Jordan Poole Shares His Account Of Last Night's Michigan Basketball Finish
Michigan’s 68-67 win over Maryland on Monday night couldn’t have been much more exciting.
Sophomore guard Kevin Hurter’s three from the top of the key gave the Terrapins a one-point lead with 3.2 seconds left, but the drama wasn’t over.
Freshman forward Isaiah Livers then delivered a perfect pass on the Wolverines’ ensuing inbound possession, and senior guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman was fouled and headed to the free throw line with just 0.9 seconds left.
He calmly sank both free throws and gave Michigan a one-point win.
Freshman guard Jordan Poole gave his take on how everything went down.
“After the [one-point loss to] Purdue where we didn’t execute at the end, Coach [John Beilein] stressed it to us in practice, especially since we knew we’d have lots of close games within the Big Ten,” he explained. “We executed that play perfectly — it took a great pass from Isaiah.
“We knew they were anxious and that their big guy [freshman center Bruno Fernando] was all over the place and wound up being out of place, so we just attacked them and got a great call from the refs.
“Every game he [Abdur-Rahkman] plays here at Crisler, he’s making a memory. He obviously knocked down the two free throws there at the end, and I wouldn’t have wanted anybody else in that situation.”
The Wolverines actually found themselves in a 14-point deficit at one point in the first half, and Poole was a big reason U-M was able to close the gap.
He knocked down three threes in the game's second frame, and provided the spark Michigan had been missing all night.
His energy off the bench has led to him being called the “Microwave" by some.
“I was just told that [former Detroit Pistons sixth man] Vinnie Johnson was the one who had that name,” Poole laughed. “I was reading about it a couple days ago and I think it fits me. I just try to bring as much energy as I can.
“We obviously didn’t have much in the first half, and then in the second half Coach put me in and gave me the opportunity to boost it up — that goes back to the confidence and swagger everyone tells me I have. I just came in and knocked down a couple shots.”
Poole’s three-pointers were apparently contagious, because his teammates joined in as well — in fact, the Wolverines were eight for 10 from behind the arc at one point in the second half.
“It’s crazy because when you hit a three, everyone gets rowdy and starts looking for you,” the freshman explained. “Then you might see another guy who’s open and he’ll have an opportunity to knock one down. When you see guys like [junior forward] Moe [Wagner] and [redshirt sophomore guard] Charles [Matthews] making those threes, it’s an amazing feeling as a teammate.”
The Maize and Blue have also shown a knack for coming back from large deficits this season.
They dug themselves out of a 14-point hole last night, and came back from a 15-point setback to beat UCLA on Dec. 9.
“It’s on us to not get down in the first place,” Poole said. “Being able to flip that switch and relock in, focus and execute is a huge key to our team. The fact that we never get rattled is a credit to our seniors — they’ve been in situations like that before.
“It also goes to the confidence the guys on this team have — there’s not a guy out there who doesn’t play with confidence. They know they’re going to step up when their time is called.”
"Stepping up when their time is called" applies to Poole perhaps more than anybody, and more often than not, he’s delivered.
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