Michigan basketball: Wolverines getting hot after slow start

Backs against the wall, Michigan basketball traveled to Indiana on Sunday and pulled off the upset as the Wolveirnes would run Indiana out of their gym with an 80-62 win. 

The win at Indiana boosts Michigan basketball‘s record to 9-7 on the season and could potentially signify the turning point in the Wolverines young season.

Michigan has had a rough start to the 2021-22 season. After starting the season ranked 4th in the nation and carrying their 2021 Big Ten title momentum, Michigan was quickly upset by Seton Hall in Ann Arbor.

This loss would be the beginning of a horrific start for the Wolverines, who have hovered around .500 for most of this season. After a series of embarrassing defeats and narrow victories, the Wolverine headed to Illinois with a depleted roster due to Covid-19 and injuries.

Michigan basketball could not pull off the win at Illinois but looked more competitive and led many to wonder whether or not the game could signify the beginning of a turnaround for the Wolverines.

Michigan would head back to Ann Arbor in their next game with a 7-7 record to square off against a 9-8 Maryland team. In a seemingly-empty Crisler Center, it appeared as if the Wolverines had finally found their stride as they dominated the Terrapins, 83-64.

What these wins mean going forward for Michigan

With an extremely young roster, most Michigan fans expected a slow start. New faces such as Caleb Houston, Kobe Bufkin, Moussa Diabate, and others have needed to step up.

Since last season, the Wolverines lost four key players to the NBA draft but retained senior guard Eli Brooks and sophomore center, Hunter Dickinson.

With a 9-7 record, Michigan basketball will now have an opportunity to improve to 10-7 this Wednesday against Northwestern. The Wolverines will then travel to East Lansing to take on No. 14 Michigan State to kick off a tough stretch of games for Michigan.

Starting with their match-up against the Spartans on January 29th, the Wolverines face a challenging remainder of their schedule. Here is the remaining Michigan men’s basketball schedule:

Jan. 29 Michigan State

Jan. 1 Nebraska

Feb. 5 at Purdue

Feb. 8 at Penn State

Feb. 12 at Ohio State

Feb. 17 at Iowa

Feb. 20 at Wisconsin

Feb. 23 Rutgers

Feb. 27 at Illinois

Mar. 3 Iowa

Mar. 6 Ohio State

Michigan will need to continue to build momentum through winning games against tough opponents to make March Madness. Juwan Howard, who just signed a 5-year extension in November, will need to coach up his young team to make a push to get his squad comfortably into the Big Ten tournament and for better seeding for the big dance in March.

If Michigan can genuinely pull themselves together, this team is without a doubt talented enough to make waves both in the Big Ten and on a national stage. This short winning streak could very well be the beginning of a turnaround for Michigan basketball’s 2021-22 season.