The Michigan Wolverines' basketball defense struggled mightily throughout the entire month of January as the second wave of conference play hit (every Big Ten team kicked off league action with two conference games in early December), and played a big part in the club posting just a 2-5 record throughout the month.
It also contributed heavily to a four-game losing streak (road losses to Minnesota and Iowa, and home setbacks to Penn State and Illinois), with three of the four opponents shooting at least 48.2 percent against the Wolverines during that span.
Michigan's defensive struggles came as a bit of a surprise this season, especially when considering head coach Juwan Howard's expertise on that side of the ball.
On top of that, the Maize and Blue had been one of the nation's top defensive clubs each of the last two years under de facto defensive coordinator Luke Yaklich, and weren't necessarily expected to take such a significant step back after he departed for Texas.
Two of the key cogs in last season's defensive success — senior guard Zavier Simpson and senior center Jon Teske — have regressed noticeably this year, with no clear explanation as to why.
U-M's defense took a step forward, however, when it limited Illinois to just 64 points in a Jan. 25 home loss, which at the time marked the fewest points Michigan had allowed in a game since an 86-60 blowout of UMass-Lowell on Dec. 29.
The Wolverines' defense continued to progress from that point on, limiting each of its next four opponents to 68 points or fewer, and three of the four to 42.1 percent shooting or worse.
The culmination of the defensive progression (at least up to this point) occurred in this past Saturday's 77-68 triumph over Michigan State when the Maize and Blue held the Spartans to 33.3 percent from the floor, which was the program's third worst offensive showing in its last 98 games (dating back to the start of the 2017-18 season).
U-M's intensity and energy level on that side of the ball was noticeably better over the weekend, with the return of injured junior forward Isaiah Livers undoubtedly playing a factor.
