Vlad Goldin thriving in Big Ten play as Michigan’s offense continues to soar

After struggling early this season, center Vlad Goldin is thriving, averaging 22 points per game in Michigan’s five Big Ten wins. Here is more on Goldin settling into his role:

To say the Michigan Wolverines men’s basketball team is thriving offensively in recent weeks would be an understatement.

The Wolverines have scored 85 points or more in their last eight games and extended their winning streak to five after beating Washington on Sunday. That victory comes after an impressive road trip, as Michigan faced off with USC and UCLA for the first time as Big Ten opponents, beating those teams by a combined margin of 30 points.

Per KenPom , as of Monday, the Wolverines lead the country in two-point field goal percentage (63.3 percent) and effective field goal percentage (60.4). The Wolverines also rank 10th overall and 13th in adjusted offensive efficiency on KenPom, third in the Big Ten behind Purdue and Wisconsin.

Speaking of the Big Ten, the Wolverines are 5-0 in conference play and seem like a legitimate threat to win the conference. The recent play of starting center Vlad Goldin is a big reason for this hot start.

Goldin is thriving after a relative slow start to the season. He has scored 17 points or more in eight of Michigan’s last 10 games, including a career-high 36 points in the win over UCLA. He led the Wolverines with 19 points in the Washington victory, knocking down his fifth three-pointer of the year while running the floor in transition and dominating near the rim.

For his efforts this past week, Goldin was named the co-Player of the Week in the Big Ten.

Goldin was one of five Wolverines to score double-digit points in the victory, giving Michigan a balanced scoring attack.

“Probably that everybody contributed in this game,” Goldin said when asked what pleased him most with Sunday’s performance. “It wasn’t a single effort, it was multiple efforts, like so many people stepped up when we needed it most … it’s helpful when everybody plays the right way. It makes it feel amazing.”

Goldin also opened up about his early season struggles. He didn’t reach double-digit points until the fifth game of the season, struggling to finish layups while adjusting to play alongside fellow 7-footer Danny Wolf.

“I didn’t start the season the way I wanted to, but we all have to learn at some point,” Goldin said. “I take pride in making shots. If my team gives me that honor to make a shot, I feel like I have to make a shot. It’s important for me to make every shot.

“It’s a new team, I never played with two 7-footers. Danny is obviously a unique player, we have 11 new players — I just wanted to win. I didn’t know what my role was going to be, whether it’s making shots or blocking shots or on the defensive side, so I was just trying to figure it out. We play against each other every day and it’s something different. I can understand what’s my role during practice, and we all have to understand what our role is during the game, and that’s what we did.”

Goldin has been especially good against Big Ten opponents, averaging 22 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in those five games. When asked about Goldin bouncing back from those early season struggles, head coach Dusty May said he and his staff didn’t make enough of an effort to get him involved in the offense. But now, it appears Goldin has adjusted to a physical brand of basketball in the Big Ten.

“(Goldin is) obviously playing with more aggression and we’re looking for him much more,” May said. “He’s playing at a much higher level, he’s moving better, he’s adjusted to the physicality. It’s strange with Vlad, it seems when we play the bigger, more physical teams, he plays better. I think that plays a part as well.”

The unique part of these high-scoring performances is it feels like the Wolverines still have yet to peak offensively. They still go through droughts every game, don’t rebound as well as you’d think they would, and while the turnover numbers have gotten better, the turnover rate (20.7 percent, 327th out of 363 DI teams on KenPom) is still a concern and is the leading cause of Michigan giving up big leads.

But as long as Goldin continues his hot streak and the overall offense keeps scoring buckets in bunches, the Wolverines will have a legitimate chance to win the conference and go deep into the NCAA Tournament.