The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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NOVEMBER 2021 THE WOLVERINE 41 2021-22 BASKETBALL PREVIEW at 6-7, 230 averaged 1.9 points and 2.2 rebounds per game in 21 appearances off the bench last year; 6-10, 240-pound se- nior Jaron Faulds; and 6-8, 230-pound freshman Will Tschetter. The No. 2-ranked prep player in the state of Minnesota last year, Tschetter av- eraged 30.3 points and 11.8 rebounds for Stewartville High, with 45 three-pointers. He racked up 2,467 career points at the school. BREAKTHROUGH FROSH AT THE THREE SPOT? Michigan features several players who could potentially play the small forward position. While a freshman's reaction to college life and basketball can't ever be assumed, Michigan features one who might be the safest bet since Howard and his teammates came along as freshmen in the fall of 1991. Caleb Houstan, at 6-8, 205, ranked No. 6 among preps in the ESPN ratings, mak- ing him the highest-rated U-M newcomer since Glenn Robinson III entered in 2012 at No. 18. The McDonald's All-American comes in as the Gatorade Florida Boys Basketball Player of the Year from Mont- verde Academy in Florida. Originally from Mississauga, Ontario, Houstan led the Canadian National Team to the bronze medal in the 2021 FIBA U19 World Cup in Latvia this past summer, averaging 17.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.3 steals per game. Having reclassified from 2022 to 2021, Houstan didn't experience a senior season at Montverde, but averaged 13.2 points and 4.6 rebounds as a junior, shooting 53 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range. Houstan appears quietly circumspect in talking about himself, but his numbers tell plenty. "I just want to keep on working on my ability to create my own shot, continue to work on my handle," Houstan said. "He's really talented, and he's a high- character guy," Dickinson observed. "That's something Coach Howard does really well, get high-character guys that are going to be able to buy into the system. That's what Caleb is. "He's really good at shooting the ball, of course, but we're going to make him a really good defender. That's what we do at Michigan — we guard." Williams can definitely guard, and if he's developed a bit better shooting touch, he could see minutes at the three. Freshman guard/forward Isaiah Barnes is another candidate at that spot, the 6-7, 185-pounder averaging 18.0 points and 8.0 rebounds as a senior at Simeon Career Academy in Chicago. The battle for minutes is on, and Wil- liams plans to bring an edge to the fight, having referred to himself as a "junkyard dog." "I'm going to continue to carry that throughout the years," he said. "I've been doing it in high school as well, playing that type of way, always playing hard whenever I'm on the court. That trans- lates to middle school, high school, col- lege now. I'm going to keep saying that — I'm a junkyard dog." The Wolverines feature a solid mix of talent and toughness throughout, includ- ing in the frontcourt. They're not conced- ing anything — even a single defeat. ❏ Michigan Men's Basketball Roster — Frontcourt No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. Hometown 1 Hunter Dickinson C 7-1 260 So. Alexandria, Va. 5 Terrance Williams II F 6-7 230 So. Clinton, Md. 11 Isaiah Barnes G/F 6-7 185 Fr. Chicago 14 Moussa Diabate F 6-11 210 Fr. Paris, France 22 Caleb Houstan G/F 6-8 205 Fr. Mississauga, Ontario 23 Brandon Johns Jr. F 6-8 240 Sr. East Lansing, Mich. 42 Will Tschetter F 6-8 230 Fr. Stewartville, Minn. 44 Jaron Faulds F 6-10 240 Sr. Holt, Mich. Fewest Losses In Michigan's Past 30 Years Of Basketball Sophomore center Hunter Dickinson won't disrespect his team by acknowledg- ing the possibility of any losses this year — until and unless they happen. The Wolverines have posted some strong seasons since Juwan Howard first came along as a player in the fall of 1991. Here's a quick look at the five teams in that period with the fewest defeats: 1. 1992-93 (31-5) — The sophomore season of the Fab Five featured three future NBA All-Stars in the lineup — Howard, Chris Webber and Jalen Rose. The Wolverines surged all the way to the national championship game at the Louisi- ana Superdome before losing a heartbreaker to North Carolina, 77-71. 2. 2018-19 (30-7) — John Beilein's Wolverines earned a third-place finish in the Big Ten, before making it to the title game of the Big Ten Tournament. They won their way to the Sweet 16 in NCAA Tournament play, beating Montana and Florida before losing to No. 9 Texas Tech, 63-44. 3. 2017-18 (33-8) — Beilein's 2017-18 crew finished tied for fourth in the Big Ten, but caught fire at tournament time, battling its way to the Big Ten Tourna- ment title. The Wolverines then took down five straight opponents in the NCAA Tournament, including winning a nail-biter over Florida State, 58-54. U-M beat Loyola-Chicago to advance to the national championship game, but bowed to Villanova, 79-62. 4. 2012-13 (31-8) — This team marked Beilein's first at Michigan to come within one win of a national title. The Wolverines, behind national Player of the Year Trey Burke and a host of talented younger players, fought their way to the championship game. Along the way, they took out No. 3 Kansas in an overtime thriller, 87-85. But despite Spike Albrecht's unbelievable first-half performance in the title contest, the Wolverines fell to Louisville, 82-76. 5. 1993-94 (24-8) — In Howard's final season as a Michigan player, U-M again made an NCAA run, this time to the Elite Eight. But the Wolverines lost to Mary- land in Dallas, 78-71, and soon thereafter, Howard and Rose announced their intention to enter the NBA Draft. — John Borton