Michigan basketball heads home in hopes of curing shooting woes

Manny Harris may have had an exceptional Old Spice Classic but one aspect of his game felt off.

For as much as the junior guard dominated the Thanksgiving week tournament, he - and the rest of the Michigan basketball team - couldn’t hit many three-pointers. It’s why the Wolverines left Florida with a 1-2 record in the tournament and why Harris, in some ways, is still beating himself up.

Michigan head coach John Beilein argues a call during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Alabama in the Old Spice Classic tournament in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009.

AP photo

Harris and the rest of Michigan realize if the Wolverines are going to be the team they think they are, they must shoot well from the three-point line. Much of that success lies in their confidence.

“I’ve been shooting awful from the three-point line,” said Harris, who was 1 of 14 from the three-point line in the Old Spice Classic. “So it’s something that I realize. I’ve been in that same stage where I’ve been kind of frustrated on my three-point shot because I haven’t been making them.

“It’s nothing but really confidence.”

For Harris it is a little more. Hamstring issues that plagued him during the preseason have have lingered and affected his long-range shooting. His running isn’t a concern. Neither is his explosiveness, as exhibited by multiple dashes and dunks through the lane last week.

But when he rises on a long-range shot, his legs kick out. He feels turned, twisted. And it results in his shooting being, well, off.

“It’s no excuse,” Harris said. “I’ve got to be confident in my next shot and that everything could fall.”

He’s not the only one. Michigan coach John Beilein said his team needs to hit 8-10 three’s or shoot at least 37.5 percent from the three-point line to be successful in most games.

So considering Michigan’s top three shooters, Harris and sophomores Zack Novak and Stu Douglass were a combined 7 of 34 from the three-point line in the three-game tournament, it’s no surprise Beilein needs to see improvement.

For Harris and Douglass, Beilein attributes the issues to poor starts to the season. Novak, though, is another story.

The third-year Michigan coach is already trying to figure out a way to get Novak more shots. While Beilein is concerned, his player isn’t as worried about his lack of attempts.

“I’m not complaining that I’m not getting shots,” Novak said. “But just in the offense, that’s my job, I got to hit shots.

“But I think we’re a better team when I’m hitting them.”

A year ago, Novak made 34.4 percent of his three-pointers, including six against Minnesota on Feb. 19. And as he hit, Michigan made a run to the NCAA tournament.

Now, it has to find a remedy early in the season as the Wolverines face their third straight major conference opponent in Boston College.

“I don’t know if it’s a question of shooting better,” Novak said. “But it’s getting good shots within the offense and just, kind of, being able to knock them down when I get them.”

That doesn’t go just for Novak. It goes for every player Michigan has.

Michael Rothstein covers University of Michigan for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at (734) 623-2558, by e-mail at michaelrothstein@annarbor.com or follow along on Twitter @mikerothstein.