The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/589596
2015-16 BASKETBALL PREVIEW 1. Nik Stauskas (2014): Stauskas was good as a freshman, averaging 11.0 points per game and earning Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors three times. He scored in double figures in 29 games, but he was es- sentially a one-dimensional, spot-up shooter. That all changed in his sophomore year. Stauskas became the NBA's No. 8 overall pick (by Sacramento) after he earned NABC All-America first-team honors, and Associ- ated Press and Sporting News All-America second-team selections. He rounded out his game and won U-M's Bill Buntin Most Valu- able Player Award and the Gary Grant Award for most assists, leading the Wolverines and finishing third in Big Ten with 17.5 points per game, and adding 3.3 assists and 2.9 re- bounds per contest. 2. Darius Morris (2011): Morris spent his first year in veteran Manny Harris' shadow, averaging only 4.4 points, 2.6 assists and 1.8 rebounds. He started 19 of 31 games and shot only 17.9 percent (7-39) from three-point range. He became an NBA second-round pick the following season after earning U- M's Bill Buntin Most Valuable Player Award and the Gary Grant Award for most assists. He started 34 of 35 games and averaged 15.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game, led the Big Ten and finished fifth in the nation for assists per game, and set the U-M single season record with 235 assists. 3. Zak Irvin (2015): Irvin had his moments as a true freshman in earning U- M's Sixth Man Award, but he was generally a spot shooter from long range. He averaged 6.7 points per game, scoring 227 total points. He took off last year while rounding out his game and was one of the Big Ten's better players by season's end. He earned U-M's Bill Buntin Most Valuable Player Award, the Loy Vaught Rebounding Award, the Iron Man Award and the Wayman Britt Outstanding Defensive Player Award after averaging 14.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. 4. Caris LeVert (2014): LeVert went from little-used guard who averaged 2.3 points per game to big-time scorer in his sophomore year. His three-point shooting improved from 30.2 percent to 40.8 percent and he started all 37 games, averaging 12.9 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. He earned All-Big Ten second-team honors, U-M's Rudy Tomjanovich Most Improved Player Award and the Steve Grote Hustle Award. Nik Stauskas went from averag- ing 11.0 points per game during his freshman season to 17.5 the next year en route to All-America laurels. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN