B1G Ten Ballin’: The Hardwood Hustlers

Fresh off of another dynamic performance against Northwestern on Wednesday, Michigan point guard Trey Burke is the subject of this week’s edition of B1G Ten Ballin’: The Hardwood Hustlers.
By: Greg Mroz
Volume 3: Hitting the Trey From the Point
Is there a more dynamic player in the Big Ten than Michigan point guard Trey Burke? The straight and simple answer: no. New question: Is there a better player in all of college basketball than Trey Burke? Again to you I say: no! This may seem like a bold statement, but time and time again, Burke has proven to be the unquestioned leader of the best team in the country. He can pass, shoot, drive, and create turnovers. What more can you ask for from your point guard?
Burke’s sophomore season is turning into a monster one. He is averaging 17.9 points per game to go along with 7.1 assists per game. In conference play, Burke has not scored less than 15 points in a game and has not had less than 5 assists in six of Michigan’s eight conference games so far. Moreover, Burke is successful because he fits well into John Beilein’s run and gun system. Speed kills, and if Oregon football has taught sports fans anything, if you have enough speed, you will destroy your opponent, plain and simple. Burke can outrun anybody in college basketball, he is just that skilled.
You might be thinking that I must have some sort of man crush on Trey Burke, but the numbers that Michigan is putting up are evident of how much he has meant to their success. They are 20-1, ranked number one in the country, and have just dominated pretty much every game they’ve played this year with the exception of Ohio State, which was their only loss. Six of their seven conference wins have come by more than 14 points. What is even more incredible, as I stated last week, is that Michigan is doing this without a big man who can rack up double digit rebounds in a given night. Like Derrick Rose did with the Bulls, Burke has put the grunt of the load on his back, and because of it, his teammates have performed to the highest of their abilities. Saturday night’s game against 3rd ranked Indiana will be the biggest one the Wolverines have played all year long, and if Burke can lead “The Victors” to victory, there is nothing that says that this team shouldn’t win the national title.