Beilein happy for Bielfeldt, fine with big-man mix

Ann Arbor — Michigan coach John Beilein wasn’t about to second-guess himself.

He’s happy for Max Bielfeldt, who transferred last year from Michigan to Indiana, and is having his best year yet.

But Beilein said he doesn’t allow himself to think about how things might be different at Michigan if Bielfeldt had stayed.

“No,” Beilein said Monday, ahead of Tuesday’s game against No. 22 Indiana at Crisler Center.

“That was a tough decision, but we decided we had a lot of young players that were trending up last spring. Mark Donnal, Ricky Doyle, D.J. Wilson, we decided, let’s move forward.

“Let’s plan for the future.”

The question probably was more relevant earlier this season, when Michigan couldn’t settle on a big man, with junior Donnal, sophomore Doyle and freshman Moritz Wagner all stumbling at times.

Now, Donnal has taken over the starting role, and has thrived since he scored a career-high 26 in the Big Ten opener against Illinois.

Beilein actually said Monday there are no issues with his big men; the issues he sees are at depth of guards and forwards.

Bielfeldt, the 6-foot-8, 240-pound senior, has added a lot to Indiana, averaging career-highs in points (8.1) and rebounds (4.6).

“Max is a really good player,” Beilein said. “He’s shooting 3s for them, he’s posting up for them.

“He’s presenting challenges for everyone.”

Bielfeldt has kept in touch with some of his former teammates, even FaceTiming with Derrick Walton Jr.

But the Wolverines can’t get caught up in any of the sentimentality, given the magnitude of the game.

“It’ll be interesting, that’s for sure, having him come back,” Duncan Robinson said. “We’re excited to play them as a team.”

Michigan braces for rough slate of Big Ten games

Robinson feels good

During his press conference Monday, Beilein was abrupt twice.

Once when asked about any Bielfeldt regret.

And once when asked if Robinson had hit a wall.

“No,” Beilein said, and that was that.

Robinson during the last nine nonconference games never made fewer than half of his 3-point attempts.

He has hit 50 percent or more just once in the Big Ten season.

The last five games have been particularly frustrating, as he’s shot just 13-for-39 (33.3 percent).

On Saturday, he was just 1-for-5 in the win over Penn State. His minutes were limited in the first half because of foul trouble.

“No, I feel good,” Robinson said. “Credit Coach Beilein on that. He’s been really good on managing practices and stuff like that.”

Last month, Beilein did suggest Robinson was shooting too much on off-days, and that they were going to have a talk. This is, after all, Robinson’s first season above Division III, and managing energy and recovery is a delicate balance.

Robinson confirmed the conversation took place, and said he’s mostly followed Beilein’s suggestion to take a day off.

“Sometimes, less is more,” Robinson said. “So that’s a mind set we kind of all gotta adapt to, especially when you’re playing as many games as we are right now.”

LeVert update

Beilein still wouldn’t committ to Caris LeVert returning this week, though he sure seems be trending in the right direction.

He ran full-go for the first time Sunday after suffering a lower-left leg injury in late December.

“Caris did more yesterday than he’s done at all. This is the first time he really tested himself more than he has, so it’s day to day,” Beilein said. “And we’ll wait and see when he’s ready to go.

“But it’s ultimately going to be his decision. It could be sooner. It could be later.”

The big talking point around LeVert’s pending return has been how the team might struggle with him back in the mix, now the team is on a really good rhythm.

Walton Jr. shot that down, saying LeVert is a team-first guy, and if he has to settle for spot minutes at first, that’s what he’ll do.

Beilein also made a good point, saying the addition of LeVert will solve a big problem — but not on the front end.

Michigan doesn’t really have a seventh man, as D.J. Wilson, Kameron Chatman, Andrew Dakich and many others have struggled to impress. Adding LeVert back in moves Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman and Aubrey Dawkins into a six/seven rotation, depending on whether the Wolverines need a big 3 (Dawkins) or defense (Abdur-Rahkman).

“We’ve been trying to get No. 7 and 8 to emerge somewhere, and it’s just not happening,” Beilein said. “And the games have been such (close) that we couldn’t experiment much in games. We don’t do any experimenting when Caris comes back.”

tpaul@detroitnews.com

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