Wolverines Collapse In Indy
The return of Juwan Howard and Hunter Dickinson appeared to pay huge dividends on Thursday, until Michigan went ice cold in the second half and surrendered a 17-point lead. By the time the dust had settled, Indiana would emerge victorious by a score of 74-69.
After missing the previous game against Ohio State with a stomach issue, Dickinson returned to the hardwood on Thursday and looked dominant early. Though Dickinson would enter the half with 13 points, he accounted for just two points in the second half - finishing the afternoon with 15 points and five rebounds. Veteran guard Devante Jones also got off to a hot start, entering the half with 12 pts. Like Dickinson, Jones would also cool off considerably in the second half - accounting for just six points in the final 20 minutes of play.
Michigan had 9 of its 12 turnovers in the second half and, at one point, had allowed Indiana to go on an incredible 20-2 run.
With the loss, it's now a toss-up as to whether or not the Wolverines will make the NCAA Tournament - a reality that head coach Juwan Howard is fully aware of.
"I'm going to pray," said Howard. "Whatever is decided, I'm proud of how this team, coaches and Michigan family stayed together throughout the year. We were handed a series of challenges."
Thursday's contest also marked the official return U-M head coach Juwan Howard, who served a five-game suspension for his part in an ugly altercation with Wisconsin assistant coach, Joe Krabbenhoft. In addressing the media upon his return, Howard spoke candidly and from the heart.
“I could come with a thousand excuses, but I’m not. I take full ownership for my actions,” Howard said. “I could talk about the timeout, we could discuss the pull on the arm, we can talk about the words exchanged with coaches.
“But all that would be excuses...I hurt a lot of people. I hurt my family, I hurt my players and their families, I hurt my staff, I hurt the Michigan family, the Michigan alumni base. There are a lot of people I hurt during that moment, and I’m still hurting.”
Though Howard is still working his way through the incident on a personal level, he made it clear that he was fully locked in on the task at hand.
“I know there’s going to be a big microscope on me every time that I coach,” said Howard. “What are my emotions like? How am I communicating with my players? I’ll be dialed into making sure I’m preparing my players, staff, so we can go out there and compete. I’m not going to focus on the prediction or assumption here.”
