Instant Recap: Michigan 68, Purdue 53

Purdue made seven of 13 triples in the first half and benefited from six Michigan turnovers, grabbing a 33-32 halftime lead against the No. 2 Wolverines. U-M only notched five assists in the first half and struggled to find a rhythm - and to corrall long rebounds on the occasions that the Boilermakers missed - before tightening the defense in the second half of a 68-53 win.

The slow start led to seven Purdue points off offensive rebounds (the Boilers had seven, Michigan nine) and several more when the Wolverines struggled to defend the dribble.

Guard D.J. Byrd scored 11 points on three of seven triples, all of the makes from 25 feet or more, one banked in from the top. Purdue had a number of good looks from behind the arc and hit a number of tough shots in opening a lead as large as seven points.

The Boilermakers still led by five with 3:26 remaining in the half before U-M mounted a run to close within one. Sophomore point guard Trey Burke scored seven points in 16 minutes and added four assists, but he was 0-for-3 behind the arc and left two points on the floor in transition. Big man Jordan Morgan provided a spark with six points in nine minutes, while freshman Glenn Robinson III notched six points and six rebounds and Tim Hardaway Jr. six points, freshman Nik Stuakas five.

The Wolverines were never in sync offensively, playing from behind most of the half. Stauskas airballed a wide open triple attempt, Burke blew a finish in transition and the Wolverines couldn't sustain runs, often giving up good looks on the other end to end them.

Second Half

Hardaway opened the scoring with a tough drive and righty finish to give the Wolverines the lead, but U-M continued to struggle defending the dribble. Ronnie Johnson blew by Burke to set up an easy finish, and once again Purdue matched U-M. Morgan missed three short ones on the offensive end that could have helped the cause.

Robison triple made it 42-40 at 14:40; Stauskas tipped in his own miss to make it 44-40 at 13:40. A Burke drive and tough left finish made it 46-40, and McGary blocked a shot and Hardaway took a charge at the other end as U-M continued to step up the defense.

McGary missed two free throws but made up for it with a steal, and U-M continued its run with a triple from Robinson to expand the lead to 49-40. Michigan continued its strong defense, guarding the dribble and closing better on the three-point shooters. The Boilers had only nine points through the first 12 minutes of the half.

Michigan appeared set to pull away, leading by 11 before Purdue mounted a 6-0 run. Stauskas ended it with a triple on an assist from Burke with 5:30 remaining. McGary scored inside from Burke to push it back to 10 with 4:44 left. At that point Byrd had only taken one shot in the second half, his touches limited by U-M's denying defense - he then airballed a triple that led to a McGary dunk in transition.

The Wolverines ran clock and finished for a solid Big Ten win, improving to 18-1, 5-1 in the Big Ten.

Burke notched 15 points and 8 assists, Hardaway 13 and four rebounds, Robinson 12 and nine boards and Stauskas 12 and three assists.