Michigan basketball escapes scare from energetic Eastern Michigan, 88-83: Game thread replay
Game 2: No. 22 Michigan basketball (1-0) vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles (1-0)
When: 9 p.m. Friday.
Where: Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.
TV: ESPNU.
Radio: WWJ-AM (950), WTKA-AM (1050).
HOWARD FAMILY REUNION:It's a Howard family reunion: Michigan basketball has Juwan, Jace and Jett together again
THE PLAN:Michigan basketball prepares for showdown with Emoni Bates, Eastern Michigan
Game notes: The Wolverines, fresh off a thumping of Purdue Fort Wayne on Monday, have a potentially tougher foe tonight in the Eagles.
It’s a greatly revised roster for coach Stan Heath, the one-time Tom Izzo protégé, who added, yes, former Ypsi high school star Emoni Bates as the MAC’s first-ever five star recruit (though he spent a season at Memphis before returning to his home state).
Bates sat out EMU’s opener Monday vs. Wayne State, but the Eagles got a good look at two other players who’ll be key if they’re to contend in the MAC this season. Freshman and Detroit native Orlando Lovejoy led EMU with 18 points in a team-high 31 minutes against the Warriors, chipping in two assists and two steals. He joins EMU after making the Division 2 All-State First Team last season with Romulus Summit. He’s joined by former River Rouge standout Legend Geeter, a three-star recruit who returned home after a season at Providence. Geeter put up 10 points and eight rebounds against the Warriors in just 23 minutes Monday.
FOR OPENERS:Michigan basketball, Hunter Dickinson dominate Purdue Fort Wayne in season opener, 75-56
The Wolverines, as you might expect, aren’t without top recruits, either. Coach Juwan Howard is plenty familiar with the head of the Class of 2022: his son, Jett, completes the family trio in Ann Arbor, joining his dad and older brother, Jace (who’s a co-captain this season). Jett gave Wolverines fans not related to the Howards several reasons to be excited; he put up 30 points, including 22 in the first half, against Division II Ferris State in an exhibition last week, then had 21 points on Monday against the Mastodons. That was just one point off the team lead of 22, put up by junior Hunter Dickinson, a preseason All-Big Ten First Team pick. Expect the Wolverines’s offense to run through Dickinson on the inside and Jett Howard on the outside once again.
After Friday’s game, the Wolverines head to Brooklyn for a pair of games next week, with Pitt slated for 6 p.m. Wednesday and then either VCU or Arizona State (featuring former Wolverines guard Frankie Collins) at 7 or 9 p.m. Thursday. The Eagles, meanwhile, head west to take on Bradley in Peoria, Illinois, on Tuesday before coming back to the Mitten State to visit Oakland on Nov. 19.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan basketball beats Eastern Michigan, 88-83: Game thread replay
