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3 B1G games that could define Michigan basketball’s 2021-22 season
By Nick Schultz
Published:
Juwan Howard’s second year as Michigan coach went about as well as it could.
The Wolverines went 14-3 in B1G play, made the Elite Eight as a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and Howard was named B1G Coach of the Year. It’ll be a tough act to follow.
But with one of the top recruiting classes in the country and some veterans returning, Michigan is in a good spot heading into this season. With the full schedule announced Wednesday afternoon, the picture for 2021-22 is becoming clearer for Howard’s squad.
Let’s look at 3 games that could define Michigan’s season.
At Nebraska — Dec. 7
Setting the tone is essential in conference play — especially with three non-conference games coming after the first 2 B1G games.
Fred Hoiberg is entering his third year at Nebraska and while his team might not have the highest expectations, Michigan can’t enter this game thinking it’ll be easy. It could have “trap game” written all over it, especially since it’s on the road.
Vs. Purdue — Jan. 11
B1G Network analyst Andy Katz ranks Michigan and Purdue as his top 2 teams in the league this season. The Jan. 11 matchup is their first of the season, and Michigan draws the home-court advantage. Playing at Mackey Arena won’t be easy given the hype around these teams, so defending home turf is imperative against a very good Boilermakers team.
At Ohio State — March 6
Did you really think a Michigan-Ohio State game wouldn’t make this list?
The best part? This is how we close out the B1G regular season.
EJ Liddell is back for the Buckeyes this season and is poised for a run at conference player of the year honors. Ohio State took Illinois to overtime in last year’s B1G Tournament championship and is looking like a force once again this season. Michigan has an opportunity to head into Columbus and play spoiler if the standings are tight — an opportunity it shouldn’t take lightly.
Nick Schultz is a columnist and breaking news writer for Saturday Tradition. A 2020 graduate of Loyola Chicago, he covered the Ramblers' 2018 Final Four run from beginning to end and has worked at NBC Sports Chicago. Follow Nick on Twitter @NickSchultz_7.