Harvard men's basketball coach Tommy Amaker returned Saturday to Crisler Arena for the first time since being fired from the Michigan program in 2007. And when Amaker’s name was announced at the start of the game, he received applause — a classy showing from the fans.

Amaker said in a teleconference last Thursday that he didn’t know how he would be greeted in his return to Ann Arbor, but in the Wolverines' 65-62 win over the Crimson on Saturday, he saw nothing but respect from the Michigan fan base. In fact, there wasn’t a single chant from the Maize Rage all afternoon targeting the opposing coach — something that normally happens multiple times in a game.

“It’s kind of weird knowing that he helped get you here,” junior guard Stu Douglass, whom Amaker tried to recruit to Harvard, said after Saturday’s game. “When I saw him, I just said hi and good luck. We just went out there to get a win for our coach.”

Amaker embraced his opportunity to return to Michigan.

“We were so focused on the way we’ve been playing, and I think our kids were focused on that as well, so I tried to stay in that moment for our guys,” Amaker said on Saturday. “But it certainly is always great to come back to Ann Arbor. It’s a great community, a great town. I enjoyed my time here as a coach. and being a part of this great school."

A TALE OF TWO HALVES: The Wolverines went into halftime trailing by seven points. But Michigan coach John Beilein made some adjustments to respond to Amaker's defensive attack and started Douglass in the second half.

“Douglass played very well in the second half,” Amaker said on Friday. “I thought he shot the ball really well. I’ll wait to look at the tape to see if we lost him a few times. Sure, they missed some opportunities to finish around the goal as well, but we just couldn’t finish around the basket. I thought that was the difference, just not being able to score.”

Douglass tallied 16 of his 19 points in the second stanza. He shot 5-for-7 from three-point range, two of which were well beyond the arc.

“He got some open shots, and he got some non-open shots and he just knocked them down,” junior guard Zack Novak said on Friday. “I think he is embracing his sixth man. He’s coming off the bench and giving us such a huge spark, it’s big for us. I mean he won us the game today.”

Michigan shot 50 percent from three-point territory in the second half, but just 28 percent in the first half.

POSTGAME ANALYSIS: Crimson forward Keith Wright scored a team-high 18 points, 16 of which came when Michigan redshirt freshman Jordan Morgan covered him.

But when Morgan got into foul trouble, Beilein played redshirt freshman Blake McLimans in his spot. The forward covered Wright effectively and limited him to just two points, both on free throws. On the other end, McLimans tallied four points of his own, a rebound and a block in the seven minutes that he had played.

“Blake has really benefited from embracing the process from his development,” assistant coach Bacari Alexander said. “It’s nice when you can see the benefit from that embracement. You can see what happened from the practices leading up from the game. Blake today had a hot moment where he figured out angles, competing, scrapping and fighting.

"Wright is a load right there, he is first team, all caliber IVY league player, and Blake accepted the challenge. He used his length and his size and those are things that we have been emphasizing.”

McLimans and the rest of the Michigan bench scored 30 points against Harvard, the biggest contribution the team has seen from its bench all season.

“We have a saying at Michigan this year where we need all hands on deck,” Alexander said. “So whether it’s Blake McLimans one night or Eso the next night. Name a player. Everyone on our roster has a valuable role, and we are going to call on them when the time dictates it.”