year, Albrecht averaged 14.7 minutes
per game.
Meanwhile, Walton has endured
an extremely painful injured big toe,
one that has affected his performance
for the past month. He averaged 10.1
points and 4.5 rebounds a game
through Michigan's first 17, but his
ability to make plays for others and
move overall has been impacted.
Walton shot 33.3 percent on three-
pointers through the Ohio State game
Jan. 13, compared to 41.0 percent a
year ago. Asked to step forward this
season as a scorer, the injury pro-
duced a step back.
That's why Walton's 15-point effort
Jan. 10 against Minnesota — includ-
ing connecting on 3 of 4 three-point
shots — left Beilein sounding encour-
aged about his production.
"Derrick was playing like we re-
member Derrick playing," Beilein
said. "He's not 100 percent healthy,
but he was healthier in the game to-
day than he's been in a long time."
With improved health comes
greater confidence, Beilein assured.
A new role also factors into it.
"I think you put it all in one," he
said. "If you look at last year, he's
playing out there and trying to feel
his way, 25 minutes a game. He's got
Nik Stauskas and Glenn Robinson
and Jordan Morgan all around him,
this wealth of experience, pushing
him to spots.
"Now all of a sudden, you have
him out there, and he looks around,
and he's one of the veterans. That can
get to you a little bit … and, you're
going to get a lot more attention than
you used to have."
Walton has fought through more
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