On Dec. 7, T.J. Parker went coast-to-coast in the final seconds to give Northwestern a 62-60 win over Bowling Green and a 4-1 start. A few hours later, LaVell Blanchard was held to 9 points as Michigan suffered a 22-point loss to Duke and falls to 0-6.
My, how the times have changed.
Since that day, NU (8-6, 0-3 Big Ten) has gone 4-5, including an 0-3 mark to start conference play. On the other side of Lake Michigan, the Wolverines are smoldering, running off 10-straight wins, including three against Big Ten foes.
For NU coach Bill Carmody, it’s been a headache. For Michigan coach Tommy Amaker, it’s been a fairy tale.
“It starts with LaVell Blanchard,” Amaker said. “When LaVell’s playing the way he’s capable of playing, things just fall in line.”
But things weren’t falling into place for three excruciating weeks for Blanchard and company. It took the Wolverines’ leading scorer a little time to figure out the answer to one very important question: What was his team playing for?
The senior and his teammates had to come to terms with the fact that the postseason was out of reach before they ever took the court.
In November, a lengthy school investigation concluded several Michigan players in the 1990s had taken a combined $616,000 from a booster. Michigan administrators levied several punishments, including banning the Wolverines from postseason play this year, in an attempt to avoid stricter penalties from the NCAA.
The Fab Five payment scandal and the self-imposed sanctions drew a frenzy of media attention.
Amaker said the team — which starts three freshmen — was ill-equipped to deal with the distractions.
“Was that something that was part of their subconscious or psyche?” Amaker said. “Well it’d be hard for it not to be.”
The result was a six-game skid that included loses to Virginia Tech (6-8), St. Bonaventure (6-9) and two Mid-American Conference teams.
The reason behind the turnaround was simple.
Amaker told his players they were starting the season 0-0 from that point, and the coach also delivered a short, direct message to Blanchard: “Go get it done.”
“We were going to go as he goes,” Amaker said. “I just told him I was sticking with him.”
Blanchard responded in the very next game. He tallied 23 points and 10 rebounds in Michigan’s coming out party — an 83-57 defeat of Bowling Green on Dec. 11.
“It’s a great feeling,” Blanchard said after the game. “I want more of that feeling.”
And he’s gotten it.
In the 10-game win streak, the Wolverines have outscored their opponents by an average margin of 13.4 points. Blanchard has led the way, averaging 18.6 points per contest, which raises his season average to 17.4 — good for fourth in the conference.
“It all comes back to Blanchard setting the table and the tone,” Amaker said. “Because then it allowed the younger guys to progress naturally.”
The best illustration of the Blanchard driven progression has been the play of freshman Daniel Horton. The guard has averaged 16.9 points and 5.5 assists during the 10-game streak, 3.6 points and 2.4 assists up from his numbers through the first six games.
“Blanchard has become the bricks of our program,” Amaker said. “The other guys are filling in as the mortar.”
Michigan (10-6, 3-0 Big Ten) at NU (8-6, 0-3)
1 p.m. Saturday
Welsh-Ryan Arena
Player to watch: Senior LaVell Blanchard has led Michigan during its 10-game winning streak
