The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1465168
MAY 2022 THE WOLVERINE 37 to make a deep run. "Maybe that's the common denominator." "He's everything that Michigan is all about, and I'm just happy that I get an opportunity — and I know I speak for the staff when I say this — to learn from a young man like Eli Brooks," Howard said on "The Rich Eisen Show." Dickinson — who scored 48 points in the first two games of the NCAA Tour- nament, the most by a Michigan player since Juwan Howard in 1994 — fired the ball straight up into the air as the buzzer sounded, and the Wolverine contingent at Gainbridge Fieldhouse went wild. U-M was sweet again. "That's one of the reasons why I ended up choosing Michigan — the pedigree and the tradition of winning," Dickinson said. "There is a prestige that comes with wearing that block 'M' that I don't take lightly and something I wear proudly." After all the hardship this team had faced throughout the course of the up- and-down year, it reached the second weekend of the tournament, one of just two Big Ten teams, along with Purdue, to advance to the Sweet 16. U-M has won five NCAA Tournament games since Howard was hired in the spring of 2019, three more than any other team in the league. Yes, that same team that was on the receiving end of "NIT" chants when playing at Michigan State, Wisconsin, Ohio State and other hostile venues across the Big Ten was still playing. "They were hurtful. They definitely hurt," Dickinson said of the chants, with a sarcastic tone. "It's funny how they'll be watching us on Thursday back at their cribs." A HEARTBREAKING FINAL CHAPTER U-M took on No. 2 seed Villanova March 24 in the South Regional semifi- nal at the AT&T Center in San Antonio. The Wildcats play at a methodical pace, limit turnovers, shoot and hit a lot of three-pointers and play good defense. With no players in the Vil- lanova rotation taller than 6-8, U-M had the size advantage, but the Big East champions had the speed and quick- ness edge. The game, a 63-55 Wildcat win, didn't go as scripted for the Maize and Blue, though. They actually limited Vil- lanova to 37 percent shooting from the field and just 1.02 PPP, its third-lowest total in a win to that point in the year. Uncharacteristically, U-M lost the game on the offensive end. T h e Wo lve r i n e s co u l d n 't b uy a bucket, even the easy stuff, reminiscent of their last two NCAA Tournament ex- its — against Texas Tech in 2019 and UCLA in 2021. Michigan shot 34.8 percent on two- point field goals and missed half of its free throws (7 of 14). The Wolverines were 10-of-26 on layups and 2-of-3 on dunks, stunning stats for a Michigan team that shot 53.3 percent from in- side the arc coming into the night and scored more points from two-pointers than any other Big Ten squad. "We got good looks," Brooks said after his final college game. "We just didn't capitalize." Dickinson scored 15 points and went 6 of 15 from inside the arc, with that 40 percent clip down from his 60.5 mark for the season. "Hunter got the ball in some good spots," Howard noted of his big man's deep post position. "Yes, some of the spots that he was pushed off the block, but overall we got some good looks at the basket." In many ways, Dickinson carried U-M this season, but didn't provide enough or get adequate help in the final game. "Unfortunately, it just didn't go our way," Howard added. ❏ For college basketball coaches, the work doesn't stop when the season ends nowadays, with the rise of the trans- fer portal and players being able to declare for the NBA Draft but still keep open the possibility of a return. U-M has three players with NBA decisions to make, and it could lose or add others to and from the portal. U-M has expressed interest in several players who are looking for a new home. Fifth-year senior Eli Brooks is out of eligibility. Fellow fifth- year senior guard DeVante' Jones has one year of eligibility left, but he declared for the NBA Draft March 26, announc- ing his intention to end his collegiate career. Senior forward Brandon Johns Jr. and guard Adrien Nunez could each play one more year, but neither are expected back. Johns en- tered the transfer portal April 6, and Nunez will move on to his next phase. That means, currently, the Maize and Blue are at the 13-scholarship limit for next season, but that could change. Underclassmen with remaining eligibility have until April 24 to declare for the 2022 NBA Draft, and, while they're not appearing on mock drafts, there are three on the Wolverines' roster who are likely do so in sophomore center Hunter Dickinson, freshman guard/forward Caleb Houstan and freshman forward Moussa Diabate. Dickinson went through the process last season and earned an invitation to the G League Elite Camp before re- turning for his sophomore season. He said before the year he was back for "one last ride," but that's not set in stone. "After the season, I took two weeks off of basketball, not worrying about anything," Dickinson told Bally Sports De- troit at the April 11 Detroit Tigers game. "I've just started getting back to basketball, thinking about it. I haven't made a decision yet, but I plan on making one relatively soon." Should Houstan and/or Diabate go through with the NBA Draft June 23, they'd become U-M's second (and potentially third) one-and-done players of the century, joining Ignas Brazdeikis in 2019. Houstan was a projected top-10 2022 pick by some head- ing into his freshman campaign, but he had an up-and- down season. The former five-star averaged 10.1 points and four rebounds per game, while shooting 38.4 percent overall and 35.5 percent from three-point range. Diabate, meanwhile, wasn't as highly touted out of high school, but he has long been viewed as a potential one- or two-year college player. He averaged nine points and six rebounds per contest. Underclassmen who declare for the draft have until June 1 at 11:59 p.m. ET to withdraw their names and retain their eligibility. — Clayton Sayfie Michigan Players With Decisions To Make