INDIANAPOLIS — Their floor leader is out, and no one knows how long. Their margins are so narrow, no one knows how long their run can last. Their lineup is so young, with three freshman starters, Juwan Howard couldn’t help but reminisce.
“If I remember, Coach (Steve) Fisher started five freshmen,” Howard said with a laugh, recalling his Fab Five days. “Some people would say, it's a very young team. True, it is. But did they grow up today? Yes.”
The Wolverines had to grow up quickly in their NCAA Tournament opener, and when the critical moment came — respond or recoil — freshman Frankie Collins did things he hadn’t yet done in his college career. Taking over for injured point guard DeVante’ Jones, Collins pulled Michigan from danger and sparked a 75-63 victory over Colorado State on Thursday.
Frankie was red hot, just like Howard figured (hoped?) he’d be, just like Collins figured he’d be. Just like nobody else probably imagined he’d be. And with Jones (concussion protocol) still uncertain to make the trip to Indianapolis for Saturday’s matchup against Tennessee, this might have to be more than a one-day performance.
The Wolverines (18-14) fully resembled a sluggish 11 seed early on. Then they made the No. 6 Rams (25-6) look like the 11 the rest of the way, attacking on defense, wearing down star David Roddy (13 points) and wiping out a 15-point deficit. Hunter Dickinson (21 points) was dominant against the smaller Rams, but Michigan had a staggering nine turnovers in the first half, as Colorado State raced to a 28-13 lead.
If Howard learned a bit about his young guys, he learned a bit about himself too. He stopped alternating another freshman, Kobe Bufkin, and let Collins take charge. On consecutive possessions in the second half, Collins grabbed a steal and a layup, then drilled a 3-pointer, Michigan’s first. He finished with 14 points on 6-for-7 shooting, with six rebounds and only one turnover.
“They really just told me to be Frankie, go out there and play with confidence and lead the team,” said the 6-1 Collins, from Sacramento. “I felt great going into the game just from all the intel from the coaches and from DeVante', from the beginning of the season to now. At the end of the day, it's just basketball, and I've been working out, practicing, playing basketball my whole life.”
Jones, a senior transfer from Coastal Carolina who has never played in the Tournament, had developed into Michigan’s primary ball-handler and facilitator. He scored in double figures in seven of Michigan’s last eight games, shooting 54% and guiding the team through chaos. Then came a mishap in practice this week, when Jones took an inadvertent elbow to the head. Then came the call for Collins, known for being strong and fearless to the basket. As it turns out, his Tournament debut buys time perhaps for Jones to make his.
Collins played solid minutes early in the season, then retreated as Jones took over. Collins played a total of 16 minutes and scored six points in UM’s past three games. Naturally, the Wolverines said they knew the freshman had it in him. They also knew they had no choice.
“You get back to the recruiting,” Howard said. “I've always been impressed with Frankie’s skill set and I feel he fits our style of play. His performance today does not surprise me.”
Howard saw things others didn’t, such as Collins’ lethal shooting in practice. It hadn’t been seen in games partly because he hadn’t played much. He was shooting 39.7% from the field, 13.3% on 3s (2-for-15) and 45.2% on free throws, while averaging nine minutes per game.
Michigan’s two other freshman starters displayed growing pains too, as Moussa Diabate scored nine points and encountered foul trouble. Caleb Houstan found his 3-point stroke (3-for-8) in the second half and his back-to-back bombs with 10 minutes remaining gave Michigan the lead for good.
Technically, the Wolverines were the lower seed here, but they weren’t the underdog. They will be Saturday against No. 3 Tennessee, a quick, ball-hawking team that rolled to the SEC tournament title. The Wolverines will have to match the Volunteers’ aggressiveness and edginess to have a chance.
One excellent effort put Collins in the scorebook. It also will put him on the opposition’s scouting report if Jones remains sidelined. (Howard would only say “We expect to see him soon.”) The report probably won’t change — let Collins shoot, until he proves he consistently can.
“Right now I just have confidence stepping up and shooting it,” Collins said. “I'm not going to let a team dictate how I play. If they back off, I feel like I can get by you and still make something happen.”
The Wolverines needed those bold drives because nothing else was falling. At halftime, they were 0-for-7 on 3s and the Rams were 8-for-20. That’s how unheralded teams from the Mountain West beat touted teams from the Big Ten.
Throughout the swings and lulls, Howard calmly stood on the sideline, encouraging without getting exasperated. Did he feel a little panic down 15? If he did, he wasn’t showing it. Just like Collins wasn’t showing it.
“If I get rattled and annoyed with the score and feel like yelling, sometimes that can seem like you're not prepared,” Howard said, smiling. “I think I said before the game, without DeVante', I may grow up as a coach today because you have to make adjustments. We could have easily just said, you know what, it's time to pack it in. But we’re not built that way.”
They’re built on youth, bulk (Dickinson) and seniors Jones and Eli Brooks. In the opener, they learned their freshmen can expand their boundaries, when required. They’d love to welcome Jones back this weekend, but if he’s not ready, Frankie Collins plans to be.
