Hoops: U-M hosting 2012 point guard Spike Albrecht

A week ago Tuesday Michigan head coach John Beilein traveled to Northfield Mount Hermon (Mass.) to watch former Crown Point (Ind.) point guard Spike Albrecht (6-1, 180) participate in an open gym. He apparently liked what he saw. Albrecht will travel to Michigan Thursday for an official visit amid news that freshman point guard Trey Burke is seriously considering leaving for the NBA …

Albrecht isn't certain what Burke will do, but he's excited for the opportunity whichever way it goes.

"I've had people texting me, 'is Trey going pro?' I don't know if he is," Albrecht said. "Either way, I wish Michigan the best of luck. If he does come back, that would be awesome. He's not a bad guy to be sitting behind and learning from."

If he doesn't, Albrecht might have an opportunity to become one of the primary ballhandlers on what should be an extremely talented team. That was his goal when he decided to attend Mount Hermon for a year, believing he could improve his stock with a good showing. Ivy League schools, Davidson, Vermont, Appalachian State and others came calling, and he's since decided to close it down to others.

Albrecht averaged around 10 points and seven assists this year in leading Mount Hermon to a school best 29-6 record and NEPSAC AAA title. The run included a win over Michigan-bound five-star big man Mitch McGary and Wolfeboro (N.H.) Brewster Academy.

"Albrecht showed great resiliency and endurance, playing all 40 minutes of an incredibly hard fought AAA final and serving as the team's primary ballhandler from start to finish," ESPN.com wrote in calling him the tournament's surprise performer. "He was at his best down the stretch, knocking down a deep three-pointer and two clutch free throws in the game's final 30 seconds. Albrecht is a cerebral point guard who is super crafty inside and is especially adept at keeping his dribble."

"We had a really good season," Albrecht said. "Just a great team with a lot of good players around me."

Asked to assess his game, he said, "I think one of the things I do best is my leadership role, court awareness. I try to use my basketball IQ to my advantage. I'm not as athletic or as big as other guys I go against, but it's always been like that. I play with a chip on my shoulder. You've got to be tough. I try to get in the paint and create shots for teammates."

Albrecht has known McGary since the fourth grade and played with him for a number of years in Wayne Brumm's SYF AAU program.

"I owe a special thanks to [Brumm]. He's the one who recommended me to Coach Beilein and [Jeff] Meyer at Michigan, and that kind of got the ball rolling. Coach Meyer came down and saw me in a game.

"Definitely last year coming out of high school I felt like could have done better than what I was getting, thinking maybe I was under-recruited a bit. I wanted to explore my options."

It proved to be a good decision, even better if he's able to land a Michigan offer.