Michigan's 7-foot newcomers earn themselves a nickname after their dynamic Big Ten debut

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Michigan has a nickname for its pair of 7-foot newcomers: Area 50-1.

The tag was unveiled by the school on social media Tuesday night after Vladislav Goldin and Danny Wolf produced otherworldly numbers in a 67-64 victory at No. 11 Wisconsin to open the Big Ten schedule.

Goldin wears uniform No. 50, and Wolf wears No. 1. Both transferred to Michigan this season.

“We’ve got some ALIENS in our front court,” the Wolverines posted on X, formerly Twitter. “Do not enter the paint.”

Their performance served notice that Michigan (7-1) seems intent on bouncing back from an 8-24 season and returning to Big Ten contention under new coach Dusty May.

“I feel like we’re a fairly new team, but I feel like we made huge steps forward in playing together and learning each other,” said Goldin, who joined May in coming to Michigan from Florida Atlantic.

Goldin, a 7-foot-1 center who was part of FAU's 2023 Final Four team, had a career-high 24 points against Wisconsin. He made three straight baskets to score the final six points of the game.

Wolf, a 7-footer from Yale, had 20 points to go along with seven rebounds, five assists, a career-high five blocks and three steals.

“He really is a guard in a 7-footer’s body — the way he dribbles, the way he shoots it, the way he can create space,” May said following his team's sixth straight win.

These two big men needed time to learn how to thrive together, though.

Goldin scored 15.7 points per game during his final season at Florida Atlantic, but reached double figures just once in his first six games at Michigan. Wolf had a three-game stretch in which he totaled 19 points.

“I think it always goes back to our coaches’ trust in us,” Wolf said. “We definitely had a few rough games collectively, and other guys stepped up for us to help us win. Through all of that, Coach has stuck with us.”

The breakthrough came last week.

In a 78-53 blowout of then-No. 22 Xavier on Wednesday, Wolf had 20 points and 14 rebounds while Goldin added 18 points. That game showcased the matchup problems they can cause as two 7-footers with complementary skills.

Wisconsin is the rare team that also starts two 7-footers in Steven Crowl and Nolan Winter, but they were no match for the Goldin-Wolf duo.

Goldin and Wolf combined for 44 of Michigan’s 67 points against the Badgers, with Wolf often finding Goldin for easy baskets down the stretch. Crowl had two points and four rebounds in less than 22 minutes before fouling out, while Winter had eight points and five rebounds.

“They’re both vets,” Winter said. “They’ve been around doing this a while. Their games really complement each other well. Them being in that kind of 5-4 ball screen caused some issues for our defense, and they executed really well.”

Well enough to earn themselves a catchy nickname one game into their Big Ten careers.

___

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP collegebasketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

Steve Megargee, The Associated Press