ANN ARBOR, Mich. — It's been 258 days since Michigan's last scheduled contest, one that ended before it even started at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, and 262 days have passed since the Wolverines played a game.
But who's counting?
Eight months and one unprecedented offseason later, Michigan returned to action Wednesday at Crisler Center with a 96-82 victory in the season opener against Bowling Green and plenty looked different.
Fan cutouts lined the empty stands behind the spaced-out benches. The Maize Rage virtually cheered on the team through a TV monitor during pregame warm-ups. Michigan's coaching staff wore polos and masks. Fake crowd noise was pumped in throughout play.
Not to mention the No. 25 Wolverines unveiled a revamped roster that has six new faces. One of those newcomers — fifth-year guard Mike Smith — was in the starting lineup, alongside senior guard Eli Brooks, sophomore wing Franz Wagner, senior forward Isaiah Livers and fifth-year senior center Austin Davis.
But it was the impressive debuts of senior guard Chaundee Brown, freshman center Hunter Dickinson and Smith that tit the game in Michigan favor. Brown finished with 19 points and made five second-half 3-pointers to lead five double-digit scorers. Smith had 16 points and eight assists, and Dickinson tallied 11 points and eight rebounds.
After taking a seven-point lead into the break, Brown helped the Wolverines widen the gap. During a 90-second span, Brown drained a 3-pointer, flew in for a putback and splashed another deep ball that gave Michigan a 61-49 lead with 12:13 to play.
Then after Bowling Green managed to trim the deficit to single digits, Brown responded with his fourth 3-pointer of the half to kick-start a 12-3 run that helped Michigan create enough distance. Dickinson added a three-point play and layup before Brooks capped it with a 3-pointer for an 80-62 lead with 5:56 remaining.
Livers added 17 points and nine rebounds and Brooks scored 11 for the Wolverines. In total, 10 players saw action for Michigan in the game, with Brown and Dickinson being the first players off the bench.
Fittingly, though, the teams had to wait a little longer to play due to a clock malfunction right after tip-off. Once that passed, Michigan used a 10-1 run with contributions from its new guys — highlighted by a Dickinson pass from the block for an open Livers 3-pointer — to pull ahead 25-14 at the 8:28 mark of the first half.
The Wolverines showed off plenty of lineup combinations — partly due to foul trouble — throughout the first half, including small-ball looks that featured junior forward Brandon Johns Jr. and freshman forward Terrance Williams at the five.
Justin Turner, who starred at Detroit Renaissance High, finished with 24 points for Bowling Green, which is viewed as the team to beat in the Mid-American Conference this year. Trey Diggs added 21 points and Daeqwon Plowden had 15 points.
