Meandering: Michigan basketball team welcomes home date with Boston College

The Wolverines are a disappointing 3-2, and a home loss to a mediocre BC team wouldn’t look good on the tournament resume come March.

More importantly, Michigan needs to get its game right after some horrific shooting in Orlando. Manny Harris made just 1-of-14 3-pointers at the Old Spice, and gunners Zack Novak and Stu Douglas fared little better.

If the shooting doesn’t improve - and if Harris doesn’t get some help - it could be a long season for the now unranked Wolverines.

For Boston College, the game is a chance to show former recruit Evan Smotrycz what he missed when he signed with Michigan.

Michigan, meanwhile, will have the weight of the Big Ten on its shoulders. The league has never won its showdown against college basketball’s premier conference, and with five games left this year’s Challenge is tied at 3.

Illinois at Clemson, Minnesota at Miami, Duke at Wisconsin, and Florida State at Ohio State are tonight’s other games.

On Tuesday, Michigan State lost its championship game rematch with North Carolina in not-as-close-at-it-appears fashion, but Northwestern continued its hot start (without best player Kevin Coble) in a road win at North Carolina State.

One other basketball note: Former Wolverine Ekpe Udoh made an appearance on DraftExpress.com's Prospect of the Week. The Wolverines miss Udoh's size and athletic ability up front.

In football news: • Michigan cornerback commitment Cullen Christian has been selected to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

• Michigan State suspended 8 players and 2 starters indefinitely for their role a campus fight.

• And Florida State coach Bobby Bowden made it official in unceremonious fashion Tuesday, announcing via video he'll step down as coach after the Seminoles' bowl game. That means Joe Paterno will go down as the winningest coach in history.

Drew Sharp thinks Florida State will contend for a national championship again before either Michigan or Notre Dame, two programs that have fallen from their perch among the nation's elite.

Dave Birkett covers University of Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached by phone at 734-623-2552 or by e-mail at davidbirkett@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.