The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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48 THE WOLVERINE JANUARY 2018 M ichigan basketball fans held their collective breath Dec. 12 when junior center Moritz Wagner went down with just less than eight minutes remaining in a 59‑52 win at Texas. He was helped off the court after stepping on a foot and rolling an ankle while driving, but it appears it was less serious than it looked. "Slight ankle sprain," head coach John Beilein said immediately after the game. "Day to day." The prognosis stayed the same the following day, when Wagner under‑ went more testing. Wagner was a big part of Michi‑ gan's huge road win, finishing with 10 points and three rebounds. His back‑to‑back triples midway through the second half expanded a six‑point lead to 12, and U‑M went on to a solid victory. The Wolverines also won comfort‑ ably without him in a 90‑58 victory over Detroit Dec. 16. Beilein had been optimistic Wagner would play. "He did some of the drills the other day before the game. He just wanted to test it. He felt really uncomfort‑ able," Beilein said. "We'll take our time. We will not rush it back." They want him to be 100 percent before he returns, the coach added. Beilein will continue to rely on young big men Jon Teske — a sophomore who had 15 points and 10 rebounds against Detroit — and redshirt fresh‑ man Austin Davis, who fouled out in only seven minutes of action against the Titans, until Wagner's return. "They're growing, getting better … they just need game experience right now," Beilein said. "We feel comfort‑ able with those two guys just learn‑ ing how to play in games. "We'll see [about Wagner]. We've been there before," he added of inju‑ ries that didn't seem bad but ended up being worse than they appeared. "We don't think it's serious at this point, but we'll know more [later]." Beilein said Dec. 16 there was no timetable for Wagner's return. — Chris Balas MICHIGAN'S DEFENSE HAS BEEN AN EARLY SEASON SUCCESS STORY One of Michigan basketball's big‑ ger surprises in the first third of the season has been the defense. When the Wolverines hammered Detroit 90‑58 Dec. 16, it marked the sixth time this year one of the Wolverines' opponent finished with its lowest scoring output of the season. VCU (60 points), Indiana (55), Texas (52), Southern Miss (47) and UC Riverside (42) all fell victim to U‑M's improved defense, and the Titans were the latest. They came in averaging 89.4 points per contest and had scored 72 or more in every game. After 13 games through Dec. 17, the Wolverines ranked 26th in the nation in KenPom.com's adjusted defensive efficiency (95.2 points allowed per 100 possessions adjusted for oppo‑ nent strength) compared to 49th in adjusted offensive efficiency (112.1 points scored per 100 possessions ad‑ justed for opponent strength). "That's really good. I feel good, and I feel bad," head coach John Beilein said before the Detroit game. "The offense is my baby … I feel bad about that. Some of the games we played, teams were good matchups for us, some were bad matchups for us and our stats become the stats." Michigan rose from 33rd to 26th nationally in adjusted defensive ef‑ ficiency after the win over Detroit. "It's just our effort level, and our focus on that end has been huge these last couple games. Seeing that success and having some success watching the opponents' field goal percentage go down is encouraging," fifth‑year senior Duncan Robinson MICHIGAN BASKETBALL Wolverines Will Take It Slow With Moritz Wagner Injury As of Dec. 18, junior center Moritz Wagner ranks 10th in the Big Ten for scoring (15.6 points per game) and rebounding (7.6 per game). He is also 15th in field goal percentage (.556). PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL