We take a look back at how every Michigan Wolverines basketball coach fared in their debut season.

Michigan Wolverines basketball head coach Juwan Howard concluded his debut campaign in Ann Arbor with a 19-12 record, though he would have had an opportunity to add on to that win total if the rest of the Big Ten Tournament and the NCAA Tournament would have taken place.

At worst, the Maize and Blue were scheduled to play at least two more games (one in the conference tournament and one in the Big Dance), and could have played as many as 10 more had they made it to the championships of both of the aforementioned tournaments.

Howard was set to become just the third first-year Michigan head coach ever to lead the Wolverines to the NCAA Tournament, with Steve Fisher (1990) and Brian Ellerbe (1998) the only other two who were able to do so.

A Sweet Sixteen appearance this season would have also made Howard the first debut U-M coach ever to lead his club that far into the NCAA Tournament (both Fisher's and Ellerbe's initial Michigan teams lost in the second round of the Big Dance to Loyola-Marymount and UCLA, respectively).

Howard's 19 wins this year tie him with Bill Frieder (1980-81) for the third most among first-year coaches in school history, trailing only the 25 victories that Ellerbe's 1997-98 squad compiled and the 23 wins Fisher's 1989-90 team recorded.

His 61.2 overall winning percentage puts him a bit further down the list, however, checking in seventh among the 17 first-year coaches Michigan has ever had (including Howard).

The 10 conference victories the Wolverines posted this season were tied for the third most under a debut coach in school history, with George Veenker also racking up 10 (with only two league losses) in 1928-29.

The only two first-year head coaches who won more conference games were Fisher (12-6 in 1989-90) and Ellerbe (11-5 in 1997-98).

Win Totals for Every First-Year Michigan Coach

Year	Coach	Final Record

1997-98	Brian Ellerbe	25-9
1989-90	Steve Fisher	23-8
1980-81	Bill Frieder	19-11
2019-20	Juwan Howard	19-12
1948-49	Ernest McCoy	15-6
1968-69	Johnny Orr	13-11
1928-29	George Veenker	13-3
1946-47	Osborne Cowles	12-8
2001-02	Tommy Amaker	11-18
1931-32	Frank Cappon	11-6
1938-39	Bennie Oosterbaan	11-9
2007-08	John Beilein	10-22
1919-20	E.J. Mather	10-13
1952-53	William Perigo	6-16
1960-61	Dave Strack	6-18
1917-18	Elmer Mitchell	6-12
1908-09	George D. Corneal	1-4

Winning Percentages for Every First-Year Michigan Coach

Year	Coach	Winning Percentage

1928-29	George Veenker	81.2%
1989-90	Steve Fisher	74.2%
1997-98	Brian Ellerbe	73.5%
1948-49	Ernest McCoy	71.4%
1931-32	Frank Cappon	64.7%
1980-81	Bill Frieder	63.3%
2019-20	Juwan Howard	61.2%
1946-47	Osborne Cowles	60%
1938-39	Bennie Oosterbaan	55%
1968-69	Johnny Orr	54.1%
1919-20	E.J. Mather	43.4%
2001-02	Tommy Amaker	37.9%
1917-18	Elmer Mitchell	33.3%
2007-08	John Beilein	31.2%
1952-53	William Perigo	27.2%
1960-61	Dave Strack	25%
1908-09	George D. Corneal	20%

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