Michigan men’s basketball coach John Beilein is known for the 1-3-1 zone defense, but it’s tough to judge just how often he will run it on a given night.

Before the season, Beilein said he’ll use it anywhere between 10 and 60 percent of defensive possessions.

In Michigan’s 77-55 win over Michigan Tech on Tuesday, Beilein ran the scheme on the high side of that range.

The Huskies have two small, talented guards, and Beilein wanted to keep the ball out of their hands.

“I just thought we’d be chasing them around that they’d eventually get to a three," Beilein said. "Sometimes in that zone, we take the ball out of the guard's hands and let other people make decisions.”

The Wolverines stayed in the 1-3-1 zone for nearly the entire first half. As freshmen Stu Douglass and Zack Novak played tenacious defense, alternating time at the top of the zone, Michigan Tech had difficulty moving the ball. If the Huskies got the ball in the paint, the defense double-teamed the post-player. Just more than 13 minutes into the game Michigan had already forced seven turnovers.

The zone left the Huskies with open 3-pointers, but they shot just 6-for-26 from behind the arc.

“We really got out there and put good pressure on the ball,” Novak said. “It comes down to hustle and heart when you’re playing a defense like that. You can get out of it what you put into it, and tonight we just put a lot into it.”

The Wolverines began the second half in man-to-man defense. But Michigan Tech outscored Michigan 13-8 in the first six minutes, so Beilein switched back to the 1-3-1. For the next six minutes, following the stretch, Michigan outscored Michigan Tech 11-5, quickly putting the game out of reach.

Numbers don’t mean everything: His stat line won’t jump off the page — two points, two rebounds and three assists in 23 minutes — but Novak proved why he was the first person off the bench last night and in Michigan’s exhibition game last week.

Against Michigan Tech, on two separate occasions he hit junior DeShawn Sims for an alley-oop layup on the fast break.

“I remember one time they had their little point guard back on him,” Novak said. “I wasn’t even worried about the rim. I said, ‘Throw it over that guy,’ and then he’s athletic enough he’s going to go get it.”

Later in the second half, Novak sprinted down the left side of the court ahead of the Huskies’ defense, and sophomore Kelvin Grady hit Novak in stride for an easy layup.

It’s a sign that practice has paid off for the freshman.

“We have a drill exactly like that,” Novak said. “Kelvin threw a perfect pass. I didn’t do anything but make a layup.”

Novak might not have had to make the big plays, but he did the little things necessary to help the offense execute.

Inspiration: When Michigan came out for their pregame warm-ups an hour before tipoff, Harris was a few seconds late. He was talking with Duke two-time All-American Jay Williams, who called the game for ESPNU.

Harris, who scored a career-high 30 points, might want to talk to Williams before every game.

“Just talking to him gave me (incentive) because I know he’s been where I’ve been at,” Harris said. “He made it to the next level. So just talking to him, and him being here, inspired me.”

Still rusty: Last season, Michigan shot a Big Ten-worst 39.5 percent from the field.

Although the Wolverines shot 51.9 percent from the floor Tuesday night, including 16-for-26 in the first half, they threw up five air balls.

Harris, junior Zack Gibson and Novak all shot airballs before the 14-minute mark. And sophomore Anthony Wright and senior Jevohn Shepherd each had one later in the game.