The University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games last week, and they lost both of them. On Thursday (02/05/2015), they lost to Iowa 72-54 in Crisler Arena, then on Sunday (02/08/2015), they lost at Indiana 70-67. The two losses drop Michigan’s record to 13-11 (6-6 in the Big Ten).

This team is just plain out of gas. Between the injuries (Caris LeVert and Derrick Walton Jr.) and the illnesses, everyone who can play has been playing too many minutes, with too little support, and they’re just running on empty. They put up an impressive fight in a losing effort vs. Indiana, but they were embarrassingly docile in the home loss to Iowa. There was no fire in anyone’s eyes. They were whipped, and they knew it.

The Iowa game started OK, with UM going ahead 12-6 and 14-8. Iowa tightened things up, but UM still had a small lead (21-19) with 6:58 left in the 1^st half, when the wheels fell off. Iowa went on a 12-0 to end the half, making the halftime score 31-21. The first 5:35 of the 2^nd half were almost as bad, with Iowa going on a 13-5 run, and that was the game. That made the score 44-26 with 14:25 left, and Iowa managed to keep the lead in double digits for the rest of the game, except for one faint flickering hope when UM cut it to 9 points (52-43) with 8:07 to go. Iowa pushed the lead right back up to 14 points (57-43) in the next minute, and coasted home.

The IU game was a little more encouraging. Other than a brief 3-2 lead in the first 2 minutes of the game, IU led the whole way. Usually, the lead was 4-6 points, but a couple times IU pushed the lead up to 11 points (44-33 and 51-40), and it looked like they were going to turn it into another blowout. However, UM never let them get any farther ahead, and cut the lead back down to 4-6 points. In the final minute, they got the deficit down to 2 points (69-67), and got off a potential game-tying shot at the buzzer, but it missed, and that was the game.

The stats for the Iowa game are pretty sad. UM didn’t shoot very well overall (19-for-47 = 40.4%), and they shot pretty poorly from 3-point range (7-for-24 = 29.2%). They shot free throws very well (9-for-11 = 81.8%), but they got pounded on the boards (33-17), and they tied in the turnover battle (6-6). They played lousy defense, allowing Iowa to shoot 72% in the 2^nd half. That’s what cost them the game.

The stats for the Indiana game are much more impressive. UM shot pretty well overall (23-for-46 = 50.0%), they shot 3-pointers very well (6-for-13 = 46.2%), and they shot free throws pretty well (15-for-20 = 75.0%). As usual, they lost the rebounding battle badly (32-21), but they did win the turnover battle (11-14). It was a close game at the end, and the stats show it.

Individually, only Spike Albrecht hit double figures in both games, with 10 in the Iowa game and 12 in the IU game. The other 4 starters each had one good game and one sub-par game: Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman had 11 and 2 points, Aubrey Dawkins had 16 and 7, Ricky Doyle had 0 and 15, and Zak Irvin had 7 and 23.

The bench didn’t chip in very many points this week. Max Bielfeldt had 4 and 0, Kameron Chatman had 6 and 1, Andrew Dakich had 0 and 0 (but he did take 1 shot in each game), Mark Donnal returned from illness and had 0 and 7, and Sean Lonergan didn’t take a shot in the Iowa game, and didn’t play in the IU game. Austin Hatch didn’t play in either game.

This Week

This week, Michigan only plays one game. On Thursday (02/12/2015, 9:00 p.m. EST, ESPN), they play at Illinois. They beat Illinois way back in December in their first Big Ten game of the season, 73-65 in overtime, but that was in Crisler Arena, with LeVert and Walton. It’s always hard to win on the road in the Big Ten, and even tougher when your team has so many injuries. It would be quite an upset if UM won this game.

Check back here next week to see what happened, and why.

Go Blue!

The University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games last week, and they won one and lost one. On Tuesday (01/27/2015), they beat Nebraska 58-44 in Crisler Arena, then on Sunday (02/01/2015), they lost at Michigan State 76-66 (overtime). The win and the loss leave Michigan with an overall record of 13-9 (6-4 in the Big Ten).

Michigan continues to overachieve, but not enough to win the games they’re supposed to lose. Two weeks ago, they took (#6) Wisconsin into overtime, then ran out of gas and lost by 6. Last week, they took favored MSU into overtime on the road, then ran out of gas and failed to score, losing by 10. Taking both of those games to overtime is a big achievement, especially with Michigan’s injury/illness ravaged roster, but they still need to “get over the hump” and win one (or more) of these “marquee” matchups. At this point, an NCAA tournament bid seems unlikely, but they might still get into the NIT.

The Nebraska game was probably the most impressive game Michigan has played this season. They played hard, they played smart, and they controlled the game. After exchanging baskets in the early going, the score was tied (6-6) with 15:03 left in the 1^st half. UM went on a quick 7-0 run to make score 13-6, with 10:28 left in the half, and they never trailed again. They let Nebraska creep within 2 points (20-18) with 1:52 left in the 1^st half, but they pushed the lead back up to 5 (23-18) at halftime. They opened the 2^nd half with a beautiful 15-2 run, which gave them an 18 point lead (38-20) with 15:15 to go, and that was the game. The lead only slipped under 10 points once (47-39, with 5:53 to go), but UM pushed it back up to 17 points (58-41) with 2:00 left, and coasted home. It was the first comfortable Big Ten win of the season.

The MSU game was anything but comfortable. Neither team was able to pull away in regulation, although UM did build up a few small leads in the 1^st half. They didn’t last, and MSU led by 5 (29-24) at halftime. Michigan opened the 2^nd half on fire, and managed to build up another small lead (45-40) with 13:19. Once again, it didn’t last, and they found themselves down 5 points (66-61) with 1:24 to go. They scored the last 5 points in regulation, and tied it up 66-66. Overtime was a nightmare. Michigan missed all 5 shots, and even a free throw, while MSU went 3-for-6, and added 4 free throws. It was a sad way to cap off an inspired comeback.

The stats for the Nebraska game are pretty solid. Michigan shot pretty well overall (22-for-46 = 47.8%), they shot pretty well from 3-point range (6-for-14 = 42.9%), and they were perfect from the free throw line (8-for-8 = 100.0%). They crushed Nebraska on the boards (34-26), but they lost the turnover battle (13-10).

The stats for the MSU game are not nearly as impressive. Michigan shot pretty well again overall (27-for-62 = 43.5%), but they shot poorly from 3-point range (6-for-20 = 30.0%). They also shot poorly from the free throw line (6-for-10 = 60.0%). They lost the rebounding battle badly (43-29), but they (barely) won the turnover battle (11-12). I’ve said it before: this UM team looks good when the 3-pointers are going in, but they look terrible when they aren’t. 30% is not good.

Individually, there’s only one player left from the original “Big 3”: Zak Irvin. He’s the only player to hit double figures in both games, with 14 points vs. Nebraska and 11 vs. MSU. He also had a career-high 12 rebounds in the Nebraska game, for his first career double-double.

What happened to the other two players from the “Big 3”? Caris LeVert injured his left foot a couple weeks ago (in the Northwestern game), and he’s done for the season, and Derrick Walton Jr. missed both games last week with a foot injury related to the “turf toe” injury he suffered way back in November in the Villanova game. Walton will be back sometime this season, but the official word is “not in the foreseeable future”. This is bad news.

While we’re on the subject of injuries and illnesses, Mark Donnal also missed both games last week, with a respiratory illness, presumably the flu. This is the worst season I’ve ever seen for injuries and illnesses.

Back to the individual stats: the rest of the starters had a mixed week. Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman had 9 points vs. Nebraska and a career-high 18 points vs. MSU. Spike Albrecht had 6 points vs. Nebraska and a career-high 18 points vs. MSU. Aubrey Dawkins had 13 and 7. Ricky Doyle had 4 and 3. The real story last week has been the emergence of MAAR as an offensive weapon.

The bench continued to chip in a few points. Max Bielfeldt had 12 and 7 points, Kameron Chatman had 0 and 2 points, Andrew Dakich had 0 and 0 points (he finally took a shot vs. MSU, but it was blocked), Austin Hatch played 7 seconds vs. Nebraska (but didn’t touch the ball), and Sean Lonergan didn’t attempt a shot. Bielfeldt and Chatman are the only subs left on the bench that are a threat to score.

This Week

This week, Michigan plays two more games. On Thursday (02/05/2015, 7:00 p.m., ESPN), they play Iowa in Crisler, then on Sunday (02/08/2015, 1:00 p.m., CBS), they play at (#22) Indiana. Iowa isn’t unbeatable, and if UM can play with the same intensity that they showed in the last 4 games, they should be able to keep the game close, and hope for good things at the end. Playing in Bloomington is never easy, and it would be quite the upset for this shorthanded, patchwork Michigan team to win there.

Check back here next week to see what happened, and why.

Go Blue!