Mutka: Big Ten bullies hostile outsiders in hoops

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Michigan guard Zack Novak (0) attempts to cutoff Duke guard Austin Rivers (0) as Rivers drives down the lane in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011, in Lahaina, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Eugene Tanner)

Updated: December 29, 2011 8:12AM

If you pay much attention to preseason basketball polls, everybody but Ohio State is battling for second place in the Big Ten.

Right now defiant also-rans are not playing like they’re prepared to run up a white flag. The last time I checked six teams were unbeaten and the league owned a 60-9 overall record against outsiders.

Michigan’s not one of the invincibles, but coach John Beilein makes no apologies for a 5-1 record and a split with top-10 teams Memphis and Duke in the Maui Classic.

None of that matters when Big Ten play starts. Beilein gives the conference its highest marks for balance in his five years at Michigan.

Dogfights will abound.

“You could have a seventh place team and still have a very good season,” he said, suggesting I should expect a bunch of 18-to-22-game winners with 8-and-8 league records come March.

“There’s not going to be a big difference between two and eleven (in the standings).”

Beilein is relying heavily on contributions from Indiana to make his third trip to the Big Dance in four years. Zack Novak (Chesterton) and Stu Douglass (Carmel) were barely recruited by Division I schools, but were among four Wolverines who logged more than a thousand minutes in their junior season.

Their passion for basketball attracted Beilein even though he doesn’t rank either guard highly in athleticism.

“They were solid kids who wanted to compete in the Big Ten,” Beilein said. “Good students who were going to play with a chip on their shoulder.”

What Novak also provides is leadership. The steady senior is in his third year as team captain, a first for a Beilein-coached team.

“Zack probably could have been one in his freshman year as well,” he said. “He’s very comfortable in that role, takes pride in it.”

Underline rebounding and 3-point marksmanship as Novak’s strengths. Being 6-foot-5 qualifies him as a ‘tweener, but he has always been strong on the glass. Last year he averaged 5.8 rebounds.

“Playing inside at Chesterton really helped me develop that part of my game,” said Novak, who also led Michigan in treys (65/.385) and free-throw percentage (.831).

Novak started every game for the Wolverines, who won 21 games and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.  Coming back for his last fling, he welcomed all of his teammates except leading scorer Darius Morris.

Some consider Novak a blue-collar player. His durability fits the description. Since arriving at Ann Arbor he has missed only two games.

Currently, the left-handed sniper is averaging 9.8 points, his numbers inflated by a career-high 22 against UCLA and 11 against Duke in Maui. He’s also shooting .440 (11 of 25) from beyond the arc.

“It’s something I always work at, the main part of my game,” Novak said.

Coming off a senior-less season the Wolverines are older, wiser and more confident.

“We have a little more swagger because we’re more experienced,” Novak said.

Having Tim Hardaway Jr. on the roster increases Novak’s comfort level. He made the Big Ten all-freshman team last year for being the conference’s second-highest scoring newcomer with a 13.9 average.

With Morris gone, defenses will be focusing on Hardaway.

“He can handle it,” said Novak, grinning.

Next year he will be gone, but the Wolverines will maintain an Indiana presence with 6-10 Mitch McGary, who is rated the No. 2 overall player in the country by Scout.com in the 2012 class, and Lake Central’s Glenn Robinson III.

McGary was a freshman at Chesterton in Novak’s senior year. Though the power forward left to hone his talent at Brewster Academy in New Hampshire, Beilein noticed him when scouting Novak.

Novak helped to recruit McGrary, whom he mentored at Chesterton.

“I think that’s part of the job description, especially being the captain,” he said.

Robinson, a 6-6 wing, is described as a slasher who could be a key perimeter scorer.

“Glenn has that explosiveness and a good feel for the game,” said Beilein, who believes both recruits will be good fits with the team culture.

With those two prospects and Gary superstar Branden Dawson, now a freshman standout at Michigan State, Northwest Indiana tourist attractions in Michigan will be hunting, fishing and basketball for the next few years.

Gary’s senior Pirate: They called him “Jumbo.” Unfortunately, I never saw him pitch, but did have the pleasure of interviewing Nick Strincevich for a column a few years ago.

Though nearly blind when we talked, he “watched” television before regaling me with stories of his seven years in the majors. Jumbo spent it with Pittsburgh, where he won 40 games from 1944-46.

The strapping right hander made his debut in 1941 with Boston (National League), but had difficulty understanding manager Casey Stengel, who spoke a different dialect than most baseball players.

Traded to the Pirates for outfielder Lloyd (Little Poison) Waner that season, Strincevich didn’t stick until 1944, when he posted a 14-7 record and a personal-best 3.38 ERA.

In 1945 he added career-highs of 16 victories, 29 starts and 228 innings to his resume.

His career winding down, the former Gary steelworker had the distinction of being honored in a hostile park on a Sunday in August.

Without the cooperation of the Cubs on his day, Gary’s first major leaguer received the keys to a new automobile from Mayor Joseph Finnerty before pitching against the Cubs at Wrigley Field in 1947.

Jumbo retired after the 1948 season with a career record of 46 victories and six saves.

One of his lasting memories was facing Stan Musial, whom he considered the greatest right-handed hitter he ever pitched against.

The Cardinal Hall of Famer once smashed a liner off Strincevich, but his leg survived the experience.

“Never saw it coming,” said Jumbo, who grew up in Glen Park. He died recently at age 96, which made him the oldest living Pirate.

Rest in peace, Nick.