College Basketball Preview: 5. Michigan Wolverines

5. Michigan Wolverines 24-10 in 2011 (13-5 Big Ten)

Trey Burke

If you thought all the hype around Ann Arbor was about Michigan's football team then you were wrong. This year's basketball team has the talent to fly into the Final Four. Last season, expectations were high for John Beilein's squad but the Wolverines just weren't quite there suffering losses to worse teams like Arkansas, Purdue and Iowa. Then, the Wolverines were stunned by Ohio in the first round of the tournament. With the return of Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway it seems Michigan is there, wherever that is, this season.


Backcourt: A lot of talent is gone as defensive master Zach Novak and durable Stu Douglass graduated, but, in the same sense, a lot is back also. Trey Burke was as good as anybody could have hoped for the Wolverines filling Darius Morris' shoes. Burke has great court vision and an ability to get to the rim. But, his shooting was surprisingly strong last season. Hardaway proved that he deserved the hype averaging 14.6 points per game last season. Hardaway is versatile enough to start at both shooting guard and small forward and has the shooting touch to play effectively at both. Without Douglass nor Novak expect Matt Vogrich to be the top off the bench option for Michigan. He does a ton of damage on the perimeter and loves to play pyschical defense. Also expect freshman Spike Albrecht to see major minutes as he can be deadly from long range also. Senior Eso Akunne adds in an interesting mix of talent.

Jordan Morgan

Frontcourt: Junior Jordan Morgan has the pyschique to have a magical season. Morgan didn't fit well at power forward due to his weak speed and weak size. Now, with a lot of work he could be a double-digit machine. Anticipated freshman Glenn Robinson adds a athletic forward who can score every time he touches the ball. Robinson, son of former NBA star "Big Dog" Robinson can also rebound effectively too. Another freshman, Mitch McGary provides Belein with a center and size that he didn't have last season. McGary is a tough player who can play volleyball on the glass and can become a swat machine. Redshirt Max Bielfeldt should improve with more time to mature but still has some notable weaknesses in his game. Another little used forward Jon Horford should play a bigger role now that he is back from a significant injury. With more size, Beilein finally has some rebounders to go along with all of his shooters. That means a whole lot of troubles for the rest of the Big Ten.
Top NBA Prospect: Glenn Robinson
Big Ten Rank: 2nd
PROJECTED LINEUP
PG Trey Burke- Sophomore
SG Tim Hardaway- Junior
SF Glenn Robinson- Freshman
PF Jordan Morgan- Junior
C Mitch McGary- Freshman
Sixth Matt Vogrich- Senior