The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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DECEMBER 2019 THE WOLVERINE 41 MICHIGAN BASKETBALL versus Saginaw Valley Nov. 1 and the season opener against Appala- chian State Nov. 5, and was expected to miss the contest with Creighton Nov. 12, a home game versus Elon Nov. 15 and the tilt against Houston Baptist Nov. 22. He could return for the Battle for Atlantis Tournament in the Bahamas, where the Wolverines open with a game against Iowa State Nov. 27. H e a d c o a c h J u w a n H o w a rd heaped praise on his freshman dur- ing media day. "He's a super talented guy … great skill level for a 6-foot-9 wing. It's pretty dynamic," Howard said. "I think Franz has a chance to have a really good year this season. He's proven it in practice; his teammates trust him. "He's shown that he's very com- petitive not only on the offensive end, but he's a very good defensive ball player with his wingspan as well as his activity on the ball. He's a quick learner with a high basketball IQ. He has a smooth stroke … he's also ath- letic, too. We're going to be using a lot of Franz. He's a competitor." Howard added it seemed like he'd known him for years the first time he saw him play in Greece this summer. "We'd talked a lot on the phone, done some Facetiming. He's very welcoming, a big smile on his face," the coach said. "He just made me feel comfortable. That was a long trip, and he understood that and re- spected it. He told me, just like his parents did, 'You don't have to come; you can just wait [until Wagner gets to campus].' But he appreciated the fact that I took time out of my sched- ule to come support him. "Franz is one of our family mem- bers. Of course I would be there to watch him play and let him know that Michigan, the head coach, ap- preciates him. He's family, and that's what family does for one another." Howard said the Wolverines would take a "by committee" ap- proach in trying to replace him. They started sophomore wing Adrien Nunez against both Saginaw Valley and Appalachian State. "Before his injury, he was having a really good summer and preseason," Howard said of Wagner. "His pre- season was pretty strong up until that point where he injured his hand. There are going to be many guys that are going to have to step up." Wagner arrived from Germany where he played for Alba Berlin in the country's top professional league and ProB SSV lok Bernau Alba. He came off the bench for Alba Berlin and averaged 4.6 points and 1.3 re- bounds per game, playing 12.4 min- utes per game. He shot 52.9 percent from the field and 39.6 percent on three-pointers. He started six of nine games with SSV lok Bernau Alba and averaged 16.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.5 assists per game. He also shot 50.0 percent from the field and 38.8 percent three-point range. The freshman spent media day re- iterating why he chose to come to Michigan. "Everything that Michigan is about," Wagner said. "It's about hav- ing a good education as well, having an opportunity to play here and be in a good spot basketball-wise." Wagner said he knew he made the right decision when Howard came to Greece to see him in the FIBA U18 European Championship. "That showed to me that he wants to get to know me and he really buys into it," he said. "And I was really happy about that." — Chris Balas JUWAN HOWARD MEETS JOHN BEILEIN IN CLEVELAND Speaking after a Detroit Pistons preseason game in October, former Michigan head coach John Beilein, now with the Cleveland Cavaliers, said he was planning to meet with new U-M head coach Juwan How- ard at some point. The meeting took place a few weeks later in Cleveland, where Howard drove to meet the fu- ture Hall of Fame coach. "We had a great meeting," Howard said. "It was my idea. I wanted to sit down and talk to him. I've always done this. When he was the head coach here and I was an assistant coach in Miami, Coach Beilein [and I], we developed that relationship. I've always respected his basketball knowledge for the game. "I think he's one of those guys who I put on that basketball Mount Rushmore. That's pressure on him, MICHIGAN'S 2019-20 BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Nov. 5 Appalachian State W, 79-71 Nov. 12 Creighton# (FS1) 6:30 p.m. Nov. 15 Elon^ (BTN) 7 p.m. Nov. 22 Houston Baptist (BTN+) 7 p.m. Nov. 27 vs. Iowa State& (ESPN) 12 p.m. Nov. 28 vs. Alabama or North Carolina& (ESPN/2) 1:30/6:30 p.m. Nov. 29 vs. TBA& (ESPN/2) TBA Dec. 3 at Louisville! (ESPN/2) 7/7:30 p.m. Dec. 6 Iowa (FS1) 6:30 p.m. Dec. 11 at Illinois (BTN) 9 p.m. Dec. 14 Oregon (CBS) 12 p.m. Dec. 21 Presbyterian (BTN) 12 p.m. Dec. 29 UMass Lowell (FS1) 2 p.m. Jan. 5 at Michigan State (CBS) 1:30/4:30 p.m. Jan. 9 Purdue (FS1) 7 p.m. Jan. 12 at Minnesota (BTN) 1 p.m. Jan. 17 at Iowa (FS1) 9 p.m. Jan. 22 Penn State (BTN) 7 p.m. Jan. 25 Illinois (FS1) 12 p.m. Jan. 28 at Nebraska (ESPN/2/U) 7 p.m. Feb. 1 vs. Rutgers@ (BTN) 4:30 p.m. Feb. 4 Ohio State (ESPN/2) 7 p.m. Feb. 8 Michigan State (FOX) 12 p.m. Feb. 12 at Northwestern (BTN) 9 p.m. Feb. 16 Indiana (CBS) 1 p.m. Feb. 19 at Rutgers (BTN) 7 p.m. Feb. 22 at Purdue (ESPN/2) 2 p.m. Feb. 27 Wisconsin (ESPN/2) 7 p.m. Mar. 1 at Ohio State (CBS) 4 p.m. Mar. 5 Nebraska (FS1) 6:30 p.m. Mar. 8 at Maryland (FOX) 12 p.m. Mar. 11-15 Big Ten Tournament$ (BTN/CBS) TBD # Gavitt Tipoff Games; ^ Battle 4 Atlantis/Mainland Bracket; & Battle 4 Atlantis/Championship Bracket in Paradise Island, Bahamas; ! ACC/Big Ten Challenge; @ at Madison Square Garden in New York City; $ at Indianapolis Head coach Juwan Howard said he wouldn't try to emulate former head coach John Beilein, knowing their styles are different, but he did take the opportunity to meet with him in October and talk basketball. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL