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Jim Harbaugh Hired at Michigan Podcast
Nothing But ‘Net – Week #08 – 12/29/2014 – The End Of Non-Conference Play
The University of Michigan men’s basketball team played one game last week, and they won it. On Monday (12/22/2014), they beat Coppin State 72-56 in Crisler Arena. The win raises Michigan’s season record to 7-5.
After losing 4 games in a row, including 2 major upsets, any win is a welcome win. Coppin State is not a very impressive opponent, but this was a win that UM needed desperately. This was Michigan’s final non-conference game; the Big Ten schedule starts this week.
The CSU game was relatively straightforward and stress free. Michigan came out fast, and got an early 11-0 lead. They made it 21-3, and never looked back. It was 42-26 at halftime, and the lead got as high as 27 points (62-35) before the subs came in, and CSU poured it on to make the score respectable. Michigan was just trying to “dribble it out” with 10 seconds left when CSU pressed hard, and got a steal and a 3-point basket. Bush-league stuff.
For once, the stats are worth looking at. Michigan shot pretty poorly overall (25-for-53 = 47.2%), they shot 3-pointers pretty poorly (8-for-26 = 30.8%), and they shot free throws poorly (14-for-26 = 53.8%). So, how did they win so handily? Rebounds. They won the rebounding battle 43-31, which lead to more shots. They actually lost the turnover battle (12-11), but the 12 extra rebounds made the difference.
Individually, only 2 players hit double figures: Ricky Doyle (16 points, a new career high) and Zak Irvin (13 points). The other 3 starters all got close to double figures: Kameron Chatman (9 points), Caris LeVert (8 points), and Derrick Walton Jr. (9 points).
When UM had a comfortable lead in the 2nd half, Coach Beilein emptied the bench, so everyone who isn’t being redshirted got to play, and almost all of them scored. Mark Donnal did the best (8 points), and Aubrey Dawkins did well (5 points). Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman (2 points) hit a pair of free throws, and Max Bielfeldt (1 point) hit one. Spike Albrecht and Sean Lonergan played but didn’t score. Then there’s Austin Hatch: he scored his first official point (as opposed to the point he scored in the exhibition game) on a free throw. It was an emotional moment, and he got a standing ovation. Good for him!
This Week
This week, Michigan begins Big Ten play with two games. On Tuesday (12/30/2014, 3:00 p.m., ESPN2), they play Illinois in Crisler, then on Saturday (01/03/2015, 2:15 p.m. EST, BTN), they play at Purdue. These are 2 of the lower-division Big Ten teams, and if Michigan is going to be a contender this season, they need to win both of these games. The way they’ve been playing the last 3 weeks, they could easily lose them both. We’ll see which UM team shows up: the one that beat Oregon and Syracuse, and almost beat Villanova, or the one that lost at home to NJIT and EMU.
Check back here next week to see what happened, and why.
Go Blue!
It’s Now or Never for Jim Harbaugh to Coach Michigan
Michigan fans are giddy with anticipation that Jim Harbaugh will soon be their next head coach.
National sentiment held that Harbaugh would never leave the NFL, but the buzz in Ann Arbor has been consistent, and the combination of a lucrative financial package and loyalty to the program would be difficult for him to resist.
Almost everyone in Ann Arbor expects Jim Harbaugh to be Michigan’s next head coach.
Holiday Wish List for the Wolverines
Michigan fans are sulking at home while rivals Michigan State and Ohio State are both Top 10 teams in major postseason bowls. It’ll be a long offseason in Ann Arbor as the team searches for both a new coach and a permanent athletic director.
Here’s a wish list that could brighten up Michigan’s holiday season.
Nothing But ‘Net – Week #07 – 12/22/2014 – Fading Hopes
The University of Michigan men’s basketball team played one game last week, and they lost it. On Saturday (12/20/2014), they lost to SMU 62-51 in Crisler Arena. The loss drops Michigan’s season record to 6-5.
Michigan has now lost 4 games in a row, and hopes for this season are fading. As I said last week, the NJIT loss appears to have destroyed Michigan’s confidence. This is a broken, dysfunctional team. When adversity hits, they fold their tents and go home.
The SMU game was a dreary affair. Michigan shot really poorly, especially from 3-point range, and they rarely got an offensive rebound, so it was just “one and done”, over and over again. Even when they rallied and finally got a lead, 48-45, with just under 8:00 left, they went stone cold and allowed SMU to rattle off 17 unanswered points to put the game out of reach, before they got a meaningless 3-pointer with 45 seconds left.
Once again, I’m not going to examine the team or individual stats for the game. In short, the team played poorly, and no one had a good game individually.
This Week
This week, Michigan only plays one game. On Monday (12/22/2014, 8:00 p.m., BTN), they play Coppin State in Crisler. This could be Michigan’s last chance to win another game this season. They should be able to beat Coppin State, but who knows any more.
Check back here next week to see what happened, and why.
Go Blue!