Michigan’s season is over, coming to an end Thursday with a Sweet 16 loss to Villanova.

To open the NCAA Tournament, Juwan Howard and the Wolverines were firing on all cylinders. Michigan averaged 75 points in the first two rounds with upset wins over Colorado State and Tennessee.

Hunter Dickinson – a catalyst for Michigan’s start to the tournament – was held in check with 15 points by the Wildcats. As a team, the Wolverines left a number of points on the floor with a lackluster shooting performance

After the loss, Howard was asked about his lasting memories from the season. After a 3-game losing streak at the midpoint of the season and struggling at times in conference play, reaching the Sweet 16 is a testament to the fight of this group. That fight is one thing Howard will carry with him.

“Great young men to be a part of their development. Learned a lot from them as far as how competitive they are,” Howard told the media Thursday night. “They’ve competed throughout the season from start to finish. A great group to coach, accepted learning, stayed connected by supporting each other. Some of their roles were different. No one wavered on the other end. Did an amazing job of buying into their roles.

“I think with some of the injuries that we faced, with some of the COVID, every guy was able to go out there and compete and save our season. So you learned a lot from who we are. We always talk about Michigan being family, and I’ve seen that we’ve been the most connected group this year because of the fact that everyone has been supporting each other.”

Howard went on to say he’s proud of how his team earned the right to be a part of March Madness and get to the Sweet 16:

“When I walk away from this season and I look back, I’m like no reason but to hold your head up high on how our team banded together competing throughout a tough Big Ten season and then leading into the NCAA Tournament,” explained Howard. “There were times when we were counted out. There were times when people didn’t feel we deserved to be here, and these guys rose to the occasion and proved they earned the right to be in the NCAA Tournament.

“So hats off to my players and staff.”