Michigan freshman Austin Hatch made a free throw in a home exhibition win on Monday night during a win over Wayne State. But this wasn’t your typical freshman scoring his first collegiate point. It was the forward’s first point of his college career after surviving two plane crashes during high school. Michigan eventually pulled away for an 86-43 over Wayne State as Hatch finished with two points.
Hatch received some minutes during Michigan’s European exhibition trip this summer, but these were his first points of his college career and they were certainly meaningful. It’s nice to see Hatch get on the floor and contribute and hopefully he can keep building up some minutes over the next few years of his college career.
The 6-foot-6 Hatch isn’t expected to be a regular contributor for Michigan this season. This didn’t receive quite the ovation like Hatch’s first points from when he returned during his high school career, but still a terrific moment for a player who has worked very hard to reach this point in his basketball career.