Michigan played a very good first four minutes in a 74-60 loss to UConn … and other than a late run, that's where the positives end. The Wolverines couldn't seem to buy a bucket after that with senior guard Caris LeVert sitting for the last eight minutes of the first half, missing close and from long range, and couldn't recover from a 14-point halftime deficit.

The Wolverines actually raced to leads of 9-3 and 12-5 before UConn came racing back. Triples from sophomore Aubrey Dawkins, LeVert and junior Derrick Walton Jr. helped spark the run, but a 7-0 Huskies run tied it.

U-M stayed a step ahead until a triple from Sam Cassell made it 17-15 and opened the floodgates. The Wolverines, meanwhile, missed all of their open looks. Redshirt sophomore Duncan Robinson was 0-for-3 from long range despite getting great looks; U-M was 6-for-25 on field goals and made only three of 14 triples in the first half.

"There was a pivotal point there where we fell in love with the three-point ball a little too much," head coach John Beilein said at the break. "They got excited, settled for shots that frankly weren't very good. We just said be patient … hunt for good shots, not just shots."

UConn, meanwhile, made 14 of 25 shots and four of 10 triples in racing to a 36-22 lead, outrebounding the Wolverines 22-12. They also outscored U-M 20-6 in the paint.

UConn opened the second half scoring inside to go up by 16 right off the bat. Sterling Gibbs added a triple after two free throws from sophomore Ricky Doyle to make it a 17-point game, and the Huskies threatened to run away with it.

U-M missed three at the rim before LeVert ended an eight-minute scoring drought with a drive and finish. He followed with a triple that cut it to 41-29, forcing a UConn timeout.

The Huskies, though, responded with four straight points to take control yet again. The Wolverines, meanwhile, continued to depend heavily on LeVert. Robinson missed two more triples while the Huskies continued to score near the hoop. They out-toughed Michigan on the glass and started to pull away - it was 52-33 when Cassell hit another triple following a sixth straight Robinson miss.

Dawkins stopped the bleeding with a triple from the top out of a timeout, and the Wolverines wouldn't go quietly. LeVert continued to carry Michigan, and his runner with just over two minutes remaining cut the lead to eight, 63-55, after Robinson finally connected on a three-pointer.

But U-M couldn't overcome the poor shooting. Daniel Hamilton's desperation three from the top at the one-minute mark pushed the lead back to 11 and all but iced it - when the buzzer sounded, Robinson and Irvin were 1-for-14 from long range between them. Walton was 3-for-3 but played passively for most of the game, while LeVert led the scoring with 21 points, adding five rebounds.

Michigan will play Charlotte Thursday night at 9:30.