Best And Worst From Michigan's Opening Weekend Of The NCAA Tournament
No. 1 seed Michigan Wolverines basketball is headed back to the Sweet 16, after beating No. 16 seed Texas Southern in the first round Saturday and No. 8 seed LSU in the round of 32 Monday night.
Below, we take a look at the best and worst from Michigan's weekend, handing out superlatives — good and bad — from the first two rounds.
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Most Valuable Player
The crown here goes to senior guard Eli Brooks. Playing in his 10th and 11th NCAA Tournament in three career postseasons, it was his weekend. He wouldn't be denied from the opening tip on Saturday and wasn't denied through Monday night, leading his program to its fourth straight Sweet 16 appearance.
He posted 11 points, six rebounds and five assists in the first round, before exploding for 21 points, seven assists and four rebounds. He hit three of his six shot attempts from beyond the arc against Texas Southern, went 5-of-9 against LSU and has now drained 54 percent of his triple tries over the last five games, heating up at the right time.
Michigan got contributions from just about everyone, and needed just that to stay in Indy for another week, but Brooks was the most consistent force and hit the big shots when needed.
RELATED: 'Aggressive' Eli Brooks (21 Points) Stepped Up When U-M Needed Him Most
Worst Stat
Texas Southern out-scored Michigan, 42-40, in the second half of Saturday's game.
The Wolverines let their foot off the gas after taking a 24-point lead (55-31) with 15 minutes to play. Michigan was out of sync offensively, struggled defending dribble-drives and let Texas Southern grab eight second-half offensive rebounds.
Most Pleasant Surprise
The biggest pleasant surprise of the weekend was the way a pair of freshmen — guard Zeb Jackson and forward Terrance Williams — acquitted themselves in their first postseason. Jackson hardly played any meaningful minutes all season long entering the weekend, while Williams had found himself in and out of the rotation throughout the year.
Early on against Texas Southern, head coach Juwan Howard made it a point to expand his rotation and get Jackson and Williams some more minutes. That, along with some foul trouble, gave them an opportunity to show the improvements they've made throughout the season.
Jackson hit two first-half threes and grabbed two rebounds in eight total minutes in the first round, before not making an appearance against LSU. His future remains bright.
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