All 
University 
of 
Michigan 
athletics will be paused for two 
weeks starting Sunday, Jan. 24 in 
accordance with a recommendation 
from the state health department 
according to messages obtained by 
The Daily and confirmed by a source 
close to the athletic department. 
The order, which halts all athletic 
activity including practice, is limited 
exclusively to U-M athletics after 
a recent influx of positive cases 
within several Michigan teams. 
According 
to 
a 
statement 
released by the athletic department 
Saturday night, the Wolverines 
have been following Big Ten testing 
and reporting protocals, but the 
Michigan Department of Health 
and Human Services is taking a 
more stringent approach to the 
novel COVID-19 B.1.1.7 variant.
A source told The Daily that there 
were five confirmed cases of the 
new variant, with 15 more presumed 
positives throughout the athletic 
department. The novel strain was 
first introduced to Michigan at the 
beginning of the semester by a U-M 
athlete traveling from the United 
Kingdom. All members of the 
athletic department are expected to 
quarantine for 14 days.
“Canceling competitions is never 
something we want to do, but with 
so many unknowns about this 
variant of COVID-19, we must do 
everything we can to minimize 
the spread among student-athletes, 
coaches, staff, and to the student-
athletes at other schools,” said 
athletic director Warde Manuel in 
the statement released Saturday 
night. 
An 
MDHHS 
spokeswoman 

confirmed that five cases of the 
variant were found on Michigan 
athletic teams. An MDHHS memo 
provided to The Daily laid out the 
state’s recommendations for the 
next two weeks. Those include:
Immediate 14-day quarantine for 
all Michigan athletes, household 
members and close contacts starting 
from Jan. 23
A review of all positive test results 
in the past two weeks
Immediate PCR testing of all 
team members, including genetic 
sequencing of any positive tests
Thrice-weekly 
PCR 
testing 
during quarantine
The assumption that all cases 
linked to the outbreak are variant 
infections, pending confirmation
The memo also provides campus-
wide 
recommendations, 
saying 
that if the variant is detected in 
an organization, there should be 
twice-a-week PCR testing for all 
members of that organization. 
It also recommends ramping up 
testing for the entire community, 
and a 10-day quarantine for any 
students returning to campus from 
out of state or abroad.
This past week 22 student-
athletes tested positive for COVID-

19 per release, 13 more than the 
week prior. No coaches or staff 
tested positive. 
As of Sunday morning, 87.2% of 
Michigan’s athletic contests have 
been played. By the end of Jan. 6, that 
percentage will plummet to 59.6%. 
Saturday, the women’s basketball 
team rescheduled its postponed 
game against Michigan State for 
this week. The Wolverines had their 
own outbreak in early December 
after a match against Butler in 
which a Bulldog tested positive the 
day after the game, leading to two 
missed games. 
The men’s basketball team played 
on Friday at Purdue, even as a 
Boilermaker tested positive the day 
of the game. The volleyball team 
had their opening contest against 
Penn State this weekend postponed 
because of positive tests within the 
Penn State program. 
While 
reports 
indicate 
that 
neither of the basketball programs 
or hockey programs have had no 
positive tests, they still not will be 
allowed to play.
According to the release, no 
determination has been made on 
how the pause will impact schedules 
after Feb. 7.

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Michigan Athletics put on 14-day pause 
due to surge in COVID-19 cases

Graduation Edition 2023 — 13
Sports

ARTS

over the

YEARS

Bis etum il ius eliquam usaerum eium 
velicti comnit dunt, tota que consequo is 
essunture dolor molesti beriore, il ea ne 
plab ipsae excero te volorep tation re 
videndunt omnihil ipienda veliqui nobites 
et laboriame lantiossunt hil ius arumqui 
dentibus, qui aliat pa qui simolessit, nes 
escilit harum que volorit eicia con plis 
everum fugitatur si quiae esto blaturem labo. 
Itatas mos venis arumnihilla ntentotatem 
aut etum hil il mod quam es est as endaesc 
ipiendis escium lation cupta doluptam ab 

2013
2014

MARCH 12 — Due to the COVID-19 
pandemic, the remainder of winter and 
all of spring sports are canceled. The 
Big Ten postpones the beginning of fall 
sports to err on the side of caution and 
resumes on October 23.

MARCH 18 – The Michigan hockey team wins in 
its second straight Big Ten championship over 
Minnesota 4-3. Led by freshman forward Adam 
Fantilli, the 2023 Hobey Baker award winner, 
the Wolverines also advance to their second 
straight Frozen Four.

MARCH 30 – Michigan fifth-year heavyweight 
Mason Parris wins the National Championship 
in his division. Parris also becomes the first 
Wolverine to win the Hodge Trophy for the 
nation’s best collegiate wrestler.

2021

MARCH 31 — No. 1 seed Michigan men’s basketball 
advances to the Elite Eight under second-year 
coach Juwan Howard. After winning the Big Ten 
regular season championship, the Wolverines’ 
lose to UCLA, 51-49, failing to reach the Final 
Four.

APRIL 17 
— The Michigan women’s gymnastics 
team wins its first ever national championship.

DECEMBER 31 — The Michigan football team 
achieves its first College Football Playoff berth but 
fails to reach the National Championship, losing to 
Georgia, 34-11.

Sports
over the
YEARS

2022
2023
2020

MARCH 28 – The Michigan women’s 
basketball team advances to its first Elite 
Eight in program history after beating 
South Dakota 52-49, but the Wolverines’ 
historic runs ends after a loss to 
Louisville, 62-50. 

DECEMBER 4 – In its second straight Big 
Ten championship, the Michigan football 
team beats Purdue, 43-22, after defeating 
Iowa in 2021 for the title.

WICHITA, 
KAN. 
— 
The 
Michigan women’s basketball team 
knew it was do or die.
With a trip to the Elite Eight on 
the line — potentially the first in 
program history — the third seeded 
Wolverines (25-6 overall) rose to the 
challenge. 
Taking down No. 11-seed South 
Dakota (29-6), 52-49, in the Sweet 
Sixteen, the Wolverines once again 
made history.
“The moment we had today is 
never going to go away,” Michigan 
coach Kim Barnes Arico said. “So 
I’m just so happy for this group. 
… We’re still playing. There are 
eight darn teams left in the country 
playing and we are one of them. 
That’s pretty incredible.”
From the opening tip, it was 
a gritty, back and forth game. 
Throughout 
the 
entire 
game 
Michigan struggled to score, never 
truly finding an offensive groove. 
Instead, short spurts of efficient 
scoring kept the Wolverines afloat 
against a physical Coyote defense.
In the first quarter, trying to 
push the ball in transition, sloppy 
turnovers plagued Michigan. The 
Wolverines looked to their one-
two punch of senior forward Naz 
Hillmon and senior guard Leigha 
Brown, but to no avail.
Hillmon — who was triple-
teamed on every possession — 
notched zero points in the first 
quarter and just six in the second. 
Brown faired slightly better, but 

any limited success she had was 
unsustainable. Working deep into 
the rotation early, Michigan tried to 
get something going. A short run at 
the end of the first quarter kept the 
Wolverines from fully breaking.
But opening the second quarter 
with two missed 3-pointers from 
junior guard Maddie Nolan and 
a shot-clock violation, Michigan 
quickly fell out of what little rhythm 
it had gained. Short offensive spurts 
from freshman guard Laila Phelia 
kept the Wolverines in the game 
— and a strong defensive showing 
forced South Dakota into tough 
shots — but nothing seemed to stick. 
It quickly became clear Michigan 
wouldn’t magically overcome its 
struggles, but would have to fight 
for every possession. On this night, 
nothing would come easy.
With their offense faltering, the 
Wolverines dug into their defensive 
identity, trying to keep South Dakota 
contained on offense. Clogging 
the paint and hedging high on ball 
screens, Michigan tried to disrupt 
the Coyotes offensive game plan. 
“We play a different style than a 
lot of the teams that (South Dakota) 
played,” Barnes Arico said. “Just 
going back and watching the film of 
their first two tournament games, 
who they beat, two Power Five 
opponents that are awesome teams, 
they defended it differently than we 
did tonight. We wanted to give them 
a different look. I think it sped them 
up and made them take quicker 
shots than maybe they wanted to 
take.”
Yet, South Dakota still jumped 
out to an early lead. Failing to put 

together a complete game, the 
Wolverines allowed the Coyotes to 
hang around throughout the half, 
entering the locker room down by 
two points.
“They were definitely scrappy, 
they fought and clawed to the last 
minute,” Hillmon said. “They were 
in there running around for every 
rebound, trying to take charges 
throughout the game, everything in 
between.”
Despite 
obvious 
halftime 
adjustments, the third quarter 
followed the same narrative of 
offensive struggle. Doubling down 
on finding Hillmon and senior 
forward Emily Kiser in the paint, 
Michigan finally found the shots it 
wanted — but failed to capitalize. 
More short spurts of successful 
offense from Hillmon and Brown 
kept the Coyotes from deepening 
the wound, just barely.
The Coyotes continued to force 
the Wolverines out of rotation 
and score at every level. Draining 
3-pointers 
and 
finding 
their 
forwards inside, South Dakota 
kept Michigan from gaining any 
momentum. Regaining the lead at 
the tail end of the third quarter, the 
Wolverines narrowly escaped with a 
one point lead.
With the game very much within 
reach for either team throughout 
the entirety of the fourth quarter, 
Michigan continued to struggle 
finding offensive consistency and 
keep the game within its control.
Coming down to the final play, 
the Coyotes had a chance to secure 
the lead with 20 second left on the 
clock. South Dakota launched an 
open 3-pointer for the lead — only 
for the ball to bounce off the rim 
into Hillmon’s hands, with a foul 
following. The next possession, 
another Coyote foul sent Brown to 
the line for the first time all night. 
Draining both, Brown put the 
Wolverines back in control with a 
four point lead.
Michigan 
would 
hold 
on, 
emerging victorious.
And for the first time in program 
history, with just eight teams left 
vying for a national championship, 
the Wolverines are still dancing.

Michigan escapes Sweet Sixteen with 
win over South Dakota, 52-49

INDIANAPOLIS 
— 
The 
Michigan men’s basketball team 
rode its offense to reach the 
Sweet Sixteen. On Sunday, it 
used its defense to punch a ticket 
to the Elite Eight.
In a game they dominated 
at every stage, the Wolverines 
(23-4 overall, 14-3 Big Ten) 
downed Florida State (18-7), 
76-58, to keep their season alive 
for at least one more game. 
From the beginning, that 
defense frustrated the Seminoles. 
Michigan forced 14 turnovers, 
including nine in the first half 
alone, and limited Florida State 
to 40% shooting from the field. 
In transition, the Wolverines 
capitalized on the Seminoles’ 
miscues, scoring 16 fastbreak 
points while surrendering just 
six. Florida State looked out of 
sync all night long, going on 
two separate scoreless stretches 
lasting over four minutes. The 
dominant defensive effort was 
something that Michigan coach 
Juwan Howard envisioned for 
his team from the day he took 
the job in 2019.
“Defense has been one of our 
staples of our identity as far as 
on the offensive end,” Howard 
said. “We have habits on how 
we developed it last year when 
I first arrived, and when we 
returned to the campus in June, 
first thing that we met as a staff, 
and then also the first meeting 
when we were able to have our 
first official practice, we talked 
about how we’re going to be a 
better defensive team.”
On the offensive end, the 
Wolverines got a lift from junior 
forward 
Brandon 
Johns 
Jr. 
Starting in just his fourth game 
of the season, Johns scored a 
season-best 14 points to lead 
the way, punctuated by a series 
of high-flying jams. On the 
defensive side, Johns drew two 
charges and notched a steal, 
coming through on both ends in 

the biggest game of his career.
“We always tell him that he 
can really be the best player 
out there when he steps on the 
court,” sophomore wing Franz 
Wagner said. “So we have huge 
confidence in Brandon. I think 
he does too. You can see, he 
played a stellar game today, got 
some key offensive rebounds, 
and those little things, I think, 
are very important when you try 
to win the championship.”
Wagner 
produced 
another 
all-around 
statline 
with 
13 
points, 10 rebounds and five 
assists, routinely scoring inside 
on crafty finishes and finding 
teammates inside of the dribble. 
“I think I always try to attack 
the 
basket, 
be 
aggressive,” 
Wagner said. “But like I said, 
I think all that only happens 
when we move the ball and don’t 
dribble too much. That’s when 
really everything opens up.”
Facing off against a Florida 
State team with an average 
height of 6-foot-7, Michigan 
dominated 
on 
the 
glass. 
Led by four from freshman 
center 
Hunter 
Dickinson, 
the Wolverines hauled in 11 
offensive rebounds and scored 
17 second-chance points off of 
those opportunities.
“Our 
guys 
came 
with 
a 
mindset,” Howard said. “We 
talked about it leading up to the 
game. We showed it on film. We 
also talked about it before the 
game, about we have to attack 
the offensive glass. We can’t sit 

back on our heels and leave it 
untouched.”
On the opposite side of the 
court, 
Michigan 
prevented 
the 
Seminoles 
from 
ever 
establishing an offensive flow. 
The Wolverines limited Florida 
State to a 5-for-20 shooting night 
from beyond the arc, and proved 
themselves to be disciplined 
inside as well, allowing the 
Seminoles to shoot just six free 
throws.
In the second half, Florida 
State 
appeared 
to 
gain 
momentum for the first time 
since early in the first half with 
its first two 3-pointers of the 
night. The Wolverines quickly 
ensured that any hope of a 
Seminole comeback would be 
relinquished quickly, countering 
with an and-one from graduate 
guard Mike Smith before senior 
center Austin Davis followed 
with two straight finishes inside 
to key a 7-0 spurt to push the 
lead back to 46-36. 
“I think you can see that 
out there on the court that 
people are really confident out 
there and just confident and 
comfortable within their role out 
there,” Wagner said.
In the game’s final moments, 
Howard called for a timeout 
and brought in his reserves. As 
freshman guard Zeb Jackson 
dribbled out the clock, the 
Wolverines clinched their 23rd 
victory of the season.
This one brought them one 
step closer to their ultimate goal.

ETHAN SEARS
2019/2020 Managing Sports Editor

ALUM MADDIE HINKLEY/Daily

MINNEAPOLIS — As the No. 
4 Michigan hockey team hoisted 
the Big Ten Trophy following its 
victory over No. 1 Minnesota, there 
was almost an overwhelming sense 
of familiarity to the night’s events. 
It was deja vu all over again.
The minor details changed, 
the stars were different and the 
Wolverines 
sported 
a 
newer, 
younger coach. But on Saturday 
night, against the same Golden 
Gophers (26-8-1, overall) in the 
same arena and by the same score, 
Michigan (24-11-3) accomplished 
what it had a year prior — again. 
And for the first time in program 
history, the Wolverines captured a 
second straight Big Ten title.
“It feels great. It feels great,” 
Michigan coach Brandon Naurato 
repeated. “That’s a really, really 
good team over there and an unreal 
atmosphere this year and last year. 
…You really have to earn it.”
In a contest that came down to 
the wire in front of a rowdy sellout 
crowd, that was what Michigan 
just managed to do. Its patient, 

systematic 
offense 
outlasted 
Minnesota’s fiery rush and pushed 
it to a 4-3 victory.
But for a contest featuring two of 
the nation’s highest flying offenses, 
the night started at a subdued pace. 
The Wolverines and the Gophers 
toiled in the neutral zone for most 
of the first period, each side unable 
to string chances together.
Seven minutes in however, 
Minnesota 
caught 
a 
break. 
Michigan sophomore defenseman 
Luke Hughes launched a point shot 
that was blocked and sent the other 
way for a 2-on-1 score from forward 
Brody Lamb. 
That breakthrough was all either 
side mustered, and the rest of the 
period played out as a prolonged 
feeling out process.
“I thought we were just OK, 
almost very average in the first 
period,” Naurato said.
In the second period though, the 
wait-and-see tactics were thrown 
out the window and replaced with 
a flurry of goals. 
The Wolverines pressed early, 
maintaining 
zone 
possession 
and moving pucks low-to-high. 
Three minutes in, that all paid 
off for freshman forward Rutger 

McGroarty as he ripped a bobbling 
puck top shelf. And 34 seconds 
later, back in front of the net with 
another rebound on his stick, it 
paid off for McGroarty again as he 
put his team up 2-1.
“I don’t think those guys (on 
the first line) were happy as a line 
with how they played in the first,” 
Naurato said. “ … For them to 
come out and just get to the net, as 
simple as that sounds, good things 
happen.”
With two back-to-back goals, 
McGroarty almost instantaneously 
flipped the game script by putting 
the Wolverines up 2-1. And for the 
first time, the Gophers were put 
on edge. In danger, Minnesota 
returned to what was working — 
its rush — and the Wolverines had 
little answer for it. 
Midway through the second 
frame, a wayward pass from 
McGroarty in Michigan’s offensive 
zone ended up on the stick of 
forward Jimmy Snuggerud, who 
found Cooley with open ice where 
he tied the contest. And again, it 
was the Gophers’ explosive rush 
that put them back in front early 
in the third when forward Rhett 
Pitlick picked his way through 
three Wolverines defensemen and 
scored to put Minnesota ahead 3-2. 
That lead didn’t last long though, 
as freshman forward Seamus Casey 
tied the affair four minutes later 
with a standard point shot, again 
built off of sustained pressure. The 
Gophers were playing with speed, 
Michigan with systematic patience, 
and as the clock ticked down, 
there was nothing to separate the 
approaches. 
But then with less than eight 
minutes 
to 
play, 
sophomore 

Michigan tops Minnesota, 4-3, wins 
second straight Big Ten Championship

CHARLIE PAPPALARDO
Daily Sports Writer

ABBIE TELGENHOF
Daily Sports Editor

Wolverines ride defense to stifle Florida 
State, advance to Elite Eight

TEDDY GUTKIN
2021 Daily Sports Editor

JULIANNE YOON/Daily

EMMA MATI/Daily

 Read more at MichiganDaily.com

Photo by Brett Wilhelm/NCAA Photos via Getty Images