Rutgers’ Steve Pikiell was wary of Caleb Houstan before scoring outburst
Michigan freshman Caleb Houstan hasn’t had the kind of freshman season many envisioned for the five-star wing. He’s had his moments, but many thought he’d be a Big Ten freshman of the year candidate.
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Instead, Houstan entered averaging 9.9 points per game and shooting 34.7 percent from long range. He was six of his last 24 from three-point range heading in, and he’d had trouble defensively.
That didn’t stop Rutgers head coach Steve Pikiell from worrying. He’d done his homework, and while Hunter Dickinson Michigan gets a lot of the attention, he knew Houstan was dangerous.
“Tough road game,” Pikiell said. “Michigan played well. I thought we were a step slow, both ends of the floor. I was worried about this stretch with our guys, and I thought it kind of showed a bit here today.
“But give them credit. I thought Hunter Dickinson started the game off, then we were worried about Caleb Houstan, who shoots 45 percent from three at home, 28 percent on the road. He kind of got us with a few threes, too. And they just seemed a step quicker than us all over the place today.”
Rutgers came in with four wins in their last five games, including four over ranked opponents before a loss at Purdue Sunday. Michigan got guard Paul Mulcahy in foul trouble early, and he never got in rhythm.
On the other end, the Wolverines got a huge lift from Houstan. His two, first half triples helped Michigan create some separation. He repeated it in the second half, pushing U-M to a 44-38 lead it wouldn’t relinquish. He finished with 21 points, going 5-for-9 from three.
“Stops were what was missing,” Pikiell said. “They got on a run there; they got into the lane. We talked a lot about that. They got on a little bit of run. We had some untimely turnovers, too, and some opportunities to make some layups and shots we didn’t convert on.
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“That kind of snowballed. When you’re on the road like this, you can’t have stretches like that. We could never seem to get three, four stops in a row, either, which would have helped us a a great deal.”
Rutgers has been outstanding on the boards this year, but Michigan also took care of business on the glass. Dickinson led the way with 11, and U-M won the battle 36-31, limiting the Scarlet Knights to seven offensive boards.
“They’re really good rebounding the basketball,” Pikiell said. “They did a good job in a lot of areas. I thought they made it tough for us. I thought the way they ran their offense, got going downhill, we start off with a couple fouls both halves — that wasn’t how I wanted it.
“But they made threes, too. Jump shots, midrange in the lane … I thought their point guard was really good, DeVante’ Jones going downhill and causing some havoc for us.”
All in all, it was a huge home win for Michigan, which probably needs two more in the last four games to feel good about its NCAA Tournament chances. Assistant Phil Martelli brought it home with Juwan Howard suspended for five games, crediting fellow assistants Howard Eisley and Saddi Washington for their help.
“Obviously, he’s a good coach,” Pikiell said. “But they’ve got good players, too. Juwan has done a good job with that team.”
