When Michigan basketball traveled to Illinois in mid-January to resume its season following a shutdown related to COVID-19, coach Juwan Howard and his players walked off the floor with what they described as a morale victory. Undermanned without star center Hunter Dickinson and power forward Brandon Johns Jr., the Wolverines played level with the Illini for nearly 35 minutes before the game fatefully sputtered.
But the fight they showed would be referenced by members of the program for weeks to come. Even in a loss, that evening set the standard for defensive intensity and overall effort Howard sought from his youthful roster.