(Photo: Carlos Osorio, Associated Press)
Ann Arbor — Regular-season openers have become a celebratory night for Michigan in recent years.
Two years ago, the Wolverines raised a Big Ten tournament title banner to the rafters at Crisler Center. They hung up another one last season along with a Final Four banner to commemorate their national runner-up finish in 2017-18.
There wasn’t another pregame banner-raising ceremony on Tuesday as Michigan kicked off its 2019-20 campaign. Rather, it was a celebration of a different sort as the Juwan Howard era was officially ushered in with a 79-71 victory over Appalachian State.