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The Michigan Wolverines relied heavily on sophomore center Hunter Dickinson and senior guard Eli Brooks last season. The two guys were considered to be Michigan’s two best players, and they earned the awards they won at the team’s postseason celebration.
In what was no surprise to anyone that watched the Wolverines this season, Dickinson was named the Bill Buntin Most Valuable Player. The second-year big man was also named the Rudy Tomjanovich Most Improved Player and earned the Loy Vaught Rebounding Award.
Dickinson was the leading scorer and rebounder for the Wolverines in 2021-22, averaging 18.6 points and 8.6 rebounds per game while shooting 60.6% from the field. He also showcased an improved three-point stroke; while he only made 32.8% of his two attempts per game, he showed an improved confidence from deep and forced defenses to respect him from beyond the arc.
An All-Big Ten second team selection, Dickinson has yet to make a decision on whether or not to go to the NBA. If he comes back to Michigan, he could likely improve on all the stats listed above, lead Michigan to more postseason success and rack up NIL money.
Michigan’s captain earned the most awards at the ceremony, as Brooks was named the Wayman Britt Outstanding Defensive Player Award and earned the Thad Garner Leadership Award, the Iron Man Award and the Award for Outstanding Free Throw Shooting.
Averaging a career-high 12.8 points and 3.7 rebounds, Brooks is the program leader in games played (159) and career wins (124) after using his extra year of eligibility.
Brooks will go down as one of the hardest working players to ever wear the Maize and Blue. He’s a big reason why Michigan made their way to a Sweet 16 appearance (2019, 2022) Big Ten regular season title and Elite Eight appearance (2021), as well as a Big Ten Tournament title and NCAA Championship Game appearance (2018).
Here are the rest of the accolades given out at the award ceremony:
-Gary Grant Award for Most Assists: DeVante’ Jones (averaged 4.6 assists per game and had 151 total assists)
-Steve Grote Hustle Award: Jace Howard and Moussa Diabate
-Sixth Man Award: Terrance Williams II
-Travis Conlan Sportsmanship Award: Adrien Nunez
-Morgan/Bodnar Brothers Award for Academic Achievement: Frankie Collins
-Academic All-Big Ten selections: Hunter Dickinson, Terrance Williams II, Jace Howard, Adrien Nunez and Brandon Wade