The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1488967
JANUARY 2023 THE WOLVERINE 41 MICHIGAN BASKETBALL THREE BEST PLAYERS 1. Junior center Hunter Dickinson During the eight-game stretch, the team captain scored in double figures seven times, including a double-double with 24 points and 14 boards in a win over Ohio Nov. 20, and he led U-M in scoring on five occasions. The 7-foot-1, 260-pounder connected on 6 or more field goals in all but two of those showings. One of the country's top big men, Dickinson leads the Big Ten with 1.069 points per post-up possession (including passes), according to Synergy. 2. Sophomore guard Kobe Bufkin The Grand Rapids, Mich., native has emerged as one of Michigan's top options offensively and best defensive players. He has a bigger role with graduate guard Jaelin Llewellyn suffering a season-ending ACL injury versus Ken- tucky Dec. 4, now playing the backup point guard role in addition to starting at the '2.' He scored in double figures each of the last five games, and set career highs with 15 points against Minnesota Dec. 8 and 22 points versus Lip- scomb Dec. 17. After starting the season 2-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc, the 6-foot-4, 195-pounder made 9 of his last 16 triple tries. 3. Freshman guard Jett Howard He's lost at times defensively, but his offensive skill is as developed as we've seen for a freshman. Howard has ev- ery move in the book and is the team's best jump shooter, with 26 makes on 65 three-point attempts. The 6-foot-8, 215-pounder scored 12 or more points in all eight games during this stretch and is coming on as a pick-and-roll ball handler, ranking third in the Big Ten among those with 50 or more possessions with 1.019 points per play for the year. Howard is also second on the team with 11 blocks and third with 25 assists. KEY MOMENT Michigan trailed by four points with just more than four minutes to play in its 83-75 win over Lipscomb Dec. 17. The Maize and Blue had three nonconference losses and couldn't afford to drop a second game on their home floor, especially to a team that entered the day ranking worse than 200th in KenPom.com's adjusted efficiency margin. Michigan proceeded to go on a 14-2 run to finish out the eight-point win, behind some stellar play from its backcourt. Bufkin hit a three to get things going, before freshman Dug McDaniel — who was scoreless to that point — posted seven of the Wolverines' 11 points in the last 3:32. BEST HIGHLIGHT Bufkin made a big play to cap off what was an outstanding first half against Virginia Nov. 29 at Crisler Center. Checking Virginia guard Reece Beekman beyond the three-point line, Bufkin cut off the ball handler, poked the ball away and tracked it down. Taking it to the rim, Bufkin made a nifty move to shake Beekman and laid it in with just less than four seconds left in the half. That put Michigan up 45-34 at the break, before losing 70-68. BOLD PREDICTION McDaniel took over the starting point guard reins after Llewellyn went down with his injury. We'll say he's named to the All-Big Ten Freshman Team after the regular season, due to his potential, upward trajectory and opportunity. The last aspect is a big one, too, with the position being so impor- tant. Wisconsin point guard Chucky Hepburn was named to the all-freshman team a season ago, when he averaged 7.9 points, 2.3 assists and 2.1 rebounds per game. McDaniel is at 5.5 points, 2.7 assists and 2.7 rebounds per outing through 10 games and is only two contests into being the starter at the lead guard spot. His 13.3 points, 6.7 assists and 5.3 rebounds per 40 minutes are all higher than Hepburn's from a season ago, too. — Clayton Sayfie Superlatives For U-M's Eight Games From Nov. 16 To Dec. 17 Bufkin scored in double figures in five straight games from Nov. 23 to Dec. 17, the most recent of which was a career-high 22 points in an 83-75 win versus Lipscomb. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL