he’s lost them, too. He’s battled
confidence issues and mental
lows; he’s endured a coaching
change; he’s re-shaped his body
and his game; he’s evolved into
one of college basketball’s best
shooters. And you
just get the sense
the story of his
collegiate career
is still to be writ-
ten.
Michigan lost
plenty you can
see when Livers
was out. Tak-
ing a 50-percent
3-point shooter
out of the lineup
causes spatial issues that are
aesthetically obvious. That loss
is compounded by the dearth of
wing depth on the roster. For all
of Brandon Johns Jr.’s merits,
there is no like-for-like replace-
ment for Livers on the roster —
no one else who can both defend
three differ-
ent positions
and stretch
defenses on
the other end.
The Wolver-
ines shot 29.6
percent from
3-point range
in the eight
games Livers
was sidelined.
If extrapolated
out to the full season, that fig-
ure would rank them dead last
in the conference.
There’s also plenty we can’t
see when Livers is out. Here’s a
subtle example. This is how Isa-
iah Livers answered a question
about transition defense:
“The best thing I can do is
direct traffic. We have young
guys that, as they sprint back,
they don’t know what to do.
I’m already back, talking, just
pointing and directing them.
‘Go to that area, I’ll go to this
area, go up there and guard the
ball.’
“Just little things like that
can help. I think we need more
of that.”
“Little things” are precisely
what’s plagued this team most
all year.
“We missed him a lot, and we
missed having another guy like
Zay,” Michigan coach Juwan
Howard said, “who can not only
make shots but also a guy that
has a higher basketball IQ, that
knows how to make plays.”
Veterans matter in college
basketball, as Tom Izzo remind-
ed us when he so eloquently
groveled about how his fresh-
man “just aren’t ready.” There’s
a reason why the successful
teams in the one-and-done
eras are rarely littered with
one-and-done players. For all
the cringeworthy abuse of this
phrase, Isaiah Livers is a win-
ning player.
But is it that simple? Are the
flaws that plagued and nearly
killed Michigan in his absence
simply in the rearview?
Saturday certainly was a step
in the right direction. Presum-
ing the Wolverines take care of
their next two games (at North-
western and home to Indiana),
they’ll have clawed back to .500
in conference play. They’ll head
to Rutgers — a team they’ve
already beaten on a neutral
court — brimming with con-
fidence. For the first time all
year, they’ll likely have every-
one healthy and happy.
If that comes to fruition,
they’ll be a team no one wants
to play in March. And they’ll
certainly point to Saturday’s
win over Michigan State as a
paradigm shift.
It could just as easily prove a
momentary boon, Livers’ return
plugging only one hole on a
sinking ship. Saturday’s result
could just as easily say more
about where Michigan State is
than anything else.
Is Saturday a sign of things
to come or a mirage? Will Liv-
ers’ return prove to be a turning
point or merely a momentary
respite?
We’ll have to wait two more
months to pen that narrative.
Marcovitch can be reached
at maxmarco@umich.edu or on
Twitter @Max_Marcovitch.
2B — February 10, 2020
SportsMonday
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Livers is back. Can Michigan change its season?
MAX
MARCOVITCH
Sweeping through South Florida
Michigan notches five straight wins, getting past Fresno State with Hoogenraad walk-off to cap undefeated USF Invitational
Michigan softball needed a
hero moment.
Against Fresno State, in the
bottom of the ninth inning, locked
in a scoreless tie, senior outfielder
Haley Hoogenraad stepped up to
the plate.
Pinch-running
for
Taylor
Bump, freshman utility player
Lauren Esman was on third,
advancing from second on a
sacrifice bunt after being placed
there via international tiebreaker.
With seemingly no effort,
Hoogenraad drilled the ball into
the right-center field gap — where
it fell between the Bulldogs’ right
fielder Kelsey Hall and center
fielder
Mckenzie
Wilson.
As
Esman crossed home, the extra-
innings were over, the game
finished. Michigan 1, Fresno State
0 — the final win in the Wolverines
perfect 5-0 weekend at the USF-
Rawlings Invitational.
“I was just thinking about
trying to stick to my game plan,
stuff that we had talked about in
the dugout, stuff that we knew
the
pitcher
was
throwing,”
Hoogenraad said. “I tried to
remember that if I didn’t get it
done, that my teammate would get
it done behind me.”
Hoogenraad’s heroic moment
was indicative of her success
over the entire weekend. She
accumulated four runs and three
RBI en route to a .429 batting
average over five games. She also
had four doubles on the weekend.
“She didn’t hit particularly
well in our preseason practices
and really she came out (this
weekend),” Michigan coach Carol
Hutchins said. “I thought she
cleared her mind and she knows
she can hit the
ball.
She
was
just
one-pitch
focused.”
Starting
all
five games in
center
field,
Hoogenraad
again
proved
her ability at the
plate and in the
field.
During
Saturday’s game
against Florida she robbed a grand
slam with a catch over the wall.
Against the Gators she went 2-for-
3, with three runs and two runs
batted-in. During Friday’s game
against Georgia State, she totaled
one run, contributing to the 6-1
victory.
Despite
an
overall
stellar
performance, her highs couldn’t
come without their lows. Against
Illinois State she went 0-for-3,
only getting on base after a walk.
“They’re independent things,”
Hoogenraad said. “You can only
control the one pitch, and I think
the biggest thing to focus on all
the time is that how you have been
doing or what you’ve been doing,
doesn’t necessarily dictate what
you’re going to do.”
Hoogenraad’s response to the
ups and downs was echoed by the
rest of the team.
Playing five games
over a span of
three days could
be
challenging
for some teams.
Instead, Michigan
capitalized on its
initial momentum
against
Georgia
State, its opening
game
of
the
season.
Michigan hasn’t won all five
games of its opening weekend
series since 2012. In a true team
effort, the Wolverines’ success can
be attributed to their commitment
to staying level.
“I think our best quality was
that we didn’t get too high and we
don’t get too low,” Hutchins said.
“We just slug away one pitch at a
time. We were playing some of the
best one-pitch softball I’ve seen in
a while. We didn’t let our tough
times hitting the ball get to us. It’s
a great quality, it can make a great
team really good.”
Hoogenrad’s hit came during
a clutch moment in Michigan’s
lows. Being able to rely on a
player during the pitfalls to
break through the wall and make
big plays can be instrumental
throughout the course of a season.
If
Hoogenrad’s
personal
success this weekend is in any
way indicative of her upcoming
season, she’s going to be a player
to watch out for. After graduating
five starting seniors last year,
Michigan is looking to fill the gaps
in its lineup. With tremendous
athleticism in the outfield coupled
with a high batting average, she
might be the senior leader the
Wolverines are looking for.
Sophomore catcher Hannah
Carson stood at the plate, dialed
in. Florida’s Natalie Lugo readied
her pitch and delivered. The ball
rocketed off Carson’s bat through
the right side of the infield — two
runs scored.
The two runs marked the
beginning of No. 17 Michigan
softball team’s (5-0) signature
win over No. 7 Florida (4-1) in
its opening weekend at the USF-
Rawlings
Invitational.
With
two outs, the runs broke the
floodgates open in a five-run first
inning en route to an 11-2, run-
rule victory in the Wolverines’
first marquee game of the season.
“Our first inning was huge,”
Michigan coach Carol Hutchins
said.
“And
obviously,
the
opponent, when you’re down by
something in the first inning, it
affects their ability to be free.
And we did a good job of we just
kept coming at them.”
The Wolverines certainly kept
coming.
Michigan went undefeated
on the weekend in Tampa, also
notching wins against Georgia
State (1-3), Illinois State (1-4),
South Florida (0-4) and Fresno
State (3-2). The five wins came
across a three-day slate, which
included
doubleheaders
on
Friday and Saturday.
Spearheading the Wolverines’
weekend
success
were
sophomore right-hander Alex
Storako and junior left-hander
Meghan Beaubien.
Storako opened Michigan’s
season Friday afternoon against
Georgia State by throwing a
career-high 16 strikeouts in a
complete game. She allowed
just five hits and one run in a
6-1 victory over the Panthers.
Storako also pitched innings
against Illinois State, Florida
and Fresno State for a weekend
earned-run-average of 1.0.
“I felt really good,” Storako
said. “I was able to throw one
pitch at a time. It was really nice
to really rely on my defense and
having a lot of trust in them back
there.”
Beaubien found her stride
as well, earning wins against
Illinois State, the University
of South Florida and Fresno
State. Beaubien finished the
weekend with 21 strikeouts and
four earned runs in 16 innings
pitched.
On
the
offensive
side,
Michigan found its bats early.
The Wolverines averaged 1.4
runs in the first inning and 2.6
runs in the first three innings.
“Hitting
is
contagious,”
Hutchins
said.
“We get a few
hits,
and
it
frees everybody
up
because
they don’t feel
pressure.”
Production
came
from
everywhere, but
Michigan
had
some
notable
standouts.
Junior first baseman Lou
Allan batted .375 with two home
runs, four RBI and four runs
over the weekend. Allan made
a statement with her hitting
opening weekend after missing
a large part of her sophomore
season due to injury, proving
her value in the starting lineup.
Junior Morgan Overaitis hit .588
over the three-day invitational,
contributing three runs and
three RBI to the Wolverine
offense.
Senior
outfielder
Haley
Hoogenraad hit .429 with four
runs and three RBI, sparking
the back-end of the batting
order in the seventh slot. Her
third RBI came as a walk-off
single in the bottom of the ninth
against Fresno State on Sunday
to claim Michigan’s 1-0 victory
and preserve its perfect record
coming back to Ann Arbor.
But the heroics weren’t only
left to Hoogenraad.
“Our pitchers got us out of
it,” Hutchins said. “Our pitchers
did everything they could so we
could find a way to muster up a
run. I was very pleased with the
pitchers.”
Over the five game stretch, the
lineup also seemed to solidify — a
lineup that was not set, according
to Hutchins, a week ahead of the
invitational. One new player who
appeared to claim her spot was
freshman Julia Jimenez.
Jimenez, the 20th-ranked 2019
recruit by FloSoftball, saw starts
at second base and designated
player. Jimenez played in all five
games — the only freshman to do
so — and contributed on both the
offensive and defensive sides of
the ball for the Wolverines.
“It’s why we recruit people,”
Hutchins
said.
“We want them to
come in. We don’t
want them to take
their
freshman
year off. We want
them to come in
and
contribute.
I
think
she’s
definitely a kid
who’s ready to
contribute at this
level. She had a
really strong weekend for us.”
As a team, the Wolverines
overcame
any
uncertainties
they had entering their opening
weekend. The only question
that remains is how they’ll build
on the impressive start — with
continued success or a fall back
to earth.
ALEXIS RANKIN/Daily
Junior forward Isaiah Livers made his return from injury on Saturday, scoring 14 points in a win over Michigan State that could help turn around Michigan’s season.
I’m already
back, talking,
just pointing
and directing.
ABBIE TELGENHOF
Daily Sports Writer
NICHOLAS STOLL
Daily Sports Writer
ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
Senior outfielder Haley Hoogenraad hit a walk-off single against Fresno State to give Michigan its fifth win of the weekend.
Just thinking
about trying
to stick to my
game plan.
Hitting is
contagious. ... It
frees everybody
up.