Category: Basketball

The (#7) University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games last week, and they won them both. On Tuesday (02/05/2019), they won at Rutgers 77-65, then on Saturday (02/09/2019), they beat (#19) Wisconsin 61-52 in Crisler. The wins raise Michigan’s record to 22-2 (11-2 in the Big Ten). Michigan is now all alone in 1^st place, although Purdue also has just 2 losses in Big Ten play, they just haven’t played as many games as Michigan.

Time for more Questions & Answers:

Q: Revenge?

A: It was sweet revenge, after Wisconsin beat Michigan in Madison back on 01/19/2019, handing Michigan their first loss after a 17-game winning streak to start the season. Michigan played pretty poorly in that game, and they wanted a chance to show Wisconsin how the game could have gone if they had played closer to their potential. Michigan played much better against UW the second time around, especially down the stretch.

Q: So, what happened?

A: Rutgers is much better this season than they’ve been since they joined the Big Ten. In years past, a road trip to Piscataway wouldn’t be very scary; you just play a decent game, and Rutgers will obligingly fold up and hand you the game. Not this season: Michigan had to play a good, solid game to beat Rutgers, and they earned the win. Michigan pulled out to a nice 12 point lead (18-6) with 14:18 to go in the 1^st half, then stretched it to 17 points (27-10) with 10:56 to go. UM kept the lead in the 15-17 point range for the next few minutes, until Rutgers went on a quick 8-0 run to cut the lead down to 9 points (38-29) with 3:06 left in the half. Michigan got the lead back up to 12 points (43-31) at halftime. Rutgers opened the 2^nd half with another run, and cut the lead down to 7 points (48-41) with 15:01 left in the game. That was as close as they got. Michigan pushed the lead up into the 12-14 point range and kept it there for most of the rest of the game. Rutgers got within 8-9 points a couple times, but Michigan always had an answer, winning by 12 points.

The Wisconsin game was tight, close, and low scoring. Wisconsin started strong, and led by 8 points (13-5) with 14:36 to go in the 1^st half. Michigan finally got going, and took the lead (18-17) with 9:06 left in the half. The lead went back and forth, but never more than 2-3 points, and the game was tied (27-27) at halftime. Michigan took the lead for good at the 17:33 mark, but never got more than 3-5 points ahead until the last 4:16. UM outscored Wisconsin 10-2 down the stretch, to win by 9. It was a great finish.

Q: How were the game stats?

A: Not bad. Michigan played pretty well in both games, and the stats show it.

In the Rutgers game, Michigan shot well overall (26-for-58 = 44.8%), they shot 3-pointers very well (11-for-23 = 47.8%), and they shot free throws very well (14-for-17 = 82.4%). They lost the rebounding battle (36-34), but they won the turnover battle (7-9). When Michigan shoots their 3-pointers well, they usually win.

In the Wisconsin game, Michigan shot well overall (25-for-56 = 44.6%), they shot 3-pointers pretty poorly (4-for-17 = 23.5%), and they shot free throws very well (7-for-9 = 77.8%). Miraculously, they won the rebounding battle (36-33), and they won the turnover battle (5-7). Michigan won this game with overall shooting and defense. They also outscored Wisconsin 7-0 on the free-throw line. That’s right: Wisconsin made zero (0) free throws, on only 2 attempts. One other interesting stat: Michigan shot 4-for-7 from 3-point range in the 1^st half, then went 0-for-10 in the 2^nd half. If any one of those 10 attempts had gone in, the end of the game would have been a lot less tense.

Q: Who looked good for Michigan?

A: A few players had a good week:

• Jordan Poole hit double figures in both games, with 15 vs. Rutgers and 10 vs. Wisconsin. Once again, he wasn’t very efficient (5-for-13 overall, 3-for-6 from deep, vs. Rutgers, and 4-for-11 overall, 2-for-6 from deep, vs. Wisconsin). He almost had a double-double vs. Wisconsin with a career-high 9 rebounds.
  
• Charles Matthews also hit double figures in both games, with 11 vs. Rutgers and 18 vs. Wisconsin. He was the hero of the Wisconsin game, with 16 of his 18 points in the 2^nd half, including several clutch shots in the last few minutes.
  
• Zavier Simpson hit double figures in one game this week (14 and 5 points), and he flirted with another triple-double in the Rutgers game, with 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists. As usual, he ran the offense very well, and played great defense.
  
• Ignas Brazdeikis also only hit double figures in one game this week, but he did it in extreme fashion: he was the high scorer and hero of the Rutgers game, with 23 points, but he had a terrible game vs. Wisconsin, with 2 points on 1-for-9 (0-for-4 from deep) shooting. Combined with his 0 points in the first Wisconsin game, he has 2 points for 80 minutes of game action. Ugh. I don’t know what it is about Wisconsin, since he’s hit double figures in all but 2 of his other games this season.
  
• Jon Teske only hit double figures in one game this week (7 and 17 points), but he was a big factor in the win over Wisconsin. Besides his 17 points, he also had 12 rebounds, for a nice double-double, but he also played very hard on defense, trying to contain Ethan Happ. No one can stop Happ, you can only hope to slow him down. He started the Michigan game with 8 of Wisconsin’s first 10 points, and he had 14 points with 2:46 left in the half. Teske finally figured out how to neutralize him, and held him to only 4 points for the rest of the game.
  
• Isaiah Livers didn’t score a lot this week (5 and 9 points), but he played some crucial defense on Ethan Happ, when Jon Teske was on the bench.
  

Q: Who looked not-so-good for Michigan?

A: A few players had an “off” week:

• Eli Brooks played in both games, but didn’t score a point in either. He was 0-for-2 vs. Rutgers, and didn’t attempt a shot vs. Wisconsin. Michigan needs some bench points from him.
  
• Brandon Johns, Jr. played in both games, and scored 2 points vs. Rutgers, but didn’t attempt a shot vs. Wisconsin.
  

Q: Who else played this week?

A: Both games were tight, so Coach Beilein didn’t play anyone else.

Q: What did we learn this week?

A: We learned that Michigan still has a little swagger left. They played well on the road vs. Rutgers, and they played tough down the stretch against a good (ranked) opponent, Wisconsin. Now, they need to show that they can beat a good opponent on the road.

Q: What’s next for Michigan?

A: Michigan plays two games again this week, one away and one at home. On Tuesday (02/12/2019, 8:30 p.m., BTN), they play at Penn State, then on Saturday (02/16/2019, 12:00 p.m., FOX), they play (#24) Maryland in Crisler.

Penn State is currently 8-15 (1-11 in Big Ten), with wins over Virginia Tech and Northwestern, and lots of losses. Michigan already played and beaten them (68-55) back on 01/03/2019. That started a 10-game losing streak for PSU, all in the Big Ten. They finally beat Northwestern, then lost to Ohio State. They are in last place in the Big Ten. Michigan can beat them again, even on the road, but they need to play well, and not let the (meager) Penn State crowd get into the game.

Maryland is currently 18-6 (9-4 in Big Ten), with wins over Loyola (Chicago), Indiana, and Wisconsin, and losses to Seton Hall, Illinois, and Wisconsin. They have some height (two 6’10” guys and two 6’9″ guys), including another beast in the middle, Bruno Fernando. This will be a tough game, but Michigan can beat them with the kind of effort and focus they showed in the Purdue, Ohio State, and Wisconsin games in Crisler.

That’s it for this week. Check back next week to see how Michigan did.

Go Blue!

The (#5) University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games last week, and they won one and lost the other. On Tuesday (01/29/2019), they beat Ohio State 65-49 in Crisler, then on Friday (02/01/2019), they lost at Iowa 74-59. The win and the loss leave Michigan with a record of 20-2 (9-2 in the Big Ten), tied for 1^st place with Michigan State and Purdue.

Time for more Questions & Answers:

Q: Roadkill?

A: Yeah, the home team won both games this week. Unfortunately, Michigan was the visiting team at Iowa. The opposite of “road warriors” is “roadkill”. Michigan is now 3-2 in Big Ten road games, with wins at Northwestern, Illinois, and Indiana, and losses at Wisconsin and Iowa.

Q: So, what happened?

A: As good as Michigan looked against OSU, that’s how bad they looked vs. Iowa. The OSU game didn’t start out very well, with OSU leading for the first 12 minutes, before UM tied it (19-19) with 8:10 to go in the 1^st half. The teams traded the lead until the 2:10 mark, when Michigan went ahead for good, 27-26. They led by 6 points (32-26) at halftime, and 11 points (44-33) with 12:35 to go. OSU got as close as 8 points (44-36), before UM pushed the lead up to the 14-16 point range and kept it there.

The Iowa game started out close, with several ties and lead changes in the first 9 minutes. It was tied up 12-12 with 11:21 to go in the 1^st half, when Michigan went on a quick 5-0 run to take their only significant lead (17-12), with 10:48 left. That’s when the roof fell in. Iowa went on a long, painful 21-2 run over the next 5 minutes that crushed the life out of Michigan. That made it 33-19, and that was the game. Michigan made a few feeble attempts at a comeback, and got within 9 points (50-41) with 12:28 left in the game, but Iowa was hot, and Michigan was not. It was a very discouraging performance.

Q: Any problems with the officiating?

A: Well…

Let’s just say that they called the Iowa game a little more closely than any game I’ve seen in the last 10 years. Maybe they called it evenly for both teams, but they certainly were REALLY picky about what they called a foul. It made the game unwatchable.

Q: How were the game stats?

A: About what you would expect: good for the win, and lousy for the loss:

In the OSU game, Michigan shot pretty well overall (22-for-54 = 40.7%), they shot 3-pointers well (10-for-27 = 37.0%), and they shot free throws very well (11-for-12 = 91.7%). They lost the rebounding battle (35-29), but they dominated in the turnover battle (9-19). Those 10 extra possessions really helped.

In the Iowa game, Michigan shot poorly overall (21-for-65 = 32.3%), they shot 3-pointers terribly (8-for-33 = 24.2%), but they did shoot free throws well (9-for-12 = 75.0%). They got clobbered on the boards (48-36), but they did win the turnover battle (8-10). The combination of poor shooting and terrible rebounding cost Michigan this game.

Q: Who looked good for Michigan?

A: A few players had a good week:

• Jordan Poole bounced back from a quiet week last week with a solid week this week. He was the high scorer for Michigan in both games, with 15 points vs. OSU and 16 points vs. Iowa. Unfortunately, he was inefficient in both games: 5-for-14 overall (3-for-10 from deep) vs. OSU, and 5-for-12 overall (3-for-9 from deep) vs. Iowa.
  
• Ignas Brazdeikis also had a solid week. He was the co-high scorer in the Iowa game (16 points), and just one point behind Poole in the OSU game (14 points). He was much more efficient than Poole: 4-for-7 (2-for-3 from deep) vs. OSU, and 6-for-15 (2-for-4 from deep) vs. Iowa.
  
• Zavier Simpson was the real star of the OSU game, even though he wasn’t the high scorer. He scored 11 points, which is fine, but he also had 10 rebounds and 12 assists (a new career high), for a rare “triple-double”. It was only the 6^th triple-double in UM history. He flirted with a second straight triple-double in the Iowa game, with 10 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists.
  
• Isaiah Livers hit double figures in one game (12 points vs. OSU), but only 3 points vs. Iowa. He was limited by foul trouble for most of the Iowa game (see above about officiating), picking up 4 fouls in 14 minutes.
  

Q: Who looked not-so-good for Michigan?

A: A few players had an “off” week:

• Jon Teske didn’t hit double figures in either game (4 and 8 points). He was severely limited by foul trouble in the Iowa game (see above about officiating), and fouled out in only 13 minutes.
  
• Charles Matthews had a really inefficient week. He had 9 and 6 points, but he shot terribly, especially in the Iowa game: 3-for-8 overall (1-for-3 from deep) vs. OSU, and 2-for-12 overall (2-for-7 from deep) vs. Iowa.
  
• Eli Brooks played in both games, but didn’t score a point in either. He didn’t attempt a shot vs. OSU, and was 0-for-3 vs. Iowa. Michigan needs some bench points from him.
  

Q: Who else played this week?

A: Coach Beilein played the subs and scrubs in the last minute of the OSU blow-out, and he was forced to play several not-ready-for-primetime players in the Iowa game, due to foul trouble. Colin Castleton, Austin Davis, David DeJulius, Brandon Johns, Jr., and Adrien Nuñez all played in both games, but didn’t score. The “big men” (Castleton, Davis, and Johns) played more minutes than usual when both Teske and Livers got in foul trouble in the Iowa game. They were not effective.

Q: What did we learn this week?

A: We learned that Michigan has a tough time playing against a good Big Ten team on the road in a loud and hostile environment. We could explain away the loss at Wisconsin a couple weeks ago as a result of the stress of the long winning streak to start the season, but the debacle in Iowa was purely a matter of crumbling under adversity. When Iowa started their run, and the crowd got going, you could see the fear and uncertainty on the faces of the Michigan players. Now, all the remaining Big Ten games on the road are in question.

Q: What’s next for Michigan?

A: Michigan plays two games again this week, one away and one at home. On Tuesday (02/05/2019, 8:00 p.m., BTN), they play at Rutgers, then on Saturday (02/09/2019, 12:00 p.m., FOX), they play (#24) Wisconsin in Crisler.

Rutgers is currently 11-10 (4-7 in Big Ten), with wins over Miami (FL), Ohio State, Nebraska, and Indiana, and losses to Fordham, Seton Hall, Northwestern, and Ohio State. They have some height (a 7’0″ guy and three 6’10” guys), but no real superstars. They are currently tied for 9^th place in the Big Ten (with Indiana), which is a big improvement on 13^th or 14^th place, where they usually finish. Michigan is certainly better than Rutgers, but they will need to play well to beat them, especially on the road. There are no easy wins on the road in the Big Ten.

Wisconsin is currently 16-6 (8-3 in Big Ten), just one game behind the three teams tied for 1^st place (Michigan, Michigan State, and Purdue). They beat Michigan handily in Madison 2 weeks ago (01/19/2019), and that was the start of a 5-game winning streak for them, beating Illinois (away), Northwestern, Nebraska (away), and (#21) Maryland since then. This is a crucial game for Michigan. They can beat Wisconsin, but they need to get their swagger back to do it.

That’s it for this week. Check back next week to see how Michigan did.

Go Blue!

The (#5) University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games last week, and they won both of them. On Tuesday (01/22/2019), they beat Minnesota 59-57 in Crisler, then on Friday (01/25/2019), they beat Indiana 69-46 in Bloomington. The two wins raise Michigan’s record to 19-1 (8-1 in the Big Ten).

Time for more Questions & Answers:

Q: Wait, #5? What happened to #2?

A: The loss to Wisconsin on 01/19/2019 moved Michigan down three spots in the AP Poll, which is reasonable.

Q: Back in the saddle?

A: After the demoralizing loss to Wisconsin, Michigan had to get their swagger back. They had to get back on that horse and keep moving forward. They still looked stunned and scared for much of the Minnesota game, but they appeared to have shaken it off vs. IU. They really need to put that one loss behind them, and not let it turn into multiple losses.

Q: So, what happened?

A: Michigan had a horrible start in the Minnesota game. They were cold, Minnesota was hot, and the game started slipping away almost immediately. Minnesota jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead, and pushed it up to 16-8, then 19-10. Michigan finally woke up, and clawed their way to a 23-23 tie. Minnesota pulled back ahead, and led 31-28 at halftime. They continued to lead for the first four minutes of the 2^nd half, before Michigan tied it up again, 37-37, and finally got the lead, 39-37 with 15:23 to go. Michigan never trailed again, and built the lead up to 13 points (52-39) with 9:10 left in the game. It looked like Michigan had the game firmly in hand, then they went cold. Still, with good defense they still led by 10 points (57-47) with 4:51 to go. Those were the last points Michigan would score until the final second of the game. Minnesota slowly crawled back into the game, and tied it up 57-57 with 30.7 seconds left. Michigan held the ball for the last shot, and Charles Matthews was the hero with a buzzer-beater that just left his hand before the shot clock went off, and swished through as time expired. It was thrilling, but scary. Michigan is much better than Minnesota, and they should have won this game convincingly, especially at home. The hangover from the Wisconsin loss almost cost them this game.

After a terrible start vs. Minnesota, Michigan needed a good start against a desperate IU team in a loud, hostile arena, and they got it. They shot well, played good defense, and watched IU miss every shot in the first five minutes, which resulted in a gorgeous 17-0 lead. They kept the lead in the 14-16 point range for the rest of the half, and led by 15 (33-18) at halftime. That was the worst scoring half for IU this season. IU started the 2^nd half hot, and cut the lead down to 9 points (38-29) with 16:47 to go. That was as close as they got. Michigan pushed the lead back up to the 16-18 point range, then extended it to the 20-22 point range down the stretch, winning by 23 points. That is Michigan’s largest margin of victory ever in Bloomington.

Q: Any problems with the officiating?

A: Nope. They were fine, in their “equally incompetent against both teams” way.

Q: How were the game stats?

A: About what you would expect: lousy for the close game, and good for the blow-out:

In the Minnesota game, Michigan shot terribly overall (21-for-62 = 33.9%), they shot 3-pointers horribly (3-for-22 = 13.6%), and they shot free throws poorly (14-for-22 = 63.6%). They lost the rebounding battle badly (43-33), but they won the turnover battle (6-16). Frankly, looking at these stats, I don’t know how Michigan managed to win.

The stats for the Indiana game are better. Michigan shot fairly well overall (25-for-58 = 43.1%), they shot 3-pointers reasonably well (10-for-29 = 34.5%), and they shot free throws well enough (9-for-12 = 75.0%). They won the rebounding battle (44-39), and tied in the turnover battle (9-9). The 3-point shooting won the game.

Q: Who looked good for Michigan?

A: A few players had a good week:

• Ignas Brazdeikis bounced back from the worst game of his (short) career with two solid games. He was the high scorer in both games, with 18 points vs. Minnesota and 20 points vs. IU. He was very inefficient in the Minnesota game (4-for-18, 1-for-7 from 3-point range), but he cleaned that up in the IU game (8-for-12, 3-for-5 from deep). He had 11 rebounds vs. Minnesota, for a double-double.
  
• Jon Teske was the only other player to hit double figures in both games (15 and 11). He was the only player who shot well against Minnesota (7-for-8, 1-for-1 from 3-point range).
  
• Charles Matthews: Even though he only hit double figures in one game (10 points vs. IU), he was the hero of the Minnesota game with his buzzer-beater. He only had 7 points in that game, but two of them were very important. He also had 11 rebounds in the IU game, for a double-double. He also played great lock-down defense on IU’s leading scorer, Romeo Langford.
  
• Zavier Simpson also only hit double figures in one game (12 points vs. IU, 6 points vs. Minnesota), but he did a great job running the offense in both games, and played great defense as well.
  

Q: Who looked not-so-good for Michigan?

A: A few players had an “off” week:

• Jordan Poole kind of disappeared last week, with 3 and 6 points, on terrible shooting: 1-for-5 (0-for-3 from deep) vs. Minnesota, and 2-for-7 (2-for-5 from deep) vs. IU.
  
• Isaiah Livers also had a bad week scoring, with 7 and 5 points, on terrible shooting: 2-for-8 (1-for-5 from deep) vs. Minnesota, and 1-for-7 (1-for-4 from deep) vs. IU.
  
• Eli Brooks had 2 points in each game, on terrible shooting: 1-for-4 (0-for-1 from deep) vs. Minnesota, and 1-for-3 (0-for-1 from deep) vs. IU.
  

Q: Who else played this week?

A: Coach Beilein used his very short bench (8 players) in the close game vs. Minnesota, but put in lots of subs and scrubs in the last minute of the IU game:

• Brandon Johns, Jr. played in both games, but didn’t score.
  
• Adrien Nuñez scored his first career points vs. IU, with a beautiful (long) 3-pointer that he swished.
  
• C.J. Baird, Austin Davis, David DeJulius, and Luke Wilson all played in the IU game, but didn’t score.
  

Q: What did we learn this week?

A: We learned that Michigan can (barely) bounce back from a devastating loss, and that they can win big on the road in the Big Ten. We also learned that they can (barely) survive a bad shooting night against a good Big Ten team, but that it’s not a good idea.

Q: What’s up with the Big Ten standings?

A: Oh yeah, I haven’t talked about the race for the Big Ten title yet. Let’s have a look:

There are a few surprises here:

• Indiana was predicted to have an outside chance at the Big Ten title; instead, they are 3-6, with a 6-game losing streak.
  
• Nebraska was predicted to be one of the top 2-3 teams in the Big Ten; instead, they are 3-6, tied for 9^th place.
  
• Iowa was predicted to finish in the bottom half of the Big Ten; instead, they have been ranked for most of the season, although they have stumbled lately.
  
• Penn State was predicted to be a middle-of-the-pack team; instead, they are winless and in the basement, 2 games behind lowly Illinois.
  

Q: What’s next for Michigan?

A: Michigan plays two games again this week, again on Tuesday and Friday, and again home then away. On Tuesday (01/29/2019, 9:00 p.m., ESPN2), they play Ohio State in Crisler, then on Friday (02/01/2019, 7:00 p.m. EST, FS1), they play at (#19) Iowa.

Ohio State is currently 13-6 (3-5 in Big Ten), with wins over Cincinnati, Creighton, Minnesota, and UCLA, and losses to Syracuse, Rutgers (!), and Purdue. They don’t have much height (a couple 6’9″ guys), and no real superstars. They were ranked for part of the season, but their 5-game losing streak in the Big Ten took care of that. Michigan is certainly better than OSU, but they will need to play well to beat them.

Iowa is currently 16-5 (5-5 in Big Ten), with wins over Oregon, UConn, Pitt, Iowa State, Nebraska, and Ohio State, and losses to Wisconsin, Michigan State (twice), Purdue, and Illinois (!). They have a couple 6’11” guys, and a couple 6’9″ guys. They have been ranked since week #3, and they will be a very challenging opponent, especially on their home court. This game will tell us whether Michigan can beat a good Big Ten team on the road.

That’s it for this week. Check back next week to see how Michigan did.

Go Blue!

The (#2) University of Michigan men’s basketball team played one game last week, and they lost it. On Saturday (01/19/2019), they lost at Wisconsin 64-54. The loss lowers Michigan’s record to 17-1 (6-1 in the Big Ten).

Time for more Questions & Answers:

Q: Gargling peanut butter?

A: They choked. They let the pressure get to them. They played scared. They played “to not lose”, instead of playing to win. The long winning streak. The great start to the season. The chance to move up to #1 in the AP poll. The loud, hostile crowd. It all got to them. They choked.

Maybe in the long run, this loss will turn out to be a good thing. Maybe, now that the pressure has been eased a little, they’ll just play some hoops instead of worrying about the future. Maybe they’ll start hitting the wide open shots that they’ve been missing. Maybe they’ll stop throwing the ball away in crucial situations. Maybe.

Q: What happened?

A: Michigan played poorly, and they lost. Wisconsin played well, and they deserved to win.

Q: Was Michigan overrated?

A: Maybe. They certainly didn’t play like the #2 team vs. UW.

Q: What was the problem?

A: Shooting, poor shooting. At its very heart, basketball is a game about putting the ball in the basket. Michigan played decent defense for most of the game, but they just couldn’t put the ball in the basket, especially when they most needed to. They shot terribly overall (22-for-54 = 40.7%), they shot 3-pointers terribly (5-for-18 = 27.8%), and they shot free throws terribly (5-for-11 = 45.5%). That’s how to lose a game. The complete stats are here.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: when Michigan is hitting their 3-pointers, everything else seems to fall into place, and the game looks fun and easy. When Michigan can’t hit their 3-pointers, everything is a struggle, and the game looks terrible.

Q: Any other problems?

A: Yup, turnovers. Michigan threw the ball away 16 times, tied for their worst performance of the season, and way over their average. Once again, many of those turnovers were at the exact worst time for momentum purposes.

Q: Any problems with the officiating?

A: It was fine, for the most part, but the refs did get a crucial call wrong in the last minute when they called an intentional foul against Michigan that wasn’t. It tipped the game toward Wisconsin. However, if Michigan had played a decent game up to that point, it won’t have mattered. They only had themselves to blame for being in a situation where one bad call could cost them the game.

Q: Did anyone look good for Michigan?

A: It’s tempting to say “no”, but it wasn’t that bad. A few players had decent games:

• Jon Teske was high scorer, with 15 points. He was the only Michigan player to hit more than one 3-pointer (2-for-4). He did his part, he just didn’t get enough support.
  
• Jordan Poole scored 14 points, but he took 15 shots to get them. He shot pretty poorly (6-for-15 overall, 1-for-5 from deep), he committed 4 fouls, and he had 3 turnovers.
  
• Zavier Simpson actually had a double-double, with 11 points and 10 rebounds. He played very hard, but it wasn’t enough.
  
• Isaiah Livers did his best to pick the team up when they were floundering around out there, but he only scored 5 points, against 3 turnovers.
  

Q: Who looked not-so-good?

A: A couple players had a bad game:

• Ignas Brazdeikis was the main reason Michigan lost. He had a horrible game: 0 points on 0-for-5 shooting (0-for-3 from deep), 3 fouls, and 2 turnovers. He was one of Michigan’s main scoring threats coming in, and he let the team down badly.
  
• Charles Matthews also let the team down, with only 5 points, 2 fouls, and 3 turnovers.
  

Q: Who else played?

A: It was a very short bench again:

• Eli Brooks didn’t take a shot.
  
• Austin Davis scored 4 points.
  

Q: What did we learn this week?

A: We learned that Michigan isn’t as good as they appeared to be. We learned that they won’t be able to just “turn it on” whenever the going gets tough. They got away with that in their two close games so far (Western Michigan and the away Northwestern game), but they dug themselves too deep a hole this time.

Q: What’s next for Michigan?

A: Michigan plays two games this week, one at home and one on the road. On Tuesday (01/22/2019, 7:00 p.m., BTN), they play Minnesota in Crisler, then on Friday (01/25/2019, 6:30 p.m., FS1), they play at (#25) Indiana.

Minnesota is currently 13-4 (3-3 in Big Ten), with wins over Texas A&M, Washington, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, and Wisconsin, and losses to Boston College, Ohio State, Maryland, and Illinois. They’ve got a 7-footer and a 6’10” guy, and a couple good players. This is a game that Michigan should win, but they can’t play like they did against Wisconsin.

Indiana is currently 12-6 (3-4 in Big Ten), with wins over Marquette, Louisville, and Butler, and losses to Arkansas, Maryland, Nebraska, and Purdue. Michigan has already played them once, two weeks ago (01/06/2019), and beaten them solidly (74-63). It will be harder to beat them on the road, but Michigan can do it, if they play their “A” game.

That’s it for this week. Check back next week to see how Michigan did.

Go Blue!

The (#2) University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games last week, and they won them both. On Thursday (01/10/2019), they beat Illinois 79-69 in Champaign, then on Sunday (01/13/2019), they beat Northwestern 80-60 in sold-out Crisler Arena. The two wins raise Michigan’s record to 17-0 (6-0 in the Big Ten).

Time for more Questions & Answers:

Q: What’s this about “best start ever”?

A: This season’s Michigan team just set a new school record for the best start ever. The previous record was 16-0, shared by the 1985-86 and 2012-13 teams. Michigan is now one of only two undefeated teams left in the country, along with (#4) Virginia. Going back to last season, which ended with a 14-game winning streak before the loss in the National Championship game vs. Villanova, Michigan has now won 31 of their last 32 games, which is quite a record.

Q: So, were these good, solid wins?

A: Yes, they were. Illinois and Northwestern aren’t contenders for the Big Ten title, in fact Illinois is likely to end up 14^th this season, but a 10-point road win and a 20-point home win are both good, solid wins.

In the Illinois game, Michigan led from start to finish, but never quite put the game on ice. They had their chances, but they always missed the crucial shot that would have put the game out of reach. On the other hand, every time Illinois started creeping up, Michigan answered with enough offense to keep them at arm’s length. Michigan kept the lead in the 6-8 point range for most of the game, occasionally stretching it to 10-12 points, and occasionally letting it dwindle to the 3-5 point range.

Michigan also led wire-to-wire in the Northwestern game, but they got the lead up in the 18-20 point range just before halftime, and kept it in the 16-18 point range for most of the 2^nd half. Northwestern put on a furious comeback attempt in the 2^nd half, but that only got them within 12 points, and Michigan pushed it back up to 20 points pretty quickly. The key stretch in the game came in the last 1:55 of the 1^st half. Northwestern had just hit a 3-pointer to pull within 12 points (40-28), when Michigan just exploded. Jon Teske hit a pair of 3-pointers, just 19 seconds apart, Charles Matthews had a steal that led to a breakaway dunk, then Zavier Simpson had another steal that led to a short jumper with 7 seconds left. Those 10 points just crushed any hope Northwestern had of getting back in the game. It was very exciting, and very impressive. It really got the sold-out crowd going.

Q: Any complaints about the officiating this week?

A: Nope. They were mediocre, but in a balanced way.

Q: What do the team stats tell us?

A: The stats weren’t bad this week:

In the Illinois game, Michigan shot pretty well overall (28-for-62 = 45.2%), they shot 3-pointers pretty poorly (5-for-19 = 26.3%), and they shot free throws very well (18-for-22 = 81.8%). They won the rebounding battle (38-30), and they tied in the turnover battle (14-14). The extra 8 possessions due to rebounding made the difference in this game.

In the Northwestern game, Michigan shot very well overall (31-for-59 = 52.5%), they shot 3-pointers well (11-for-27 = 40.7%), and they shot free throws very well (7-for-9 = 77.8%). They won the rebounding battle (33-28) and the turnover battle (9-13). All those extra possessions + good shooting = a 20-point win.

Q: Who looked good for Michigan?

A: Several players had a good week:

• Zavier Simpson was the high scorer for Michigan in both games, with 16 points vs. Illinois and a career-high 24 points vs. Northwestern. He was brilliant in the Northwestern game, shooting 9-for-17 overall, and 5-for-10 from 3-point range. Those five 3-pointers are a career high for him.
  
• Jon Teske was the other big star this week, with double figures in both games (13 and 17 points), and 11 rebounds in each game, for two consecutive double-doubles. He shot very well: 5-for-8 (1-for-3 from 3-point range) vs. Illinois, and 7-for-11 (3-for-5 from deep) vs. Northwestern. He hit all three of his 3-pointers vs. Northwestern in two and a half minutes just before halftime, igniting the offense and the crowd.
  
• Charles Matthews also hit double figures in both games (14 and 13 points), and fired up the crowd in the Northwestern game with a couple thunderous dunks. The only downside: poor 3-point shooting (0-for-1 and 0-for-2).
  
• Ignas Brazdeikis was the fourth starter who hit double figures in both games (15 and 11 points). He also had trouble with his 3-point shooting (1-for-2 and 0-for-2).
  
• Jordan Poole was the only starter who didn’t hit double figures in both games (10 and 7 points). He didn’t shoot 3-pointers well either (1-for-6 and 1-for-3).
  
• Isaiah Livers was back, after missing two games with back spasms, and he looked fine out there. He didn’t hit double figures in either game (9 and 8 points), but he provided the spark that he usually brings. He had a mixed week shooting 3-pointers (0-for-3 and 2-for-2).
  

Q: Who looked not-so-good for Michigan?

A: A couple players had an “off” week:

• Eli Brooks had another ineffective week, with 2 and 0 points.
  
• Austin Davis played a minute or two in each game, but didn’t take a shot.
  

Q: Who else played?

A: Coach Beilein went with his very short bench (8 players) in the Illinois game, which was close, but put several of the scout team players into the Northwestern game in the last two minutes: David DeJulius, Brandon Johns, Jr., Adrien Nuñez, Rico Ozuna-Harrison, and Luke Wilson. None of them scored.

This was the first time that Ozuna-Harrison has played this season, and I didn’t even realize that he was on the roster. He was a player on the team last season, and at the beginning of this season I reported that he had switched to being a manager, but I guess he’s back on the playing roster. Sorry I didn’t have a short bio of him in the Season Preview, and he certainly would have gotten a solid “Incomplete” in the Midterm Grades. I’ll keep track of him from now on.

Q: Who didn’t play?

A: A couple of the scout team players didn’t play this week: C.J. Baird and Colin Castleton.

Q: What did we learn this week?

A: We learned that Michigan can maintain their solid level of play against the non-contenders in the Big Ten. That’s important. Michigan is tied for 1^st place in the Big Ten with the Little Brothers, and they can’t afford to lose a game to any of the non-contenders. They need to win all the games that they’re supposed to win, and play their best games against the other contenders. Those games are coming up soon.

Q: What’s next for Michigan?

A: Michigan only plays one game this week, one on the road. On Saturday (01/19/2019, 12:00 noon EST, ESPN2), they play at Wisconsin.

Wisconsin is currently 11-5 (3-2 in Big Ten), with impressive wins over Xavier, Stanford, Oklahoma, N.C. State, and Iowa, and less-than-impressive losses to Marquette, Western Kentucky, and Minnesota. They have some height (two 7’0″ guys, a 6’11” guy, and a 6’10” guy), and one of the best players in the Big Ten: Ethan Happ. They were ranked for most of the non-conference schedule, until they lost to Western Kentucky and Minnesota in consecutive games. It used to be nearly impossible to beat Wisconsin in the Kohl Center, but the last few seasons have been different. Michigan will have to play very well to beat them, but they are beatable.

That’s it for this week. Check back next week to see how Michigan did.

Go Blue!