The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1351834
62 THE WOLVERINE APRIL 2021 WHERE ARE THEY NOW? "At some point, if you play basket- ball long enough and you're a good player, you'll be in a zone. Mine just happened to be on the biggest stage, on Monday night. In that first half, it felt like there was nothing I could do wrong. "My shot felt so good. Obviously, it helped that I probably wasn't Lou- isville's main priority. My teammates did a great job of finding me. That hoop looked massive in that first half." Not surprisingly, Michigan carried massive hopes into the next year, after finishing 31-8 and reaching the title game the season before, even with Burke moving on to the pros. When McGary and Robinson confirmed they were returning, anticipation soared. "We were fired up," Albrecht said. "We actually felt we had a chance to be better than we were my freshman year. Five sophomores with another year of experience. We fully expected to get back to the national champion- ship game and try to finish what we started." Those hopes took a major wallop when McGary underwent season- ending back surgery. The Wolverine still recorded their first outright Big Ten championship since 1985-86, but dropped an Elite Eight showdown with Kentucky, 75-72. "I still think if he's healthy and he plays, we do win the national cham- pionship," Albrecht insisted. "He was that good. If you would have seen him that summer and that pre- season — the stuff he was doing was incredible." The season still featured incred- ible highlights, including a sweep of Michigan State and Spartan fans "chanting some nasty stuff" at their most-hated visitors. "I remember going into East Lan- sing and beating them, and Stauskas running off the floor, blowing kisses," Albrecht recalled. "That was a huge win for us. We were two of the best teams in the country. We were trying to prove who was top dog." McGary, Robinson and Stauskas bolted for the NBA after the season. Albrecht became a top dog at guard, but not how he'd have desired it. Starters Caris LeVert and Derrick Wal- ton Jr. succumbed to injuries, and the Wolverines nose-dived to a 16-16 re- cord and no tournament appearance. "We were alright that year," Al- brecht reasoned. "If Caris and Der- rick are healthy and playing, we're in the NCAA Tournament. But when those two went down, we weren't super talented. We had some good players, but they were young. "We go from playing in a national championship game and winning the Big Ten outright to missing the NCAA Tournament and not even making the NIT — that was a tough year, for sure." It got tougher. Femoroacetabular Impingement (FAI) stole his senior season at Michi- gan. The bones in Albrecht's hips weren't meshing properly — "like a square peg in a round hole," he was told. The condition bothered him his fi- nal three years at Michigan, but finally, he couldn't go on, without surgery. "I was in a bad place," he said. "I was hurting. I wanted to be out there, helping my team, going out on a high note at the University of Michigan. It wasn't in the cards, unfortunately." He wanted a fifth year in Ann Ar- bor, but knew Zavier Simpson was coming in, and got "vibes" that there wasn't room. "I remember going into Coach Beilein's office and saying, 'I definitely want to play again, and to give this a go. I'm going to look to explore other op- tions.' That was tough for both of us." He did get that fifth year, and an- other Big Ten championship — at Purdue. He loved the friendships he made, head coach Matt Painter and getting a master's degree. Now Albrecht remains hip-deep in basketball, doing full-time basketball training, online and in person. He op- erates in northwest Indiana and Ann Arbor, and can be reached via Insta- gram and Twitter for opportunities. He's open to coaching as well, in the right situation. He knows that given a chance, all sorts of magic can happen. ❏ The Spike Albrecht File Michigan Accomplishments: Played for the 31-8 Wolverines, who made it to the NCAA championship game in 2013 … Scored 17 points in the title contest, all in the first half … Averaged 3.9 points, 2.0 assists and 1.3 rebounds per con- test in 115 games with 19 starts … Shot 39.9 percent on three-pointers and 84.8 percent on free throws … Performed on Michigan's outright Big Ten champions in 2013-14. Professional Accomplishments: Has worked in medical device sales and served as an assistant coach at Northfield Mount Hermon in Massachusetts … Now works as a professional basketball trainer, in person and via Zoom. Michigan Memory: "That whole Final Four experience my freshman year was incredible. But when I think of my entire Michigan career and my journey, it's the people, the culture, the University, the way the fans and the alumni band together to network. They truly rally around you. Even to this day, anywhere I go, if I've got a Michigan shirt on, even if they don't know me, it's 'Go Blue!' "It's a legit, universal brand. Michigan is a powerful, powerful place, one of the greatest universities in the world. I was truly fortunate to be able to go there, get my degree and play basketball." Education: Earned a bachelor's degree in general studies from Michigan in May 2016 … Earned a master's in technology, leadership and innovation from Purdue in August 2017. Albrecht now works as a full-time basketball trainer, online and in person in northwest Indiana and Ann Arbor. PHOTO COURTESY SPIKE ALBRECHT