Michigan Wolverines basketball (11-4, 2-2 Big Ten) got a double-overtime win over Purdue Thursday night at Crisler Center, 84-78. The win pushed the Wolverines to .500 in conference play.
Here's some takeaways from the game.
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Zavier Simpson Was Clutch
Senior point guard Zavier Simpson was huge scoring the ball down the stretch. He began the game by not attempting a field goal in the first 18 minutes, and was looking to be more of a facilitator. The Wolverines struggled mightily on offense early on, with the eight first half turnovers being the most notable statistic. It was a sloppy start.
Simpson realized he had to take matters into his own hands. After the game, he referenced former Wolverines Derrick Walton Jr. and Zak Irvin, saying that he watched how they willed U-M to victories their senior year (when Simpson was a freshman), and knew he had to do the same Thursday night.
14 of Simpson's 22 points came after there was one minute left in regulation, including this clutch layup to tie the game up, sending it into overtime after a Purdue missed shot at the buzzer:
Simpson scored 10 points in the two overtime periods combined. He was fantastic when his team needed him most. There was no stopping Simpson down the stretch. He wouldn't allow it to happen. The senior point guard finished with 22 points (9-13 FG, 1-5 3PT, 3-5 FT), nine assists and three rebounds in 49 minutes. He didn't miss a two-pointer. His one three-point make was worth its weight in gold, too:
Small Lineup Worked
With about nine minutes left in the second half, head coach Juwan Howard went with a smaller lineup, sliding freshman guard Franz Wagner down to the four position, and inserting sophomore guard David DeJulius into the backcourt with Simpson and junior guard Eli Brooks.
Without junior forward Isaiah Livers (strained groin), U-M has been using sophomore forward Brandon Johns at the four, but Purdue redshirt junior big-man Matt Haarms went down with a leg injury late in the first half, making Purdue much smaller without the 7-foot-3 veteran on the floor. It gave Howard the opportunity to tinker with a small ball lineup.
Nothing was coming easy on the offensive end for U-M for much of the night. The spacing was much better with four guards in the lineup, and along with Simpson's mindset not to be denied, was one of the reasons why he was able to get downhill to the rim. He was showing the ability to drive past his guy all night long, but didn't have the room to get all the way to the bucket, with a clogged lane. More shooters on the floor meant less defenders in the lane, and that was what U-M needed to get out of an offensive funk.
Trevion Williams Was Unstoppable
The Purdue sophomore forward was stellar all night. U-M once again left an opposing post player in one-on-one situations, being guarded by senior center Jon Teske. It was a tough task, for sure, but it's not like Williams has been lighting up the scorebook every night. He was averaging 9.5 points per game coming into the game. Thursday night, he went for two career-highs — 36 points (16-28 FG, 1-1 3PT, 3-6 FT) and 20 rebounds.
Howard cited his "stubbornness" for once again leaving his guys one-on-one in post defense. Iowa's Luka Garza went for 44 against U-M in December, Illinois' Kofi Cockburn had 19 and 10 on U-M in Champaign and MSU's Xavier Tillman had 20 and 11 last Sunday in East Lansing.
Howard added that the Wolverines didn't want to give room on the perimeter to Purdue's shooters. While sophomore guard Sasha Stefanovic and sophomore guard Eric Hunter Jr. both shoot over 41 percent from three, Purdue as a team came in shooting just 33.2 percent from long range. U-M, at the very least, should've mixed up some coverages to keep Williams guessing. Give Purdue head coach Matt Painter and his players credit, however, for getting Williams isolated alone on a side of the floor time after time. Williams is a gamer, and had a similar mindset to U-M's Simpson.
When he had a chance to end it, though, Williams' final shot of regulation fell just short. It was baffling that Purdue didn't get him the ball sooner, with the way he was playing down low.
Gritty Not Pretty
Much of the game was frustrating to watch for U-M fans. The Wolverines let Purdue lead the game for far too long in the second half. But the teams that win the conference, or at least compete for conference championships, will have games like this where they're able to figure out just enough to win down the stretch.
We're not saying this win will propel the Wolverines to a conference title, but we're not saying it won't either. There's surely things to clean up, and getting Livers back will be key. Holding serve at home is huge. Road games at Minnesota and at Iowa are looming, and dropping this one would've been nothing short of an early disaster to begin 2020.
The Wolverines followed the lead of their seniors, Simpson and Teske. Teske had eight early points, but disappeared for a while. He came back to life late in the second half and into the overtimes, hitting some big jumpers and finishing on his layups. Teske ended up with 18 points and nine rebounds.
When the going got tough, U-M did just enough.
Eli Brooks Looked Hesitant
Brooks has been open about his struggles with confidence throughout his career. This past offseason was one that he took huge strides in to regain that confidence back. He's been shooting even after missing some shots, something he wouldn't do last year and in his freshman campaign.
Give Brooks credit on the defensive end Thursday night. He was fantastic on the perimeter guarding the Boilermakers' shooters. He was also in the right spot numerous times on help defense, something he's excelled in his entire career at U-M.
Brooks has six combined points against MSU and Purdue (four points against the Boilermakers). The worry with Brooks is that he doesn't pull the trigger when he's open. We're not saying his confidence has regressed, because he's not getting open like he was earlier in the season. In Big Ten play, every team has a high-level scouting report on you, and good shots are harder to come by. He has to figure out how to get his shots, and not pass them up when he gets them. His struggles the past two games are something to watch going forward.
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