Oct. 26, 2010

Sophomore guard Josh Bartelstein will give an inside look all season at the 2010-11 version of the Wolverines.

What's up everyone? Hope you're having a great week. Our first game is less than two weeks away and we cannot wait. As much as we love practice, and I mean love, games are just a little more fun.

I'm sitting here watching Monday Night Football and laughing because everything that could go wrong for Stu's (Douglass) fantasy team has gone wrong. He has Eli Manning (two interceptions), Tony Romo (knocked out) and Roy Williams (done nothing, anyone surprised). He is playing against, Jason Witten (touchdown), Dez Bryant (touchdown) and Hakeem Nicks (two touchdowns). Ha! All day Stu was pumped for this game and it's a disaster. He is sulking eating chips and salsa in his room!

The only person who cares more about football is (Matt) Vogrich. His Sunday depends on how the Bears are doing. Literally as soon as practice ends, he sprints to the computer and gets his stats. Just ask him why Jay Cutler had more completions to DeAngelo Hall than Devin Hester. I would say I feel bad for him, but his roommate Blake (McLimans) roots for the Bills who are not the best themselves. I'll leave it at that since Coach B loves his Bills.

With that ... on to your questions.

1. Do you think the team is well-rounded this year? How does it look for the upcoming season in a tough Big Ten?

This year we are very well-rounded. Last year, we depended on Manny (Harris) and DeShawn (Sims) for so much of our scoring that teams knew going into games if they could shut down those two they would have a good chance to win. This year we have a plethora of scoring options. Stu, Darius (Morris), Zack (Novak), Matt, Tim (Hardaway Jr.), Evan (Smotrycz) and Colton (Christian) are all guys who can put the ball in the basket. Plus, our bigs are getting better and better finishing thanks to the great Bacari Alexander. What makes Coach Beilein's offense so hard to guard is you must account for everyone all the time. Every cut, every play involves all five guys and teams can't lock into any one player. Also, speaking of our guards Darius and Stu, both who are battling for minutes at the point, are shooting lights out in practice. Stu we all know is a big-time shooter who has made big-time shots, but Darius is really shooting the ball well right now also. He is shooting with confidence and from deep with a lot of success.

As far as the Big Ten goes, it is probably the best conference in college basketball. Four teams in the Top-15 and then anytime you play on the road it is a major test, so there are no easy games. Everyone is going to pick us near the bottom, but I really think we are going to surprise some people. It's too hard to predict wins and losses but I know we are going to give everyone our best shot.

2. Who do you see emerging as leaders on this team? How do you think the leadership will compare to last year's team?

Stu and Zack have done a great job taking leadership of our team. It is hard when you have no seniors on your team, but they have done the best they can to take over as leaders. It is something you learn as you go along, but everyone has a lot of respect for them because of all the time they have put in and the knowledge they have.

3. If/When a team wants to slow the game down to make it a half-court game are we going to be seeing more of the 1-3-1 zone that has become a staple of the defense there at Michigan?

We actually just started putting in the 1-3-1 today. It is something that coach Beilein's teams in the past have had a lot of success with, not just slowing the game down, but getting a lot of steals and fast break points from it. When we play a 1-3-1 we want to make the offense uncomfortable and try and get out and run as much as possible. We will see how it comes along, but I'm sure you will see it often.

4. How much does the team hang together outside of practice? I know you see Stu and Zack all the time, since you room together, but what about the rest of the team?

We are a very close team both on and off the court. Whether guys are at our house, going to a movie or just hanging out there is a good chance we are all together. It is one of those things where teams don't have to be friends, but it makes it a lot more fun when you are close.

5. Since we didn't have Midnight Madness this season, we didn't get to see for ourselves: who is the best dunker on the team this year?

I have to be careful how I answer this question. After Novak won the contest last year, he swore he would never enter a dunk contest again. He was going to go out on top. It is a good thing we didn't have a contest this year because he wouldn't win, he actually wouldn't come in second. Tim and Colton are big-time dunkers. Each of them has moments in practice where you better watch out because they want to come out of nowhere and dunk on you.

6. Do you guys do a lot of backpedaling defensive drills? If so, who's the fastest/best at them?

Interesting question. We do a lot of defensive drills every day, that's one of the biggest changes from last year's practices to this year. I would say Darius is probably the best, with Colton being close behind. I'll have a contest in practice next week and get back to you.

7. How are the "bigs" looking so far? We've got lots of good guards/wings this season, but I always worry about having enough height.

The bigs keep getting better. From where they were in July to where they are now is amazing. They have put in a ton of time with Coach BA and it is really paying off. What people have to realize is that playing-wise they are all freshmen so it takes time. The Big Ten has some great big guys but I know J-Mo, Blake and Jon will battle all day with them because if not BA will let them hear about it.

Thanks for all the questions, keep them coming ... askjbart20@gmail.com

• Previous Entries