The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1479568
OCTOBER 2022 THE WOLVERINE 55 BY ANTHONY BROOME T he Big Ten Conference and U-M's women's hoops announced the full schedule for the 2022-23 season on Sept. 7. The new campaign brings about at least eight opponents from the 2022 NCAA Tournament field throughout the year. Michigan will play 11 nonconference games and 18 Big Ten matchups during the regular season with the culmination taking place at the Big Ten Tournament from March 1-5, 2023, at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn. U-M kicks off the year with three consecutive games at Crisler Center — Delaware State (Nov. 9), St. Francis Pa. (Nov. 11) and Western Michigan (Nov. 16) — before heading out on the road for five straight games. The first is a date at Fair- field on Nov. 20 before heading to the Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla., from Nov. 25-27. Michigan opens play against Air Force on Nov. 25 with Baylor, St. Louis, Villanova, Belmont, Georgia Tech and USF also participating in the event. The team has an additional Florida date set for Dec. 1 at Miami as part of the Big Ten/ ACC Challenge. Upon returning from Florida, U-M will play three more games in a row at Crisler, headlined by an early Big Ten matchup with Northwestern on Dec. 4. Dates with Toledo (Dec. 8) and Appalachian State (Dec. 17) follow. Michigan closes out non- conference play on Dec. 20 against North Carolina in the Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte. Michigan's 17 remaining Big Ten games will take place between Dec. 28 and Feb. 27. The schedule includes home-and- home dates with Indiana, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio State and Rutgers, with single matchups set against the other eight teams. U-M is coming off its best season in program history, a 25-7 campaign that finished in an NCAA Elite Eight appear- ance and a No. 12 ranking in the Associ- ated Press poll. The Wolverines return four of their top five scorers from last season in gradu- ate guard Leigha Brown (14.0 points per game), graduate forward Emily Kiser (9.3), senior guard Maddie Nolan (8.9) and sophomore guard Laila Phelia (8.8). Michigan also added the program's first- ever McDonald's All-American in Oregon State transfer Greta Kampschroeder, who averaged 5.2 points per game in 31 con- tests last season. U-M ADDS HIGHEST-RANKED COMMIT IN PROGRAM HISTORY Head coach Kim Barnes Arico's build of the program keeps pushing forward com- ing off another tremendous season. On Sept. 8, the Wolverines landed the verbal commitment of elite 2024 point guard Olivia Olson, whom ESPN ranks the No. 3 player in the class. This makes her the highest-ranked women's basketball com- mit in school history. Olson, who attends Benilde-St. Mar- garet's in St. Louis Park, Minn., saw the culture in Ann Arbor and knew she was ready to join the Wolverines. "Coach Arico is building something special, and I want to be a part of it," Ol- son told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "Everyone loves each other there, and I could feel that on the visit." Olson visited on Labor Day weekend and informed the staff of her decision shortly after the visit. She revealed it on Sept. 8 via social media. Olson averaged 22.8 points per game last season and led her school to the Class 3A state tournament. Other schools under consideration by Olson included peren- nial NCAA powerhouses Connecticut and Stanford. Olson is the first ESPN top 40 commit in 2024 to select a school. She will be a high school junior this season. ❏ MICHIGAN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Hoops Schedule Released For 2022-23 Season Elite 2024 point guard Olivia Olson, listed by ESPN as the No. 3 player in the class, is the highest-ranked women's basketball commit in Michigan history. The 6-footer averaged 22.8 points per game last season at Benilde-St. Margaret's in St. Louis Park, Minn. PHOTO COURTESY OLIVIA OLSON 2022-23 MICHIGAN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent Nov. 5 Daemen (Exhibition) Nov. 9 Delaware State Nov. 11 St. Francis (Pa.) Nov. 16 Western Michigan Nov. 20 at Fairfield Nov. 25 vs. Air Force^ Nov. 26 TBD^ Nov. 27 TBD^ Dec. 1 at Miami (Fla.)% Dec. 4 Northwestern* Dec. 8 Toledo Dec. 17 Appalachian State Dec. 20 vs. North Carolina$ Dec. 28 at Nebraska* Dec. 31 at Ohio State* Jan. 3 Penn State* Jan. 7 Iowa* Jan. 10 at Purdue* Jan. 14 Michigan State* Jan. 19 at Rutgers* Jan. 23 Indiana* Jan. 26 at Maryland* Jan. 29 at Minnesota* Feb. 2 Illinois* Feb. 5 at Michigan State* Feb. 12 Nebraska* Feb. 16 at Indiana* Feb. 20 Ohio State* Feb. 23 Rutgers* Feb. 26 at Wisconsin* Mar. 1-5 Big Ten Tournament (Minneapolis, Minn.) ^ Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla. % ACC/Big Ten Challenge $ Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte, N.C. * Big Ten Conference game