Wolverines utilize hot start, showcase chemistry to rout CMU in team effort

With all five starters scoring in double figures, @umichwbball routed CMU, 99-62. @Kellen__Voss has more on the team’s solid chemistry, and a standout performance by Olivia Olson:

Getting off to a quick start is essential in the game of basketball, and the Michigan women’s basketball team did just that against the Central Michigan Chippewas. The Wolverines opened the game on a 13-0 run over the first 5:10 minutes of play and never really looked back, beating CMU handily, 99-62.

Michigan executed at a quick pace to start that game, playing solid defense and rebounding well before pushing the ball in transition. They took advantage of Chippewa mistakes, scoring 32 points off CMU’s 26 turnovers. Excellent court vision was on display for the Wolverines, who made life easier for themselves by finding the open woman up the floor for easy buckets.

The Wolverines led for all but 18 seconds in this one, taking care of business by winning on the boards (42-29), taking care of the ball, and moving the ball well. It was truly a team effort, with all five starters scoring in the double digits.

Sharing the ball well, and developing chemistry quickly

After scoring 27 points in narrow loss to the No. 1 team in the country on national TV, five-star freshman Syla Swords turned a lot of heads and understandably got quite a bit buzz from national pundits.

While the talent of Swords is clear to see in person — she sees the game like a chess board, thinking 3-4 moves ahead of her opponents at times to make life easy for herself and her teammates — the former Olympian had a relatively quiet game with 11 points and three assists in this one. She’s not the only reason why this Michigan team is exciting to watch.

The only two returning upperclassmen in the rotation are senior guards Jordan Hobbs and Greta Kampschroeder were especially good in this one, combining to score 25 points in this one. Kampschroeder was hot from three, making 50 percent of her eight attempts from beyond the arc, taking advantages of opportunities created by great ball movement from the Wolverines.

Those seniors talked about this group developing chemistry quickly at Big Ten media day, and that chemistry was on full display in this dominant victory.

Olivia Olson & Mila Holloway post new career highs

Fellow five-star freshman Olivia Olson also made an impact in this one with a team-high 23 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists. Like Swords, she can score from all three levels and makes a lot of dazzling plays. Her court vision and passing in transition also led to great shots for the Wolverines.

She has already developed great chemistry with Swords, the backcourt of the future for Kim Barnes Arico’s squad.

This flashy play to end the half showcases Olson’s upside perfectly. She anticipates the pass up court and steals it, taking it straight to the rim and using a quick ball fake to move the defender guarding the rim and euro-step her way to an easy basket. I’d say it was the play of the game.

In the words of Michigan basketball alum Ant Wright , five-star gonna five-star.

And with a slashing point guard in Mila Holloway who scores well around the rim and from deep (21 points), it’s clear to see why all three freshman start & make an impact for this team. The three freshmen were unselfish with the basketball, combining to dish 15 assists — eight of which coming from Holloway — and making shot creation look effortless in this one.

This win comes one day after the Wolverines followed up their 2024 class — the highest-ranked in program history — with another stellar 2025 class , with three top-100 players.

Back-to-back solid classes gives the Wolverines recruiting momentum. And seeing the impact that the three freshman starters made in this one, it’s hard not to be excited about the future of this program.

Up Next

The Wolverines will stay home for the two weeks, as they host Oakland (Nov. 17 at Noon), LIU (Nov. 20 at 5:30 p.m.) and Long Beach State (Nov. 24 at 2 p.m.) with all their games being broadcast on B1G+. After that, they travel to Florida for the Fort Myers Tip-Off; they have a match-up with Belmont (Nov. 29 at 2 p.m. on Women’s Sports Network) and will face either Virginia Tech or Davidson the following day.