Before facing Utah on Friday, freshman forward Jon Horford had scored no more than four points and tallied no more than nine minutes in any game for the Michigan men's basketball team.

Horford had his first big game against the opponent that featured monstrosities at center — 7-foot Jason Washburn and 7-foot-3 David Foster — to break out with his best performance of the year in a 75-64 Michigan win.

Horford's performance came just one game after he was benched due to injury. The Grand Ledge, Mich. native sprained his left knee in practice last weekend, leading Wolverines coach John Beilein to sit him as a precaution in the team’s winnable game against Concordia last Monday.

Despite the setback, Horford practiced better than he had all season and earned enough trust from Beilein to play a season-high 16 minutes against the Runnin’ Utes (6-3), showing no ill effects from the injury.

“Coach Beilein, he really believes for us to be a great team you have to run our offense very well,” Horford said after the Utah win. “I think I’ve been running it very well the last couple days of practice. (Beilein) wanted to give me an opportunity, and I just wanted to come out and take it.”

Horford responded with a career-high five points and five rebounds. Despite the relatively low marks, the numbers hid a greater impact — the forward took a perfect give-and-go pass from sophomore point guard Darius Morris and slammed the ball home to give Michigan (7-2) a 21-8 lead with 8:08 left in the first half. It was the highest-energy moment for the Wolverines up to that point.

And after a 7-0 Utes run in the second half cut the score to 62-47, Horford showed his range and buried a 3-pointer to re-establish Michigan's momentum.

For Horford, it was the greatest impact he’d had in a game for the Wolverines, even though he had to battle against taller counterparts whom he admitted were a challenge to guard effectively. Still, Utah's giants were held in check combining for just five rebounds and two blocks, despite their size advantage.

For the Wolverines, Horford's sudden breakout provides another quality option off the bench when redshirt freshman forward Jordan Morgan falters.

“This is by far (Horford’s) best game,” junior guard Zack Novak said. “We’ve been seeing this a little bit. He’s just like trying to get out of his shell … but the kid’s going to be a beast. I’m really happy to see him come in here and get that type of performance.”

MORRIS DAZZLES AGAIN: With 19 points and 10 assists, Morris recorded his second straight double-double and his third overall this season to lead the Wolverines.

The Los Angeles native turned the ball over just one time and displayed his skilled array of stop-and-go moves in the paint all game, shooting 7-for-13 from the field.

During one stretch late in the first half, Morris scored on a strong drive to the hoop, nailed a 3-pointer and hit a pull-up jumper on three straight possessions. It was the kind of offensive versatility he lacked last season but has displayed in nearly every game this year.

“He’s been very receptive to just his self-improvement, in every way,” Beilein said. “What he can do on the court, what he can do off the court, what he can do as a leader. … When you work off the court at leadership and just having the right attitude about things, it’s typical growing development that is very refreshing right now. He’s really playing well.”

NOTES: Morris leads the Big Ten with 7.8 assists per game. ... The 6-foot-4 Novak led the Wolverines with nine rebounds, the fifth time this season that the guard has at least shared the team lead. ... Michigan was outrebounded by Utah 37-32. The Wolverines are 2-2 this season when losing the battle on the boards.