Niyo: Michigan's bench marks a hopeful sign for Howard

Ann Arbor — There is strength in numbers.

And for Juwan Howard’s Michigan basketball team, the math was easy enough Friday night.

Iowa’s Luka Garza was a one-man show, finishing with a career-high 44 points, a single-game record for an opponent at Crisler Center. But the Wolverines had six players score in double figures to win rather handily, 103-91, in their Big Ten opener — Michigan’s highest offensive output against a conference foe since 1998.

Michigan guard Franz Wagner (21) and forward Isaiah Livers, rear, battle Iowa center Luka Garza (55) for a rebound in the second half.Look beyond the numbers, though, and there’s an even better way to measure the value of this victory, which came on…