Nothing But ‘Net – Week #02 – 11/06/2023 – An Easy Exhibition Game

The University of Michigan men’s basketball team played one (exhibition) game this past week, and they won it.  On Friday (11/03/2023), they beat Northwood 92-45 in Crisler Arena.  Since it was only an exhibition, Michigan’s record is still 0-0.

What Happened?

The game itself was pretty much what you’d expect from a matchup between a Big Ten team and a bad Division II team.  Michigan opened a quick 17-4 lead, and slowly built on it throughout the 1st half.  The lead got as high as 33 points (54-21) with 0:50 to go, and was 31 points (54-23) at halftime.

The 2nd half was more of the same.  Michigan started the 2nd half on fire, with a 21-2 run to make it 75-25 at the 13:51 mark.  They got the lead as high as 55 points (82-27) with 11:49 to go, and kept it around 50 points for the rest of the game.  Coach Martelli (filling in for Coach Howard, who is recovering from heart surgery) emptied the bench with 7:36 left in the game, and Michigan leading by 51 points (87-36).  That slowed down the UM offense enough to finish the game with only 5 more points, against 9 points for Northwood.

Stats

The game stats were predictably good.  Michigan shot well overall (36-for-68 = 52.9%), they shot 3-pointers well (12-for-27 = 44.4%), and they shot free throws decently (8-for-11 = 72.7%).  They won the rebounding battle (49-38) and the turnover battle (10-13).  They won this game with good shooting and rebounding.

Who Started?

The starters were Nimari Burnett, Dug McDaniel, Olivier Nkamhoua, Tarris Reed, Jr., and Terrance Williams II.

Who Looked Good?

McDaniel was the leading scorer among the starters, with 16 points in 20 minutes.  He shot pretty well (6-for-9 overall, 3-for-5 from deep), and he ran the offense just fine.

Tray Jackson was the star of the game, with 20 points off the bench.  He shot well (8-for-10 overall, 3-for-4 from deep), and he didn’t have any turnovers.  If he can keep that up, he’ll be starting soon.

Reed did a great job out there.  He scored 13 points and grabbed 10 rebounds (5 offensive), for a nice double-double.  He shot very well (5-for-6), and he did it all in only 11 minutes.

Nkamhoua was the only other starter in double figures, with 11 points.  He played center for most of the 2nd half (until the Scout Team went in), and he did very well.  He had 8 rebounds and 3 blocked shots.  He also had 6 assists.  He shot well (5-for-7), including 1-for-3 from deep.

Burnett almost hit double figures, with 9 points on very good shooting: 3-for-4 overall, 3-for-3 from deep.  He also had 6 assists.

Williams had a decent game, with 7 points and 5 rebounds.  He shot fairly well (3-for-6 overall, 0-for-2 from deep), and he didn’t have any turnovers.

Who Looked Not-So-Good?

Will Tschetter played for 22 minutes and scored 7 points.  He shot pretty poorly (2-for-9 overall, 1-for-3 from deep), but he was the leading rebounder, with 13 boards.

George Washington III played a lot (25 minutes), shot a lot (12 shots), but didn’t score a lot (7 points).  He shot 3-for-12 overall, 1-for-3 from deep.  He’s a freshman, and he’s a good shooter, so he’ll have plenty of better games.

Who Else Played?

Ian Burns played for 5 minutes, and failed to score, going 0-for-2, both 3-pointers.  He’s on the Scout Team, so this isn’t unusual.

Harrison Hochberg was the only player from the Scout Team who scored.  He played for 5 minutes, and made his only shot, for 2 points.

Cooper Smith played for 8 minutes, and failed to score, going 0-for-2, both 3-pointers.  He’s on the Scout Team, so this isn’t unusual.

Jackson Selvala played for 8 minutes, and didn’t attempt a shot.  He’s on the Scout Team, so this isn’t unusual.

Who Didn’t Play?

Everyone who wasn’t injured played at least 5 minutes.  The injured players are: Jace Howard, Youssef Khayat, and Jaelin Llewellyn.

What Does It Mean?

What can we learn from an exhibition game against an overmatched opponent?  Not much.  It was nice to see the new players in an actual game, even if it was just an exhibition.  Michigan got to try some unusual lineup combinations, but we won’t see those in “real” games.

What’s Next?

This week, Michigan plays two games.  On Tuesday (11/07/2023, 8:30 p.m., BTN) they play UNC-Asheville, then on Friday (11/10/2023, 6:30 p.m., BTN) they play Youngstown State.  Both games are in Crisler Arena.

UNC-Asheville was 27-8 last season, 16-2 in the Big South.  They didn’t have any impressive wins, but they won the Big South conference tournament, which got them into the NCAA Tournament.  They lost in the 1st round to UCLA.  They don’t have any superstar players on their roster, and they don’t have much height: one 6’11” player.  This should be a decent test for Michigan, but one they can pass only if they stay focused.

Youngstown State was 24-10 last season, 15-5 in the Horizon League.  They didn’t have any impressive wins, and they lost in the 2nd round of their conference tournament, so they played in the NIT.  They lost in the 1st round of the NIT.  They don’t have any noteworthy players on their roster, but they do have some height: a 7-footer and a 7’3” player.  This is a game that Michigan should win, but with a couple 7-footers, YSU could make it interesting.

Check back next week to find out what happened and why.

Go Blue!

Nothing But ‘Net – Week #01 – 10/30/2023 – Basketball Is Back

Yeah, it’s time for college basketball again.  Sure, it’s another exciting season for the football team, but basketball games start this week.  Let’s check out this season’s team.

Here’s my traditional standard description of this weekly column:

Yeah, it’s time for University of Michigan men’s basketball, and this is the place to read all about it: “Nothing But ‘Net” on UMGoBlue.com.  Check back every Monday morning between now and the end of the season for a quick, concise wrap-up of the previous week, and a look ahead at the upcoming week, all in one easy-to-read article.

As always here at UMGoBlue.com, the perspective is “by fans, for fans”.  I’m a fan (since 1974), and I go to all the home games, and watch/listen to all the away games.  I don’t have any special access (other than being an usher in Sections 209-210), I don’t go to the press conferences, and I don’t interview high school recruits.   I see the same things you do, and write about them as a fan.

Once again, it was a very busy off-season, with lots of surprises and changes.  Let’s get to it.

Executive Summary

The big question: how good is Michigan going to be this season?

The big answer: not very good, but it’s hard to predict.  There have been a lot of changes, and the era of the Transfer Portal and NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) money makes things really unpredictable.

What’s New?

The biggest news in the offseason was when Coach Howard had successful heart surgery on 09/15/2023.  From the press release:

The scheduled operation was performed by Dr. Himanshu Patel, who successfully resected an aortic aneurysm and repaired Howard’s aortic valve. Patel indicated that Howard is expected to fully recover in six to 12 weeks and could return to the program in four to six weeks.

U-M’s associate head coach Phil Martelli will serve as the interim head coach during Howard’s recovery process. Saddi Washington and Howard Eisley will maintain their assistant roles, while Jay Smith will be elevated to the third assistant during the interim period.

The most recent update to his condition says “no timetable for his return”.  I expect him back on the bench by the beginning of December.

There are lots of changes to the roster from last season:

  • Players Leaving:
    • 1 senior graduated
    • 3 players transferred
    • 2 players left for the NBA Draft
  • Players Arriving:
    • 1 incoming freshman
    • 3 incoming transfer players
    • 1 new Scout Team player

Graduating Seniors

Michigan didn’t really have any seniors on last season’s team.  They did have 2 graduate transfers, and they were considered to have “graduated” at the end of last season.  One of them (Jaelin Llewellyn) got injured 8 games into the season, applied for a medical redshirt, and was granted it, so now he’s back again as a graduate transfer.  The other graduate transfer from last season (Joey Baker) also applied for a waiver, then decided that he was done playing basketball and retired.  He was very uneven during his one season in Ann Arbor, but he will still be missed.

Players Who Transferred

Three players transferred to other schools after last season.  They are:

  • Isaiah Barnes – In his only season at Michigan, Isaiah played in 15 games, and scored 16 points. He looked pretty good when he was out there, but he had trouble getting in the game. I wasn’t surprised when he announced that he was entering the transfer portal.  He transferred to Tulsa.  He might be missed.
  • Gregg Glenn III – In his only season at Michigan, Gregg didn’t play much (4 games, 11 minutes), and he didn’t score much (6 points). He didn’t look very comfortable out there in his limited action.  He transferred to Tulane.  He probably won’t be missed.
  • Hunter Dickinson – This was the biggest surprise of the offseason.  Hunter played at Michigan for 3 years, and he was the most valuable player all 3 years.  He was the heart and soul of this program, but he decided that he wanted to play on a team that stood a good chance at a national championship, and Michigan wasn’t going to be that team this season.  He transferred to Kansas, where he will be an integral part of their team, and stand a good chance of winning a national championship.  He will definitely be missed.

Players Who Left For The NBA Draft

Two players left the team to enter the NBA Draft.  They are:

  • Kobe Bufkin – Kobe was probably the 2nd most valuable player on last season’s team as a sophomore, after a relatively quiet freshman season.  He was certainly the most improved player on last season’s team.  He was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in the 1st round (15th overall).  He will be missed.
  • Jett Howard – Jett was another rare “one and done” for Michigan.  He had a good freshman season, but not great.  The funny thing is, Michigan seemed to play better when he was on the sidelines injured.  It must have been a chemistry thing.  He was drafted by the Orlando Magic in the 1st round (11th overall).  He will be missed.

Incoming Freshmen

Last year, Michigan had the #13 recruiting class in the nation.  This year, the recruiting class is miserable.  There is only one incoming freshman player this season:

  • George Washington III #40 (6’2”, 170 pounds, G) – George is a 4-star shooting guard, the #23 shooting guard in his class.  According to reports, he’s a good shooter, including from 3-point range, and a good defender.  He will be a key player on this season’s team.

Two other freshmen were committed to Michigan at one point, but they aren’t coming, maybe:

  • Lee Aaliya is a 6’9” forward/center from Argentina.  He announced his commitment to Michigan back in late August, but he’s not enrolled at Michigan and he’s not on the official roster.  The latest update I found says that his paperwork is very complicated, and there’s still a chance that he could join the team for the winter semester.
  • Papa Kante is a 6’10” forward/center from Senegal, by way of Connecticut.  He committed to Michigan last winter, but didn’t have the grades and/or English language skills to get admitted, so he’s going elsewhere (Pittsburgh).  He would have really helped.

Incoming Transfer Players

Let’s see: the three best players from last season’s team left (two to the NBA, the other to the transfer portal), and the recruiting class is almost nonexistent.  What should Coach Howard do?  To the transfer portal!  There are three transfer players on this season’s team:

  • Nimari Burnett #4 (6’4”, 200 pounds, G) – Nimari transferred to Michigan from Alabama (2 seasons, one of them a medical redshirt), with a stop at Texas Tech (1 season) before that.  He’s a graduate transfer, but by my count he has 3 seasons of eligibility left (2 regular and 1 COVID).  He’s a combo guard, but he hasn’t been much of a scorer so far.  His main contributions will probably be on the defensive end and as a backup point guard.
  • Tray Jackson #2 (6’10”, 215 pounds, F) – Tray transferred to Michigan from Seton Hall (3 seasons), with a stop at Missouri (1 season).  He has one season of eligibility left.  He’s a true power forward, rumored to have a decent shot.  We’ll see.
  • Olivier Nkamhoua #13 (6’9”, 235 pounds, F) – Olivier transferred to Michigan from Tennessee (4 seasons).  He has one season of eligibility left.  He’s another true power forward, and he could probably play some center.  He’s a good scorer, but not much of an outside threat.

New Scout Team Players

There’s only one new player on the Scout Team:

  • Harrison Hochberg #31 (6’7”, 225 pounds, F) – Harrison is a freshman “preferred walk-on”.  Looking at his bio, he was quite the player in high school.  He should be a valuable member of the Scout Team, and he might even get to play a couple minutes in blowout games.

Who’s Coming Back?

Once again, Michigan is a young team this season, with a lot of new faces.  However, there is a solid core of returning players.

Let’s look at the returning players on the team:

Sophomore Eligibility

  • Youssef Khayat #24 (6’9”, 215 pounds, F) – Youssef played in 9 games last season, and scored 12 points.  He looked a little lost out there at times, but he got better as the season went on.
  • Dug McDaniel #0 (5’11”, 175 pounds, G) – Dug took over as the starting point guard as a true freshman last season when Jaelin Llewellyn went down with a knee injury in game #8.  He was a little “raw” at times, but he definitely grew into the job as the season went on.
  • Tarris Reed, Jr. #32 (6’10”, 265 pounds, F) – Tarris was a capable backup at center behind Hunter Dickinson last season, but he has suddenly been forced into the starting job with Hunter’s defection to Kansas.  He’s a talented player, and he works hard out there, but he’s a definite step down from Dickinson.  Center has been a position of dominance for Michigan for the last 3 seasons, but I expect it to be a liability this season.
  • Jackson Selvala #34 (6’7”, 230 pounds, F) – Jackson was a team manager who walked on as a player last season.  He’s in grad school now, but he still has 3 years of eligibility left.  He’s a valuable member of the Scout Team, and he might even get to play a couple minutes in blowout games.  He played in 4 games last season, but didn’t score.
  • Cooper Smith #45 (6’1”, 180 pounds, G) – Cooper transferred to Michigan from Kalamazoo College last season.  He’s a preferred walk-on.  He’s a valuable member of the Scout Team, and he might even get to play a couple minutes in blowout games.  He played in 4 games last season, but didn’t score.
  • Will Tschetter #42 (6’8”, 245 pounds, F) – Will was voluntarily redshirted his freshman season, and played a lot last season.  He had a couple decent games, and too many mediocre games.  He’s a nice guy, really likable, but he hasn’t produced on the court yet.

Junior Eligibility

  • Ian Burns #14 (6’6”, 205 pounds, G) – Ian is on the Scout Team.  He played in 2 games as a freshman and 3 games as a sophomore.  He has attempted one shot each season, but hasn’t made one yet.
  • Jace Howard #25 (6’8”, 225 pounds, G) – Jace has played for 3 seasons, but thanks to the COVID-19 rule he has junior eligibility.  He’s played a lot, but he hasn’t scored much.  He was often brought in for defensive purposes, and he contributed to a mean full-court press.  I expect him to contribute even more this season.

Senior Eligibility

  • Jaelin Llewellyn #3 (6’2”, 190 pounds, G) – Last season, Jaelin transferred to Michigan from Princeton.  He was the main point guard last season, until he injured his knee in the Kentucky game in early December.
  • Terrance Williams II #5 (6’7”, 225 pounds, F) – Terrance is a real enigma.  When he’s “on”, he’s a force out there, but when he’s “off”, he’s a disaster.  I’m still trying to forgive him for single-handedly losing the Vanderbilt game in the NIT last season.

Starting Lineup/Depth Chart

This is really tricky this season, with all the new players.  My guess:

Point guard: McDaniel (backups: Llewellyn and Burnett)

Shooting guard: Washington III (backups: Llewellyn and Burnett)

Small forward: Williams II (backups: Howard, Tschetter, and Khayat)

Power forward: Nkamhoua (backups: Jackson, and Khayat)

Center: Reed (backups: Nkamhoua and Jackson)

Wow, there are a lot of thin spots here: an unproven freshman shooting guard, slim pickings at small forward, and no real backup for an undersized center.  I don’t see anyone on the roster who can consistently score from outside, and I don’t see anyone on the roster who will scare any opponents.  I’m also wondering where the on-court leadership will come from.  McDaniel?  Williams II?

Predictions

Here are my predictions for player stats for the upcoming season (last season’s leader in parentheses, all Hunter Dickinson):

Scoring: No one will score > 500 points. (629)

Points per game: No one will average > 15. (18.5)

Overall shooting percentage (minimum 100 attempts): No one will shoot > 50%. (56.0)

3-point shooting percentage (minimum 50 attempts): No one will shoot > 35%. (42.1)

Rebounding: No one will grab > 200 rebounds. (307)

Last Season

From last season’s Wrap-Up article:

Michigan started the season ranked #22 in the preseason AP poll, and big things were expected of them.  Certainly, they were expected to contend for the Big Ten title and make it to the NCAA Tournament.  That’s not how things worked out.

There were 31 regular season games and 3 post-season games, but one game ruined the whole season: the Central Michigan game in Crisler Arena on 12/29/2022.  Michigan played like they expected to win by just showing up, and by the time they realized that they could actually lose to a lower-division MAC team in their own arena, it was too late.  They lost 63-61, and the season was in tatters.  It really didn’t matter much how many quality wins they got the rest of the season, that one horrible loss kept them out of the NCAA Tournament.

The theme for that game, and the rest of the season, was “keep the game close, and lose in the last 2 minutes”.  Michigan lost to the following 13 teams by 6 points or less, or in overtime:

They could have won every one of those games, but they managed to lose them all, often in creative new ways.  They often had double-digit leads late in the game.  It was heartbreaking.

On the positive side, Michigan did have 9 impressive wins:

Most of those wins were against teams that eventually made the NCAA Tournament, and several of them were by impressive margins (Pitt, Maryland, Northwestern, and MSU).

The remaining 12 games were a mixed bag of blowout losses (3) and unimpressive wins over lesser opponents (9):

All of these losses were away from Crisler, and two of the three were to NCAA Tournament teams (Arizona State and Penn State).

Looking at the complete season, the real story was the CMU loss and all the close losses in the last 2 minutes.  That’s where the season went down the drain.

This Season

Let’s look at Michigan’s schedule for this season:

DateOpponentLocationTime (ET)
11/03/2023 (Fri)Northwood (exhibition)Ann Arbor, MI7:00 p.m.
11/07/2023 (Tue)UNC AshevilleAnn Arbor, MI8:30 p.m.
11/10/2023 (Fri)Youngstown StateAnn Arbor, MI6:30 p.m.
Gavitt Tipoff Games
11/13/2023 (Mon)St. John’sNew York, NY6:30 p.m.
11/17/2023 (Fri)Long Beach StateAnn Arbor, MI7:00 p.m.
Battle 4 Atlantis
11/22/2023 (Wed)MemphisParadise Island, Bahamas5:00 p.m.
11/23/2023 (Thu)Arkansas/StanfordParadise Island, BahamasTBD
11/24/2023 (Fri)TBDParadise Island, BahamasTBD
12/02/2023 (Sat)OregonEugene, OR3:30 p.m.
12/05/2023 (Tue)IndianaAnn Arbor, MI9:00 p.m.
12/10/2023 (Sun)IowaIowa City, IA4:30 p.m.
12/16/2023 (Sat)Eastern MichiganAnn Arbor, MI2:15 p.m.
Jumpman Invitational
12/19/2023 (Tue)FloridaCharlotte, NC7:00 p.m.
12/29/2023 (Fri)McNeeseAnn Arbor, MITBA
01/04/2024 (Thu)MinnesotaAnn Arbor, MI9:00 p.m.
01/07/2024 (Sun)Penn StatePhiladelphia, PA12:00 p.m.
01/11/2024 (Thu)MarylandCollege Park, MD7:00 p.m.
01/15/2024 (Mon)Ohio StateAnn Arbor, MI12:00 p.m.
01/18/2024 (Thu)IllinoisAnn Arbor, MI8:30 p.m.
01/23/2024 (Tue)PurdueWest Lafayette, IN9:00 p.m.
01/27/2024 (Sat)IowaAnn Arbor, MI5:00 p.m.
01/30/2024 (Tue)Michigan StateEast Lansing, MI9:00 p.m.
02/03/2024 (Sat)RutgersAnn Arbor, MI4:00 p.m.
02/07/2024 (Wed)WisconsinAnn Arbor, MI7:00 p.m.
02/10/2024 (Sat)NebraskaLincoln, NE6:30 p.m.
02/13/2024 (Tue)IllinoisChampaign, IL7:00 p.m.
02/17/2024 (Sat)Michigan StateAnn Arbor, MI8:00 p.m.
02/22/2024 (Thu)NorthwesternEvanston, IL9:00 p.m.
02/25/2024 (Sun)PurdueAnn Arbor, MI2:00 p.m.
02/29/2024 (Thu)RutgersPiscataway, NJ8:30 p.m.
03/03/2024 (Sun)Ohio StateColumbus, OH4:00 p.m.
03/10/2024 (Sun)NebraskaAnn Arbor, MI12:00 p.m.
Big Ten Tournament
03/13/2024 (Wed)1st RoundMinneapolis, MNTBA
03/14/2024 (Thu)2nd RoundMinneapolis, MNTBA
03/15/2024 (Fri)QuarterfinalsMinneapolis, MNTBA
03/16/2024 (Sat)SemifinalsMinneapolis, MNTBA
03/17/2024 (Sun)ChampionshipMinneapolis, MNTBA

Some comments on the schedule:

  • The 11/13/2023 game vs. St. John’s is being played at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
  • Michigan won the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the Bahamas the last time they were in it (2019).  They will have a tough time repeating that feat.
  • The Jumpman Invitational game vs. Florida in Charlotte, NC, is going to be challenging.  Sure, the game is technically at a neutral site, but Charlotte is much closer to Florida than Ann Arbor.
  • As last season’s disaster vs. Central Michigan showed, there is no such thing as a “guarantee” non-conference game any more for Michigan.
  • Check out the day/time for the home Ohio State game of 01/15/2024: noon on a Monday.  Who is going to be there?
  • Each Big Ten team plays 6 teams once (3 home/3 away) and 7 teams twice, for a total of 20 games.  This season, Michigan plays:
    • Once: Indiana (home), Minnesota (home), Penn State (neutral), Maryland (away), Wisconsin (home), Northwestern (away).
    • Twice: Iowa, Ohio State, Illinois, Purdue, Michigan State, Rutgers, Nebraska.

Expectations

Normally, I like to divide the games up into 3 categories (“Should Win”, “Should Lose”, and “Toss Up”), but after last season’s collapse, and with all the roster changes, I have no idea any more.  Looking at the schedule, I can only see 4 games that look pretty winnable, and more than a dozen that look pretty hopeless.  I’m expecting Michigan to finish well below 0.500 overall and in the Big Ten, say 11-20 overall (6-14 in Big Ten).  I think the ceiling for this team is 16-15 (10-10 in Big Ten).

This Week

This week, Michigan only plays one game.  On Friday (11/03/2023, 7:00 p.m., B1G+) they play Northwood in Ann Arbor, in their only exhibition game.

Northwood was 2-26 (2-18 in the G-MAC) last season.  They are a Division II team, and they lost badly to the only Division I school they played last season.  They don’t have any noteworthy players, but they do have a little height: a 6’10” guy.  This should be a relatively easy exhibition game.

Check back next week to find out what happened and why.

Go Blue!

Nothing But ‘Net – Week #22 – 03/27/2023 – Season Wrap-up, Final Grades, And Looking Ahead

The University of Michigan men’s basketball team is done for the 2022-2023 season, and the only way to describe it is “disappointing”.  Michigan ended up with a final record of 18-16 (11-9 in Big Ten).  They finished tied for 5th place in the league standings, missed the NCAA Tournament, and lost in the 2nd round of the NIT.

Season Wrap-up

Michigan started the season ranked #22 in the preseason AP poll, and big things were expected of them.  Certainly, they were expected to contend for the Big Ten title and make it to the NCAA Tournament.  That’s not how things worked out.

There were 31 regular season games and 3 post-season games, but one game ruined the whole season: the Central Michigan game in Crisler Arena on 12/29/2022.  Michigan played like they expected to win by just showing up, and by the time they realized that they could actually lose to a lower-division MAC team in their own arena, it was too late.  They lost 63-61, and the season was in tatters.  It really didn’t matter much how many quality wins they got the rest of the season, that one horrible loss kept them out of the NCAA Tournament.

The theme for that game, and the rest of the season, was “keep the game close, and lose in the last 2 minutes”.  Michigan lost to the following 13 teams by 6 points or less, or in overtime:

They could have won every one of those games, but they managed to lose them all, often in creative new ways.  They often had double-digit leads late in the game.  It was heartbreaking.

On the positive side, Michigan did have 9 impressive wins:

Most of those wins were against teams that eventually made the NCAA Tournament, and several of them were by impressive margins (Pitt, Maryland, Northwestern, and MSU).

The remaining 12 games were a mixed bag of blowout losses (3) and unimpressive wins over lesser opponents (9):

All of these losses were away from Crisler, and two of the three were to NCAA Tournament teams (Arizona State and Penn State).

Looking at the complete season, the real story was the CMU loss and all the close losses in the last 2 minutes.  That’s where the season went down the drain.

Stats

The season stats show that Michigan shot decently overall (898-for-1884 = 45.0%), they shot 3-pointers fairly well (261-for-744 = 35.1%), and they shot free throws reasonably well (437-for-615 = 71.1%).  They barely won the rebounding battle for the season (1248-1200), but they lost the turnover battle (356-338).  These are not very impressive stats.

Here are the individual leaders this season.

Scoring:

  1. Hunter Dickinson: 629 points
  2. Kobe Bufkin: 462 points
  3. Jett Howard: 412 points
  4. Dug McDaniel: 294 points

Points per game:

  1. Hunter Dickinson: 18.5 points/game
  2. Jett Howard: 14.2 points/game
  3. Kobe Bufkin: 14.0 points/game
  4. Dug McDaniel: 8.6 points/game

Overall shooting percentage (minimum 100 attempts):

  1. Hunter Dickinson: 56.0%
  2. Kobe Bufkin: 48.2%
  3. Jett Howard: 41.4%
  4. Joey Baker: 39.3%

3-point shooting percentage (minimum 50 attempts):

  1. Hunter Dickinson: 42.1%
  2. Joey Baker: 39.1%
  3. Jett Howard: 36.8%
  4. Kobe Bufkin: 35.5%

Free throw shooting percentage (minimum 50 attempts):

  1. Kobe Bufkin: 84.9%
  2. Jett Howard: 80.0%
  3. Dug McDaniel: 76.8%
  4. Terrance Williams II: 75.0%

Rebounding:

  1. Hunter Dickinson: 307
  2. Terrance Williams II: 188
  3. Kobe Bufkin: 124
  4. Tarris Reed, Jr: 132

Assists:

  1. Dug McDaniel: 122
  2. Kobe Bufkin: 96
  3. Jett Howard: 59
  4. Hunter Dickinson: 50

Final Grades

Here are the final grades for this season’s team, with mid-term grades listed first.

Freshman Eligibility

  • Isaiah Barnes (B-/C) – Isaiah was granted a medical redshirt for last season, so he had freshman eligibility this season.  He played in 15 games, and scored 16 points.  He looked pretty good when he was out there, but he had trouble getting in the game.  I wasn’t surprised when he announced that he was entering the transfer portal.
  • Gregg Glenn III (C/Inc.) – Gregg didn’t play much (4 games, 11 minutes), and he didn’t score much (6 points).  He didn’t look very comfortable out there in his limited action.  I won’t be surprised if he hits the transfer portal looking for more playing time.
  • Jett Howard (A-/B+) – As you can see above, Jett was 2nd or 3rd in most statistical categories.  He had a good freshman season, but not great.  However, the NBA must see his potential, because he’s entering the NBA Draft, and most mock drafts show him getting drafted in the 1st round.  The funny thing is, Michigan seemed to play better when he was on the sidelines injured.  It must have been a chemistry thing.
  • Youssef Khayat (C+/C+) – Youssef played in 9 games, and even started one, and he scored 12 points.  He plays hard and fast, but not always under control.  He has potential, but he needs a lot of coaching and game experience.
  • Dug McDaniel (B+/A-) – Dug went from a luxury to a necessity overnight when the main point guard (Jaelin Llewellyn) went down with a season-ending knee injury in Game #8 (Kentucky).  He hadn’t done much up until that point, but once he was a starter, he got better every game.  You see his name up there in most of the statistical categories, and he is only going to get better.  He’s the fastest player on the team, and he’s fearless out there.
  • Tarris Reed, Jr. (B/B) – Tarris was mostly used as a defensive specialist who occasionally chipped in some points.  He played in all 34 games, and he scored 116 points and grabbed 132 rebounds.  He’s another player who improved almost every game.
  • Jackson Selvala (Inc./Inc.) – Jackson was a team manager who walked on as a player.  He was part of the practice squad.  He played in 4 games for a total of 7 minutes, and he missed his only shot attempt of the season.
  • Will Tschetter (B-/C+) – Will was voluntarily redshirted last season, so he had freshman eligibility this season.  He played in 27 games, and started 8 of them.  He scored 63 points.  He played solid defense, but he played a little too out-of-control sometimes on offense, making silly turnovers.  He also committed too many silly fouls.  He has the potential to improve and contribute going forward.

Sophomore Eligibility

  • Kobe Bufkin (A-/A-) – Kobe started every game except the miserable Vanderbilt game, and he played very well.  You can see his name all over the stats above.  He acted as point guard when McDaniel wasn’t out there, and he did a good job.  He is being mentioned as another player who might enter the NBA Draft.
  • Ian Burns (Inc./Inc.) – Ian was on the practice squad, and only played in 3 games for 8 minutes, and he missed his only shot attempt of the season.
  • Cooper Smith (Inc./Inc.) – Cooper was on the practice squad, and only played in 4 games for 7 minutes, and missed his only shot attempt of the season.

Junior Eligibility

  • Hunter Dickinson (A-/A) – Hunter is an enigma.  When he gets fired up, he’s the best player on the court, but he seems to just drift through the game much of the time.  Maybe it’s just his “game face”, but he often looks and acts disinterested or bored out there.  Still, he led the team in scoring, shooting percentage, rebounding, and blocked shots.  If only we could get him to play “fired up” more often…
  • Jace Howard (C/C) – Jace found a role as a defensive specialist.  He played in 30 games, but only scored 37 points.  He occasionally tossed in 3-pointer; he was 7-for-17 from deep this season.
  • Terrance Williams II (C-/D) – Terrance was the weak link on the team this season.  He played in 32 games, and started 26 of them, and he’s a good defender and rebounder, but he didn’t help much on the offensive end: 6.1 points/game.  He singlehandedly lost the Vanderbilt game.

Senior Eligibility

  • Joey Baker (B-/B) – Joey played in all 34 games, and started 5 of them, but he only averaged 5.7 points/game.  His role was “3 and D”, and he did pretty well shooting 3’s: tied for 2nd on the team in made 3-pointers (43), shooting 39.1% from deep.  His problem was consistency.  He had 7 games where he hit double figures, but 9 games where he didn’t make a basket (maybe a few free throws…).
  • Jaelin Llewellyn (B-/Inc.) – Jaelin did pretty well in the 8 games that he played before he suffered a season-ending knee injury.  He averaged 7.0 points/game, and had 22 assists against only 9 turnovers.  It’s a shame about his injury.

Looking Ahead

It’s almost pointless to try to predict who’s going to be on the team next season.  Between the transfer portal and the NBA Draft, half the team could be gone by then.  At this point, only two players have definitively said they are leaving: Isaiah Barnes (transfer portal) and Jett Howard (NBA Draft).  There’s a rumor that Kobe Bufkin might also enter the NBA Draft, and it wouldn’t surprise me if Gregg Glenn III decided to transfer to get some playing time.  Will anyone else leave over the summer?  Who knows?

So, what about Hunter Dickinson? His best season was probably his freshman season, but he’s been the heart and soul of the team all 3 years.  Will he come back for his senior season?  On the one hand, he doesn’t appear to be getting much NBA interest, but some team might take a chance on him late in the 2nd round of the draft.  On the other hand, he seems to be enjoying his college experience, and Michigan would love to have him back for another year.  So, who knows?

What about the two grad student transfer players, Joey Baker and Jaelin Llewellyn?  In theory, Baker should be done, but he has applied for a waiver for a 6th year of eligibility.  If he is granted the waiver, and if he decides to stay at Michigan, would Michigan still want him?  Probably.  He was wildly unpredictable, but he showed what he could do in the Toledo game, with 21 points.  Llewellyn is another player who would appear to be out of eligibility, but he might be granted a medical redshirt.  It was telling that he didn’t participate in the Senior Day festivities, only Baker did.  Once again, if he were given another season of eligibility, would he decide to stay at Michigan?  And, if he wanted to stay, would Michigan want him?  Where would he fit in with the rapid development of Dug McDaniel?  So many possibilities!

At this point, Michigan has two players signed up to enter the program as incoming freshmen next season:

  • Papa Kante (6’10”, 215 pounds, C) – Papa is a 4-star center, and he looks like a good, solid player, but his scouting reports say that he needs some coaching.  If he gets time to develop behind Dickinson and Reed, he could be the center of the future.
  • George Washington III (6’2”, 165 pounds, G) – George is a 4-star combo guard, with emphasis on shooting guard more than point guard.  He’s a prolific scorer in high school, and he could add some much needed firepower to Michigan’s ailing half-court offense.

In the age of the transfer portal, it seems obvious that Coach Howard is going to go shopping this off-season.  Regardless of who stays and who leaves, Michigan desperately needs more outside shooters, either as guards or wings.  If Dickinson and Reed both stay, and Kante is used as a center, that position is all set.  If Michigan has both McDaniel and Llewellyn as point guards, that position is all set.  If Bufkin comes back, that’s one outside shooter, but with Jett Howard leaving and Baker being so unpredictable, Michigan needs at least two more pure shooters.  Maybe Washington will be one of them, but it’s risky counting on a freshman too much.

Check back in mid-October for the start of next season.

Go Blue!

Nothing But ‘Net – Week #21 – 03/20/2023 – A Sad End To A Sad Season

The University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games this past week in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT), and they won one and lost the other.  On Tuesday (03/14/2023), they beat Toledo 90-80 in Crisler Arena, then on Saturday (03/18/2023), they lost at Vanderbilt 66-65.  The win and the loss leave Michigan with a final record of 18-16 (11-9 in Big Ten).  Their season is over.

What Happened?

Michigan looked good in beating Toledo in Crisler, and they were in control of the Vanderbilt game, with a comfortable lead in the final 67 seconds.  Those last 67 seconds were a nightmare, and Michigan lost the game, ending their season.  It was a sad way to end a sad season.

Game Flow

The Toledo game started out very poorly, with Toledo running to a quick 9-2 lead at the 18:27 mark.  Michigan finally got going, and pulled to within a point (11-10) with 16:28 to go in the half.  UM finally tied it up (18-18) at the 13:41 mark, then fell behind again, 27-18, with 11:11 to go.  Michigan fought back again, and tied it up again (29-29) with 7:13 left in the half.  They fell behind again, but finally got their first lead of the game (35-33) at the 4:13 mark.  The lead went back and forth for the rest of the half, with Toledo hitting a 3-pointer with 3 seconds left to lead by 2 at halftime, 42-40.  The first 2:14 of the second half were amazing.  Michigan hit three 3-pointers and a jumper to go up by 9, 51-42.  They kept the lead in the 7-9 point range for the next 6 minutes, then Toledo started creeping closer.  The Michigan lead was down to 3 points (64-61) at the 10:09 mark, but UM kept pushing the lead back up to the 5-7 point range, with Toledo getting within 3 points a couple more times.  Michigan finally pushed the lead up to the 10-12 point range, winning by 10.  It was a solid win against the MAC regular season champions.  As I had predicted, the crowd was pretty evenly divided, and it didn’t feel like a home game for Michigan.

The Vanderbilt game started out well, with Michigan grabbing a quick 5-0 lead, then UM went stone cold.  Vanderbilt ripped off a 17-0 run, and the score was 17-5, at the 12:53 mark.  Michigan fought back, and tied it up (20-20) with 9:21 to go.  The lead went back and forth for the rest of the half, with neither team leading by more than 3 points.  Michigan scored last in the half, and led by one point (30-29) at halftime.  The lead went back and forth a couple more times at the start of the 2nd half, before Michigan started pulling away.  UM led by 10 (52-42) at the 10:52 mark, and kept the lead in the 6-8 point range for most of the rest of the half.  With 1:45 left in the game, Michigan had an 8-point lead (65-57), and they got a big stop on defense.  With 1:07 to go, Michigan missed an easy layup, and the rest of the game was a nightmare.  If UM had made that layup, they would have won the game.  Instead, they committed dumb fouls and made dumber turnovers, and didn’t even attempt another shot until the last 2 seconds.  It was disgusting to watch.

Stats

The game stats for the Toledo game were fabulous.  Michigan shot very well overall (32-for-55 = 58.2%), they shot 3-pointers very well (13-for-23 = 56.5%), and they shot free throws very well (13-for-16 = 81.3%).  They won the rebounding battle handily (39-29), but they lost the turnover battle badly (14-4).  They won this game with excellent shooting.

The game stats for the Vanderbilt game were weak.  Michigan shot poorly overall (23-for-53 = 43.4%), they shot 3-pointers poorly (3-for-12 = 25.0%), but they did shoot free throws well (16-for-19 = 84.2%).  They won the rebounding battle handily (39-23), but they lost the turnover battle badly (15-7).  They lost this game with poor shooting and turnovers.

Who Started?

The starters for the Toledo game were Joey Baker, Kobe Bufkin, Hunter Dickinson, Dug McDaniel, and Will Tschetter. Baker started in place of Jett Howard, who is still nursing an ankle injury, and didn’t play in either game.

The starters for the Vanderbilt game were Joey Baker, Hunter Dickinson, Youssef Khayat, Dug McDaniel, and Terrance Williams II.  Bufkin also had an ankle injury for the Vanderbilt game, so Khayat started in his place.  Bufkin didn’t play in the Vanderbilt game.  Williams started in place of Tschetter, who came off the bench.

Who Looked Good?

Dickinson was great in both games, with 19 and 21 points.  He also had 9 and 11 rebounds, so he had another double-double vs. Vanderbilt.

McDaniel had a great week, scoring 16 and 19 points.  He was very efficient in the Toledo game, shooting 4-for-6, all from deep.  He also had 8 assists that game.  Wow!  He wasn’t quite as efficient in the Vanderbilt game, shooting 7-for-14 (2-for-4 from deep).

Bufkin was the high scorer for Michigan in the Toledo game, with 23 points, along with 8 rebounds.  It sure would have helped to have him vs. Vanderbilt.

Baker was the big (pleasant) surprise in the Toledo game.  After averaging about 5 points/game for the regular season, he caught fire vs. Toledo, scoring a season-high 21 points.  He shot very well: 8-for-11 overall, 5-for-7 from deep.  He also hit double figures in the Vanderbilt game, with 11 points, but he sure didn’t shoot well in that one: 3-for-10 overall, 0-for-3 from deep.

Who Looked Not-So-Good?

Williams should get a separate section for “worse than not-so-good”.  He actually was respectable in the Toledo game (4 points and 7 rebounds), and decent for the first 39 minutes of the Vanderbilt game (6 points and 5 rebounds), but he singlehandedly lost the Vanderbilt game in the final 67 seconds.  He had 2 turnovers and a foul, and he should have been credited with a 3rd turnover on a pass from McDaniel that he should have been able to chase down.  He didn’t do a single positive thing in those 67 seconds.  Ugh.

Tschetter was ineffective, scoring 5 and 0 points.

Khayat was ineffective, scoring 0 and 3 points.  He hit a nice 3-pointer very early in the Vanderbilt game, and he grabbed 3 rebounds, but that was it.

Tarris Reed, Jr. was ineffective, scoring 0 and 5 points.

Jace Howard was ineffective, scoring 2 and 0 points.

Who Else Played?

No one else played.

Who Didn’t Play?

Isaiah Barnes and Gregg Glenn III were the scholarship players who didn’t get to play in either game.  Barnes announced after the game that he is entering the transfer portal.

Ian Burns, Jackson Selvala, and Cooper Smith were the practice squad players who didn’t get to play in either game.

What Does It Mean?

Michigan seriously underperformed this season.  Check back next week for the Season Wrap-up, where I’ll try to figure out what went wrong.

What’s Next?

Clean out the lockers.  The season is over.

Check back next week for the Season Wrap-up, Final Grades, and Looking Ahead.

Go Blue!