Michigan Wolverines basketball (18-10, 9-8 Big Ten) fell to Wisconsin (18-10, 11-6 Big Ten) in a Thursday night showdown at Crisler Center.
Here's five takeaways from the game.
No Eli Brooks Hurt Michigan's Defense
Not having junior guard Eli Brooks hurt U-M more than, well, the collision Brooks took against Purdue that broke his nose. He is U-M's "anchor" on defense, according to Juwan Howard. Howard's not wrong — Brooks' consistency both on the ball and in help defense has been great this season, and was greatly missed in this game.
Even without Brooks, though, U-M should have been able to slow down the Badgers. U-M has won without senior guard Zavier Simpson (at Nebraska) and got two wins against Rutgers without Isaiah Livers. Brooks' absence was not the reason for the loss.
Wisconsin shot a season-high 53.7 percent from the field, and cashed in on 11 three-point attempts, the most allowed by a U-M opponent all year. Brooks would have helped, but the Wolverines were not locked in on guarding the Badgers' attack. It wasn't just the three-point shooting, either. U-M allowed too many drivers to get open layups, especially in the first half. Giving up 81 points to a team that plays at a slow pace and averages just 67.6 points per game is too many, no matter who you don't have out there. The defensive struggles are particularly struggling after a seven-game stretch that U-M played in which it held five of those opponents to less than 40 percent from the field.
