The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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44 THE WOLVERINE DECEMBER 2016 R edshirt sophomore D.J. Wilson didn't have much on his résumé coming into the 2016-17 season for the Wolverines. He's changing that — in a hurry. The 6-10, 240-pounder out of Sacra- mento, Calif., averaged just 6.1 min- utes per game last season, posting 2.7 points and less than a rebound per game. In fact, he posted 18 rebounds all of last season. He nearly matched that total with 14 boards in Michigan's 77-65 win over IUPUI Nov. 13 at Crisler Center. The third-year forward — who played five games as a freshman before red- shirting due to injury — is beginning to assert himself in a number of help- ful ways, head coach John Beilein said. In addition to Wilson's work on the glass against IUPUI, he also swatted away five shots. "D.J. Wilson is really changing the way we guard, where we can switch more," Beilein said. "He can guard, really, five positions right now. That's really going to help us." Wilson moves far better than most his height, with an athleticism al- lowing him to take on smaller play- ers, combined with the strength he's worked on over the past year. He might not bang with the Big Ten's big- gest beasts yet, but he's come a long way, according to the head coach. "When we recruited him, this is what we hoped," Beilein said. "You recruit them and you look at the po- tential, but it's going to take a little bit. He didn't have the body to do that [secure 14 rebounds] or the mindset. "The big difference is, he's devel- oped his body, but now his mindset is to get in there and get after rebounds, loose basketballs, everything." He's a much different defender as well, compared to a season ago, Beilein stressed. "Defensively, last year, we couldn't get him on the floor," the coach said. "He spent a year getting better. If he has that idea — 'Here's where I am. I am a rebounder and a defender' — you'll just get baskets. These guys will find you when you're open." When combined with sophomore center Moritz Wagner (6-11, 240), Wil- son gives the Wolverines considerable MICHIGAN BASKETBALL D.J. Wilson Coming On For Wolverines Early Wilson pulled down 22 rebounds in the Wolverines' first two games, eclipsing his total of 18 during the 2015-16 season. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN MICHIGAN BASKETBALL SCHEDULE 2016-17 Date Opponent Time/Result Nov. 4 Armstrong State! (BTN+) W, 77-49 Nov. 11 Howard* (BTN+) W, 76-58 Nov. 13 IUPUI* W, 77-65 Nov. 17 vs. Marquette^ (ESPN2) 9:30 p.m. Nov. 18 vs. Pittsburgh or SMU^ (ESPN2) 4:30 or 6:30 p.m. Nov. 23 at South Carolina (ESPNU) 5 p.m. Nov. 26 Mount St. Mary's 7 p.m. Nov. 30 Virginia Tech# (ESPN2) 7 p.m. Dec. 3 Kennesaw State (BTN or BTN+) TBA Dec. 6 Texas (ESPN2) 9 p.m. Dec. 10 at UCLA (ESPN2) 8 p.m. Dec. 13 Central Arkansas (BTN) 9 p.m. Dec. 17 Maryland E. Shore (BTN) 3 p.m. Dec. 22 Furman (BTN) 7 p.m. Jan. 1 at Iowa (BTN) TBA Jan. 4 Penn State (BTN) 8:30 p.m. Jan. 7 Maryland 3:15 p.m. Jan. 11 at Illinois (BTN) 9 p.m. Jan. 14 Nebraska (BTN) 2 p.m. Jan. 17 at Wisconsin 9 p.m. Jan. 21 Illinois (BTN) 2:15 p.m. Jan. 26 Indiana 9 p.m. Jan. 29 at Michigan State 1 p.m. Feb. 4 Ohio State 6 p.m. Feb. 7 Michigan State 9 p.m. Feb. 12 at Indiana 1 p.m. Feb. 16 Wisconsin 7 p.m. Feb. 19 at Minnesota TBA Feb. 22 at Rutgers (BTN) 6:30 p.m. Feb. 25 Purdue TBA March 1 at Northwestern (BTN) 7 p.m. March 5 at Nebraska (BTN) 8 p.m. March 8-12 Big Ten Tournament$ TBD ! Exhibition; * 2K Classic Ann Arbor regional; ^ 2K Classic championship round at Madison Square Garden in New York; # ACC/Big Ten Challenge; $ at Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.