Michigan basketball has been defined by continual success for well over a decade. A streak of NCAA tournament appearances accompanied by Sweet Sixteen runs is all they have known, but last year the Wolverines didn’t meet the mark. There were moments of tenacity, a feverish fight to get over the proverbial hump to make the tournament, but it fell short.
The offseason for the Wolverines came sooner than normal and perhaps that fed into the notion that Michigan was a write-off. Add the exit of some firepower of both players and emotional leaders and it looked as if the Wolverines were on dire straits.