Terrance Williams discusses rivalry showdown with Michigan State, more

Michigan basketball sophomore Terrance Williams at this point is one of the program’s more veteran players. However, Saturday’s rivalry tilt at Michigan State (12:30 p.m. ET, CBS) will be a first for him.

The freshman and sophomore classes at Michigan have never played a road game with a full house in East Lansing. The Spartan fanbase will be out and rabid, especially after the postponement earlier this month.

Williams and Michigan are embracing the opportunity to keep building a resume amid a three-game win streak.

“It would mean a lot,” he said on Friday. “Just winning on the road, in general, is very hard. To do it in any Big Ten arena, we really want that. But especially with Michigan State, that would give us a lot of confidence even though we are getting a lot of momentum as the season goes on.”

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Williams is not a Midwest native, but took on the importance of the rivalry upon arriving in Ann Arbor.

“It’s a big rivalry in general,” he said. “When you go to either Michigan or Michigan State, you embrace the rivalry. I’m not from here, but I embraced it as I came. It’s a big part of this program to beat Michigan State. We have to go out there with energy at Breslin and play our hardest and together.

“I felt it last year when we did a two-day prep for Michigan State. That’s when it hit me. We really locked in. Some of our coaches played at Michigan and were talking about their experiences like Juwan, Chris Hunter about how we both hate each other. As a player it makes me want to go out there and play hard for them and for my brothers. I embraced it before we played them last year.”

How Michigan continues to grow

The good news for Michigan is that it is starting to round into form as a team as conference play kicks into high gear. The more they play with each other, the better the communication gets. It will be key to a victory on Saturday.

“As the season goes on we are just getting more chemistry together,” Williams said. “We are each playing our roles and are trying to do it to the best of our ability. The rotations are becoming more solid as the season goes on. That helps a lot. We are all just coming together and playing as one.”

Michigan’s 72-70 win over Northwestern on Wednesday night was a game it probably would lose a month ago. Now, Williams and the Wolverines have learned some tough lessons and applied it to the court.

“We weren’t together or connected as one,” he said. “As the season goes on you learn from losses. That’s the biggest thing that we did. We learned from our losses and figured out how we are going to get over the hump next time it comes around. Northwestern was a great example. We were down seven and figured out how to get over what we’ve usually faced in those tight games when teams go on runs. So just learning from losses and keep gaining knowledge of how we are going to come together and play.”

Communication will be paramount for the Wolverines in a tough environment. The enhanced cohesiveness of the roster will be tested at a raucous Breslin Center on Saturday.

“We have to stay connected because it does get loud in there when they go on runs,” Williams said. “We have to yell out calls and things like that.”