Trailing by five points early, the No. 3 Michigan Wolverines moved back ahead of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights with 10:01 remaining in the first half and never looked back, leading by as many as 17 in their 71-64 victory on Thursday at the Crisler Center.
On a night where senior Isaiah Livers, the program’s leading scorer, was held to seven points, his second-lowest output of the year, it was sophomore Franz Wagner who starred on the offensive end, matching a season-high with 20 points.
Wagner reached this total with sizzling efficiency, shooting 6-of-9 from the floor, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range, and 5-of-6 from the free throw line. More than just a scorer, the Berlin native also chipped in seven rebounds, three assists, and a steal.
“I just try to take what the defense gives me, really every game,” Wagner said. “There’s been a lot more games where I’ve shot nine shots. Today, I hit a couple more than usual, but I’m going to stay aggressive, I’ve been playing aggressive, I think, these last couple of games. I think it’s very important that everybody does that, definitely a lot more fun when some shots fall.”
That aggressive mindset plays a large role for Wagner on the floor, but he also credited the style of second-year head coach Juwan Howard for helping him squeeze every ounce of production out of his game.
“The support of the coaching staff, especially Juwan, is extremely important for us and especially for me,” he said. “Once you miss a shot and you have another open one, he always wants you to take it, but he’s going to tell you when you (mess) up, he’s going to tell you, for sure, and that’s how it’s supposed to be, he’s not going to sugarcoat anything.
“Today, I had a dumb foul, he took a timeout and immediately told me, and that’s how it’s supposed to be. I think you always know where you stand with him, he’s a great guy, great coach, he really knows how to do his job, and, obviously, he’s doing a great job of it.”
With the win, the Wolverines improved to 15-1 (10-1 Big Ten), maintaining their two-game lead over the No. 5 Illinois Fighting Illini in the loss column in the conference standings.
Michigan’s next game, however, a trip to Value City Arena to battle No. 4 Ohio State (18-4, 12-4) on Sunday, will present, likely, their toughest challenge yet. Defeating the Penn State Nittany Lions, 92-82, on Thursday, the Buckeyes will enter the contest on a seven-game winning streak.
“We don’t play to say we had a good first half of the season,” Wagner said. “I think we got a lot more work to do to achieve our goals we set before the season; the next game is just another step for us.
“We got to be ready on Sunday, we’re going to prepare really good these next couple of days, look at what we did wrong today, and try to be as good as we can on Sunday against a really good team.”
Sunday’s action in Columbus will tip at 1 p.m. EST on CBS.
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