Wolverine TV: Juwan Howard, Michigan players react to 72-70 win over Northwestern
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan Wolverines basketball rallied late to beat Northwestern, 72-70, Tuesday night at Crisler Center. Head coach Juwan Howard, fifth-year senior point guard DeVante’ Jones and freshman wing Caleb Houstan met with the media to discuss in the aftermath.
With the win, the Maize and Blue moved to 10-7 on the season and 4-3 in Big Ten play. They’ll take on Michigan State Saturday afternoon at the Jack Breslin Student Events center.
RELATED
• Michigan basketball rallies late to beat Northwestern, 72-70
• Wolverines in the NBA: Jordan Poole in a new role, Wagner brothers have big night
Michigan Head Coach Juwan Howard
Howard was proud of the way his team fought back after being down seven late in the game.
“Very proud,” Howard said. “Very proud of how our team, when we were down seven, how we banded together and fought really hard and figured out a way to dig deep and get a victory. Each possession mattered to this group, and we talked about it in the timeouts — we looked up at the scoreboard and saw we were down seven. I asked them all to breathe, take some deep breaths.”
Michigan Point Guard DeVante’ Jones
Jones discussed his big three late in the game, what it was like playing without sophomore center Hunter Dickinson and freshman forward Moussa Diabate due to foul trouble down the stretch and more. At the end of his press conference, he was asked about Michigan’s upcoming game at Michigan State and, as a first-year player in Ann Arbor, what he knows about the rivalry.
“When we were about to play them the last time, practices were crazy. Coach came in off the juice, everybody was amped up,” Jones, a Coastal Carolina transfer, said. It was no playing around. I’m really excited; I can’t wait to go in to that arena and see the crowd, hear all the boos, all that comes with it. I’m excited; I can’t wait.”
Top 10
- 1Breaking
Biff Poggi
Charlotte firing head coach
- 2Hot
Skipping SEC title game
Coaches prefer sitting out
- 3
Predicting new CFP Top 12
BCS formula predicts 12-team bracket
- 4New
Kiffin calls out Saban
'He's now the rat poisoner'
- 5
Dabo rips refs
Swinney headed to 'Targeting Anonymous'
Michigan Wing Caleb Houstan
Houstan finished with 18 points and hit a three-pointer to give Michigan a 68-65 lead with just over a minute and a half to go. He discussed the Wolverines’ approach in a tight game late, where they’ve failed to execute in the past but pulled it out this time around.
“It was a timeout, and Coach just kind of said, ‘Everybody take a breath.’ Basically saying that this is going to be alright and it’s good. Obviously, Terrance and Jaron subbed in, and I think they did a great job of next man up, and they played really well for us down the stretch.”
Added Houstan, discussing his big triple: “As soon as Jaron passed it to me, I shot it. I didn’t even think about going in or not going in. I just thought I got a good look and let it fly.”
