The Michigan Wolverines’ basketball team picked up its first road win of the year on Tuesday night when it grabbed a 79-68 triumph at Nebraska, snapping what had been a four-game losing streak.
The Maize and Blue secured the victory without two of their key veterans in senior point guard Zavier Simpson and junior forward Isaiah Livers, with the former missing the game due to suspension and the latter to injury.
Junior guard Eli Brooks and sophomore guard David DeJulius both ran the offense in Simpson’s absence, with the junior stepping up in a big way — he scored 20 points and made four of his 10 threes, while also pulling down nine boards and handing out four assists.
Freshman guard Franz Wagner and sophomore forward Brandon Johns also had two of their best offensive showings of the year, pouring in 18 and 16 points, respectively.
“We talked beforehand how it was going to be about me, Eli, Franz and Brandon busting out on rebounds and starting the offense,” DeJulius explained this afternoon.
“Our motto was to start a faster pace. I have not been told if Simpson will play tomorrow or not — he talked to us and apologized for everything, and we told him we loved him.
“He was down at first and we felt for him, but we FaceTimed with him during halftime. He also greeted us at the door at 2:00 in the morning when we got back from Nebraska, so he’s still been a leader.
“We always have the ‘next man up’ mentality, so I owe it to my teammates to do the job.”
“That win can definitely get us going and get us back in that groove,” senior center Jon Teske added, after a nine-point, eight-rebound performance.
“We’ve got the taste of winning back, and now we just have to carry it on from here. I was happy with how we played as a team, and the leadership that Eli and I brought with X [Simpson] out.
“We knew going in that Nebraska didn’t have a whole lot of height, and that Brandon, [sophomore center] Colin [Castleton] and myself could all use our height against them.
“Dave also played well in his first start — we trust him to do his job, even though he’s still only a sophomore.”
The Maize and Blue will next be looking for consecutive wins when they head to Madison Square Garden to take on Rutgers tomorrow, already holding a 3-0 record in neutral site games this year (victories over Iowa State, North Carolina and Gonzaga in the Bahamas in November).
Madison Square Garden is viewed as the ‘Mecca’ of college basketball to many, and it’s a place Michigan has enjoyed immense success at in recent years (won the 2018 Big Ten Tournament there, along with the 2016 2K Classic, etc.).
“It’s special any time we play there,” Teske exclaimed. “It’s neat to go back as a senior, especially after playing there as a freshman and sophomore.
“I just remember how much fun it was playing there and being in that city. We won the 2K Tournament [with wins over Marquette and SMU] when I was a freshman and then we won the Big Ten Tournament when I was a sophomore, so we’re hoping to keep that winning streak going.”
It won’t be easy however, with this year’s 16-5 Rutgers squad arguably the best Scarlet Knights squad the program has seen since its 1976 Final Four club.
“They have seven or eight guys who come in and can score seven or eight points in a hurry,” Teske explained. “They also play defense as a team and keep guys in check.
“They’re a well-coached team who’s playing great this season, so give them credit. [Redshirt sophomore center Myles Johnson] is very athletic and gets lot of offensive rebounds around the rim for them.
“I’ll have to use my length on him and wall out, and make it hard for him to score.”
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