#MGoEurope Travel Log: Tuesday, Aug. 29
8/29/2017 4:21:00 PM | Women's Basketball, Features
The Michigan women's basketball program is on a week-and-a-half trip to Europe (Aug. 21-31) with stops in Italy and Greece. Follow the Wolverines on social media (#MGoEurope) and with a daily travel log on MGoBlue.com.
Tuesday, Aug. 29
10 a.m. -- For the first time all trip, it was finally time for ... sleeping in! The group did not have to be at breakfast until 10 a.m. after last night's late game. It was great to get some extra time to recover as well for the players (and staff!!). Following breakfast, the whole group got on the bus to head to Glyfada for some beach time!
Along the way, we were able to see a few of the Olympic venues from the 2004 games that were held in Athens.
11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. -- We arrived in Glyfada and went to a beach club to spend our time for the next three hours. Just like Sorrento, the water was unbelievably clear. The big difference at this beach versus the one in Sorrento was that this one was full of white sand! It looked like a scene out of a movie.
We got three hours on the beach to basically do whatever we wanted. There were inflatables in the water, where almost everyone headed to first. After swimming for awhile, it was time to lounge in the beach chairs, get a little something to eat or take a nap.
"Honestly, I could have stayed here all day," junior Nicole Munger said. "It was amazing to be out here, enjoying this weather. But the best part for me was probably my nap. I slept in the sun for about an hour and it was exactly what I needed."
"The water was beautiful. We had a lot of fun out there on those inflatables. We couldn't get to the top of the slide at first but then we worked as a team - Priscilla (Smeenge), Emma (Arico), Cece (Arico) and Gabs (Barnes) - and were able to make it up. I would have to say that this beach was my favorite between the two just because it was so relaxing. The other one in Sorrento was too but this took it to another level. The white sand and the turquoise water were amazing."
3:15 p.m. -- Time for pregame meal again! We ate in the hotel and got about two hours to rest and relax before the final game of the trip.
5:45 p.m. -- We left the hotel to head back to Glyfada to take on Olympiacos. After hitting some major Greek traffic on the way, so we had to push the game back to 7:45 instead of the originally scheduled 7:30 tip time.
7:45 p.m. -- The game tips off and Michigan raced to a 17-10 lead on five points from Munger and four points from sophomore Kayla Robbins. Michigan continued its strong play into the second quarter, outscoring Olympiacos 19-14 in the second period for a 12-point halftime advantage. At the half, Munger had nine points and junior Hallie Thome chipped in nine during the first 20 minutes.
The Wolverines began battling a little fatigue in the second half on the second day of playing back-to-back games but still managed to hold on to the 56-50 win.
"It was great to come away with the victory against a really good team," head coach Kim Barnes Arico said. "They were undefeated last year, a professional team with a lot of older women who have much more experience than us. I was happy to see our kids respond and respond like they did in a tight game. I thought fatigue came through in that second half after how hard we played last night and after spending the day at the beach. I thought you saw a little of our fatigue, but it is also a chance to see a different lineup like we did tonight."
"We used our third different lineup to start the game and used that a chance to see different people get on the court at different times. We also had an inexperienced lineup in at the end of the fourth quarter in a one possession game. It really gave them an opportunity to play in some critical game situations. I thought it was a great chance for everyone to face a really good professional team."
 U-M used several different lineups together in the second half to continue to see who plays well in what roles. Munger paced the Maize and Blue with 17 points, with freshman Priscilla Smeenge turning in eight. The trio of Robbins, Thome and freshman Deja Church each turned in seven points, with Thome and senior Jillian Dunston each grabbing eight boards.
"I think the basketball part of this trip has been tremendous," Barnes Arico continued. "It gives our coaches a chance to see players in different situations like seeing someone in the starting lineup versus coming in off the bench. We can look at how someone coming in can affect the tempo of the game, the ability to bring a scorer or a rebounder in. It is also great for our kids to get the opportunity to be in situations they haven't been in before. We really had the opportunity to mix with our rotation to see what can really work. I think it gives us a good head start moving into the season.
"I can't thank the University of Michigan enough for giving our program this amazing experience," she continued. "This trip has been absolutely amazing and we feel truly blessed."
Tomorrow marks U-M's final day in Greece, which will include a boat cruise to three islands around the mainland and a farewell dinner.
