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Published Dec 13, 2020
Instant Recap: Michigan Tips Off Big Ten Play With 62-58 Win Over PSU
Clayton Sayfie  •  Maize&BlueReview
Staff Writer
Twitter
@CSayf23

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan Wolverines basketball took on the Penn State Nittany Lions Sunday afternoon at Crisler Center, and held serve, winning 62-58 to begin the Big Ten season.

Here is a recap of how the entire game unfolded:

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First Half

Freshman center Hunter Dickinson made his first career start with fifth-year senior Austin Davis out indefinitely due to a leg injury. Dickinson made his mark early, assisting on the first points of the game, dishing inside to senior forward Isaiah Livers for an easy bunny. He followed that up with a hook shot two-pointer of his own to give the Wolverines an early 4-0 lead.

Penn State senior forward John Harrar got the Nittany Lions on the board with a three-point play, drawing a Dickinson foul and finishing at the rim to make it 4-3 Michigan.

Five-straight points, including a corner three-pointer by fifth-year senior point guard Mike Smith gave the Wolverines a 9-3 lead, which was the score at the under-16 media timeout. Michigan hit four of its first seven shots, while holding Penn State to just 1-of-6 early and forcing three turnovers.

Two free throws from Michigan senior guard Eli Brooks, followed by a runner from the right side a few possessions later gave the Wolverines a 13-6 lead, its largest of the afternoon to that point, with just over 10 minutes to play.

Penn State made just 3 of its first 15 shot attempts and turned it over four times through the game's first 10 minutes.

Two-straight buckets by Dickinson extended the Maize and Blue's edge to 19-12 with just over eight minutes to play until the break. Penn State's Izaiah Brockington hit two free throws, but the next time down, it was Dickinson again finishing at the rim with an and-one. He had nine points on 4-of-6 from the field and gave Michigan a 22-14 lead.

Michigan owned a 24-14 lead with 6:41 left in the half, but Penn State battled back with five straight points, highlighted by a tough three from junior guard Myreon Jones.

Michigan head coach Juwan Howard burned a timeout with five minutes to go and a 24-19 lead. Right out of the huddle, Howard dialed up Brooks, who nailed a corner three to make it 27-19. The next time down, Smith hit junior forward Brandon Johns for an open triple from the same corner. Johns got it to go and gave the Wolverines a 30-19 edge — their largest of the afternoon to that point — with 3:45 left in the half.

A 6-0 Penn State run made it 36-27 Michigan with under a minute to play. That was the score at the half.

At the break, Michigan was shooting 52 percent from the field and 56 percent from long range, while Penn State connected on only 30 percent of its shots. Michigan had seven turnovers, with the Nittany Lions capitalizing and scoring eight points off of giveaways.

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Second Half

Penn State continued its hot offense into the second half, going on a 8-0 run early on and pulling within one point, 38-37, forcing Howard to call timeout. The run was highlighted by a three from sophomore forward Seth Lundy, the first points of the night for the Nittany Lions' leading scorer.

A jumper in the lane by Harrar at the 16:36 mark gave Penn State its first lead of the game. The battle in the post continued on the other end, with Dickinson notching and and-one to take back the lead and give Michigan a 41-39 advantage with 15:41 to go.

The two teams went back and forth for the next four minutes, and it was Michigan with a 47-46 lead with 11:29 to play at the under-12. To that point in the half, Penn State shot 7-of-13 from the field and Michigan connected on only 3-of-9 attempts.

Penn State's Brockington drove it on Michigan sophomore wing Franz Wagner and drew an and-one, with the made free throw giving the Nittany Lions a 49-48 edge with just over 10 minutes to play. On the other end, Livers came down, drew a foul and knocked down two free throws to regain the lead, 50-49.

At the under-8 media timeout, Michigan led 52-50. The Wolverines began to clamp down defensively once again, with Penn State making only one of its last seven attempts at that point. Michigan's offense, however, was stagnant to that point in the second half, only making four of 13 shots.

Wagner hit a runner along the baseline to make it 54-50 Michigan. Two free throws with just over five minutes to play gave Michigan a 56-50 lead. A pair of free throws from Jones cut the Michigan edge to 56-52 at the under-4 timeout. Michigan was on a drought from the field at this point, not making a shot from the floor in the last 2:33.

A dagger three from Jones out of the media timeout put Penn State within one, 56-55, with just over three minutes left. After a Dickinson miss on the other end, an and-one from Sam Sessoms put Penn State ahead, 58-56, at the 2:54 mark.

A Dickinson slam off of a feed from Smith with just over two to play tied it up at 58-58, before he laid it in on the next possession to give Michigan a 60-58 advantage.

With under a minute left, freshman forward Terrance Williams brought it over half court and was intentionally fouled, but he missed both free throws. Penn State had a possession with the shot clock off, down 60-58. Sessoms tried to take Brooks off the dribble, but he missed the layup, with the rebound going to Livers, who was fouled. Livers knocked down both free throws, sealing the game and giving Michigan a 62-58 win.

Dickinson led all scorers with 20 points, with Brooks (12) and Livers (10) also posting double-digit scoring numbers.

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