One of the main reasons the Michigan Wolverines’ basketball team enjoyed a 2-0 week (a victory at Nebraska on Tuesday and then a triumph over Rutgers in Madison Square Garden on Saturday) was due to the play of freshman guard Franz Wagner and sophomore forward Brandon Johns.
Johns strung together career nights against both the Cornhuskers and Scarlet Knights, first pouring in a career best 16 points against the former and then breaking that mark by racking up 20 points against the latter.
Wagner, meanwhile, was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week today after he averaged 14 points and seven boards between the two games, with a large portion of his points coming around the rim.
The freshman is shooting a dismal 29.4 percent from three-point range on the year, and as a result has made it an emphasis to drive to the basket more in recent games.
“I’m getting more comfortable as the season continues to go on,” he explained today. “It’s about sticking to what the coaches want for me, staying within myself and remaining confident.
“If I do that, things will work out the way the team and I want them to. When I played in Europe, I weighed less than I do now and it was harder for me to get to the rim.
“I grew a little bit over the summer and after playing against grown men back home, I’ve found it’s more physical going to the basket than shooting it from the outside.
“I’ve done a better job of attacking the basket more in the last couple of games, and I’m going to continue that.”
“He’s really crafty around the rim,” Johns exclaimed. “Franz works so hard in practice and outside of it, and it’s finally paying off in games.
“It shows where his confidence and energy levels are both at right now. He played a lot of games in Europe, so his IQ is very high; he’s probably one of the smartest players I’ve ever played with, and he’s only a freshman.
“We guard each other every once in a while in practice, and he’s now less timid and more aggressive than he had been. He’s also drawing more fouls and creating his own shot.”
Johns has also been required to take on a bigger role ever since junior forward Isaiah Livers went down with injury, and the sophomore has answered the bell as of late.
He set new career highs in minutes played in each of the last two games (37 against Nebraska and 38 versus Rutgers), and has averaged 12.5 points, six boards and is shooting 54.5 percent from deep over Michigan’s last four games dating back to the Jan. 22 loss to Penn State.
“I still have to work on my midrange game and my handle,” he insisted today. “It’s about being consistent.”
Consistency had been a major problem for the Maize and Blue prior to these last two victories, with stretches of poor play outweighing the positive spurts the team showed during its four-game losing streak.
The Wolverines can continue to right the ship, however, with a win tomorrow night over an Ohio State club who is just 3-6 in its last nine games.
“It’s important we’re not stagnant on offense, and that we communicate,” Wagner forecasted. “When we do that, we have an advantage against a lot of teams.
“We’ve either done those things and have won games, or we haven’t and we’ve lost. It’ll be the same thing tomorrow.”
Michigan picked up a dominant 65-49 victory over Ohio State last year when the Buckeyes visited Ann Arbor, with a bit of a scuffle breaking out toward the end.
The participants of last season’s quarrel will be on the court tomorrow as well, with OSU sophomore forward Justin Ahrens starting it when he elbowed senior point guard Zavier Simpson in pregame warmups, and Buckeye junior center Kaleb Wesson and Simpson finishing it with a shouting match late in the game.
Do confrontations like that carry over the following year?
“I think so,” Johns said. “If it does, then we’re going to be ready for it. We’re not going to back down from anybody; we’re just going to play our game.”
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