The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/315684
2014 BASKETBALL RECRUITING ISSUE BY JOHN BORTON A t the end of March, John Beilein had his team on the verge of a second straight Final Four. Now he's look- ing at a roster significantly impacted by three NBA early entrants, as well as natural attrition. He recently sat down with The Wol- verine to discuss moving forward, with some talented returners supple- mented by a large incoming fresh- man class. The Wolverine: You've mentioned often that last year 's team experi- enced no major issues. What is the key there, an established culture or the right mix of players? Beilein: "It's both. Now that we have a culture that has proven to be successful, people fall in line much easier. But we also have an even bet- ter sense for whom we should re- cruit, and who fits the culture." The Wolverine: If someone had told you before the season that you were going to win the Big Ten by three games, what would you have said? Beilein: "That would have been hard for me to imagine, based on the loss in the backcourt and the strength of a couple of teams coming back. Once we got into the league, and I saw how this team could play on the road, I thought we had a chance of winning it. I didn't think we'd win it by three games." The Wolverine: What elements of the team allowed you to win on the road like you did? Beilein: "Offensively, we had some creative players. We had three or four guys who could really get into the lane and make plays. We always had at least three on the court that could make plays. "As a result, we weren't as depen- dent upon one player having a great game. We were so dependent on Trey [Burke] and Tim [Hardaway Jr.] the year before, because they were so talented. "This past year, we picked the matchups we liked, and attacked STRONG SHOWING Head Coach John Beilein Assesses Last Season, Sizes Up Incoming Class Wolverine Q&A