John Beilein on Michigan basketball: 'I don't think anything is slowing this team down ... they're terrific'
Michigan Wolverines basketball is on a roll under first-year head coach Dusty May, sitting at 11-3 overall, 3-0 in Big Ten play and No. 24 in both major national polls ahead of Tuesday night’s game against UCLA at Pauley Pavilion.
The Maize and Blue are even winning fans some money. They’ve covered the Vegas point spread in nine of 14 contests, and even helped former Michigan head coach John Beilein get a break from walking his dog.
“I had a friendly bet with a neighbor who went to Western Kentucky,” Beilein said on the ‘Talking Hoops’ segment of The HUGE Show with Bill Simonson and Doeren Mayhew’s Josh Garvey. “And I gave him 22 points for the game — $10 bet or he had to walk my dog. It’s 28 at halftime!”
Michigan beat the Hilltoppers 112-64 in the second of a three-game winning streak that’s currently active heading into the clash with No. 22 UCLA.
“They do everything well,” Beilein said of Michigan. “[Junior forward/center] Danny Wolf and [graduate center] Vlad[islav Goldin] there are both NBA first-rounders, in my mind, right now. They’re both very good, and the point guard play is great, and they’ve got shooters everywhere.
“I don’t think anything is slowing this team down. I just think they’re terrific. Dusty’s got some experience.”
Wolf has been the catalyst, and he’s coming off an incredible performance. In Saturday night’s 85-74 win at USC, the 7-foot big man put together the following stat line: 21 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists, 6 blocks and 2 steals. He’s not only the Wolverines’ top offensive threat, but he’s also arguably the best defender on the team. His 6 blocks were the most by a Michigan player in a game since Epke Udoh in 2008.
“He had 6 blocked shots,” Beilein, Michigan’s winningest coach of all time, said. I’ve had good shot blockers. I’ve never had a guy block 6 shots in a game. That’s incredible that he put a line together with that.
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“That goes a long way in the NBA, because there are so many good players, and if you can just get your hands on a ball every now and then, it changes the game. Really, that was an amazing performance. I was sending that box score to a lot of my friends in the NBA to say, ‘You guys gotta see this kid. He’s for real.’”
Michigan is undefeated in conference play, with the only other team that can say the same being in-state foe Michigan State. Beilein feels like another great stretch for Wolverines basketball is brewing.
“Look at the top of the Big Ten again: Michigan, Michigan State, just like the good old days, baby, when we used to be rocking and rolling down there,” he noted. “Those two teams are 3-0 at the top, and they’ve both got two road wins in the Big Ten. We’ve got great teams in this state again.”
Beilein is part of the Big Ten Network’s college basketball coverage, serving as one of its top analysts. He’ll be in studio in Chicago this coming Sunday and Monday.
“It’s just fun,” the former Michigan coach said. “It’s a fun time of the year, as we get into January and everybody’s playing two games every week, and they’ve got rest time and you’re playing real teams every night in packed arenas wherever you go. It’s a fun time.”
