Wolverine Watch: A Pre-Banner Night

Get the banner ready. The Big Ten championship is coming to Ann Arbor.

At this point, the conference can decide on whatever method it wants to determine a champion. Winning percentage? Check. Games back? Check. Best point guard hair? Double check.

Juwan Howard’s team has it, and demonstrated so once again in resounding fashion Thursday night. The Wolverines took a halftime cliffhanger with Iowa and turned it into a silage slinger by a runaway John Deere in a 79-57 win over No. 9 Iowa.

The Wolverines shot 55.6 percent in the second half, limited the Hawkeyes to 30 percent and left no doubt about any hoped-for upset back in Iowa City. The visitors were going nowhere — except home, empty handed.

Warm up the tractor.

Fran McCaffrey’s crew came in averaging 86.4 points per game. They left Crisler Center with 57, their lowest total of the year. The Wolverines frustrated them, muscled them, and out-hustled them in the pull-away second half.

Along the way, freshman center Hunter Dickinson literally and figuratively busted the chops of the Hawkeye whom many consider the best player in the nation.

Luka Garza put 16 points on the board, but these were no sweet 16. He went 6-for-19 from the field to get there, managing only four rebounds and turning the ball over twice. By comparison, Dickinson went 14 and eight on points and rebounds, shot 6-for-13, and posted a pair of blocks.

He did all that in 23 foul-limited minutes, compared to Garza’s 34. When Dickinson had to hit the sidelines, fifth-year senior center Austin Davis, junior forward Brandon Johns Jr. and others pitched in to turn Garza’s night into a sideline towel-slammer.

“Tonight was a battle,” Dickinson assured. “I’m still tired after that game. That’s why we all came to Michigan — to play in those kinds of games.”

They came to play, all right. Days earlier, they’d bested the No. 4 team in the land and their arch rival in Columbus. That one felt like a Final Four showdown, and many called it an Instant Classic.

This one started out more like an Instant Clang-It. Banging, gritty defense, missed shots and the tenderizing of heavyweight boxers feeling each other out.

Center stage — the 6-11, 265-pound Iowa senior versus the 7-1, 255-pound Michigan freshman. Gentlemen, start your elbows.

“He’s obviously a great player,” Dickinson said. “He’s probably going to be the Player of the Year in the Big Ten and in the country. He’s got great skill, and I just tried to do my best to hold my own against him.”

Dickinson held his own, and Garza’s own — lunch money, that is.

The Iowa big man scored 77 points in a pair of games against the Wolverines last year — 44 in Ann Arbor. This time around, his body blows got returned, with some change.

Dickinson wasn’t giving an inch to his old workout buddy. The two shut down texting each other as the game approached, then the freshman sent a different type of message at tipoff.

For 20 minutes, Dickinson delivered in convincing fashion. Garza went a tepid 3-for-11 on the way to seven first-half points. Michigan’s rookie started physical and stayed that way, scoring eight first-half points, grabbing three rebounds and making a pair of blocks.

Garza drew a non-dunkin’ donut for first-half rebounds. In short, Dickinson looked as intimidated as a grizzly taking on a dehorned bull.

All of that proved worthy of a measly three-point Michigan halftime lead.

Less than three minutes into the second half and with the Wolverines barely clinging to the advantage, Dickinson picked up his third foul and hit the bench.

Dick Vitale declared it A POSSIBLE TURNING POINT IN THE GAAAAAAME!

It was. It turned into a rout.

Sophomore forward Franz Wagner went wild, racking up 21 points on 9-for-12 shooting. Senior forward Isaiah Livers wound up dropping four three-pointers on his way to 16 points, and acknowledged following the Franz frenzy.

“Franz Wagner came out of nowhere!” Livers exulted. “No one wanted to stop him. If he sees any type of gap, he’ll drive it … he has the best touch in the whole country. Franz set the tone, not only on the offensive end but the defensive end.

“He was a leader in that second half, and he led us the first four minutes. We just followed his lead.”

Livers wants the Wolverines to keep following each other’s lead, right to a championship … or three.

“Franz, when he’s aggressive, and he’s locked in, we definitely are the best team in the country,” he declared. “That’s multiple guys who can take the ball to the paint, find an open guy, then turn around and be a two-way player.”

There’s no two ways about it — Michigan is closing in on Step 1.

“We all want our brothers to shine,” Livers said. “When everybody buys into that, we’re going to raise banners.”

They’re about to python-squeeze the first one out of the Big Ten. Might as well make that a triple order of felt.

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