The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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FEBRUARY 2023 THE WOLVERINE 45 MICHIGAN BASKETBALL nine points, 93-84 in overtime. "Thump and bump," Michigan as- sistant Saddi Washington called the combination during his halftime radio interview. "Tarris has great feet from a defensive standpoint, so we can get away with it sometimes." The Wolverines needed a second-half spark the following game, Jan. 15 against Northwestern and again saw positive results. Michigan trailed by two points when Reed came into the game at the 13-minute mark of the second half. By the time he was subbed out with 2:17 left, the Wolverines held a 10-point edge (he played both power forward and center during that stretch, but mostly the for- mer). All told in the 85-78 win, Reed was a plus-2 in the box score, and contrib- uted 6 points on 3 field goal attempts, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks and 1 steal. Dickinson hopes to unfurl the front- court duo again this season. "It was really fun to go out there and play with him," Dickinson, a 7-foot-1, 260-pounder, said. "That's something that I would look forward to in the fu- ture if we're able to do that in some more games. — Clayton Sayfie Three Best Players 1. Freshman guard Jett Howard His defense isn't quite up to par at this point, but the head coach's son is as pure of a scorer as they come. He's averag- ing 15.5 points per game, the ninth-most in the Big Ten and second-highest amount among the league's freshmen, with 43 made three-pointers (second in the conference). He put up a career-high 34 points in a 94-84 overtime loss at Iowa Jan. 12 and has recently upped his passing production, with 2.9 assists per game over the last seven outings, including a career-best 7 in an 85-78 win over Northwestern Jan. 15. 2. Sophomore guard Kobe Bufkin The sophomore leap is real for the Grand Rapids, Mich., native, and his production and consistency have only in- creased with more on his plate, now serving as the team's second point guard. He scored in double figures in five of the last seven games, including two 20-plus point perfor- mances — 22 in an 80-76 loss to North Carolina Dec. 21 and 20 in an 85-78 victory over Northwestern Jan. 15. He's also averaging 3.1 assists per clash in that stretch and has been the team's best defender. 3. Junior center Hunter Dickinson A few opponents have recently limited the 7-foot-1, 260-pounder by double teaming him on the catch, but that has opened up opportunities for his teammates. In fact, he put up 10 or fewer field goal attempts in five of the last seven games (North Carolina, Central Michigan, Penn State, Iowa and Northwestern). But in four of those outings, the Wolverines shot 39 percent or better from long range, showing the good looks are there. Dickinson has still scored in double figures in each of his last six tilts, highlighted by a 32-point performance in an 81-46 win over Maryland Jan. 1. Key Moment Many wrote Michigan off after a 63-61 loss to Central Michigan Dec. 29, but the Wolverines regrouped, starting with a players-only meeting the following day. The team had candid conversations and bought into the coaches' messag- ing during practice. That led to getting out to a 17-0 lead on Maryland in an 81-46 win Jan. 1, before a 10-point win over Penn State Jan. 4 (79-69). Best Highlight Michigan's defense was scrambling when Maryland guard Don Carey drove left baseline with just less than two min- utes to go in the first half Jan. 1. Using a bounce pass, Carey dropped the ball off to forward Patrick Emilien on the right block. U-M sophomore guard Kobe Bufkin came over to help, elevated and emphatically blocked the shot with his dominant left hand. Freshman guard Jett Howard raced through traffic and found graduate guard Joey Baker for an open three on the right wing. He nailed it to give the Maize and Blue a 40-13 lead. Bold Prediction Until Jan. 12 at Iowa, junior forward Terrance Williams II hadn't played less than 25 minutes in a game this season. Then, against the Hawkeyes and the following game versus Northwestern, Williams logged 19 minutes in each contest. His production — 36.5 percent shooting from the field and 29.8 percent on three-pointers — has lacked a bit, and U-M has explored other options at the '4' spot. We predict that, while Williams' playing time may continue to diminish, he'll remain the starter at the power forward position. His re- bounding (6.3 per game) and leadership are still important, and no other forward has proven to be reliable enough to join the starting lineup. — Clayton Sayfie Superlatives For U-M's Seven Games From Dec. 21 To Jan. 15 Jett Howard is averaging 15.5 points per game, the ninth-most in the Big Ten and second-highest amount among the league's fresh- men. He had a career-high 34 in the overtime loss at Iowa. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDE;