Michigan big men have career nights and take ‘big steps forward’

Michigan’s frontcourt of Danny Wolf and Vlad Goldin was nearly unstoppable in Tuesday night’s 67-64 win over Wisconsin. The duo – nicknamed “Area 50-1” by the basketball program – combined for 44 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocks in a three-point victory over the 11th-ranked team in the country.

All the other Wolverines combined for 23 points, and it was a quiet night for many of the guards, but Wolf and Goldin dominated with the two-big lineup that has given Michigan opponents problems all season.

Goldin’s 24 points were a career high in his 125th career college basketball game. It was Wolf’s second consecutive 20-point performance.

Area 50-1 was such a problem all night that Wisconsin star Steven Crowl committed four fouls in the second half, tying the game with 3:07 left. When Crowl was fouled, the Badgers held on to their one-point lead, but Goldin scored Michigan’s final six points of the game.

“I think Vlad did a great job trying to punish him,” Wolf said after the game. “And it’s always nice when you (the opponent’s starting lineup) get into foul trouble, no matter who the guy is or what team it is. I think over time we just tried to move on to what worked. … Vlad just did a great job trying to get the big guys into foul trouble.

Goldin dominated Crowl in the second half. The Wisconsin senior didn’t score in the second half and committed four fouls in nine minutes of play. Meanwhile, Goldin scored 17 points on 7 of 9 shooting in the second half.

“I missed a lot of shots, but I will always say, ‘Thank you’ for my team. ‘Thank you for believing in me, finding me and giving me looks,'” Goldin said. “When I doubt myself, they don’t doubt me, and that gives me a lot more confidence to play for these guys.”

Tuesday night was by far the best game the duo has ever played as teammates, and while the success they had against Wisconsin likely won’t last the rest of the year, it was a welcome sight for Wolverine fans.

The two 7-foot players talked about the problems the double lineup causes opposing teams.

“It’s simply because of the trust our coaches have in us,” said Wolf. “We definitely had some tough games together and other people stepped up for us to help us win. Our coaches have supported us through all of this and we have been working on it for the last four or five months. … That 4-5 ball screen is pretty good, and Vlad was shooting big balls all the way down the stretch, so kudos to him.”

“We’re still working on how we play,” Goldin said. “I feel like we have a pretty new team, but I feel like we’re making a lot of progress just by playing together and learning from each other.”

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