'Michigan Had Their Way With Us': Wolverines Are A Tough Out In The Big Ten
The Michigan Wolverines are an undefeated 9-0 on the season and have started off 4-0 in Big Ten play behind wins over Penn State, Nebraska, Maryland and Northwestern, putting them at the top of the league standings early on and making them one of two remaining unbeaten Power Conference teams.
Following Michigan's New Year's Eve win over Maryland, Terps' head coach Mark Turgeon couldn't do much more than just shake his head, after the Wolverines exploded to 84 points on offense and tightened up the defense in the second half to win by 11 in College Park.
"I thought Michigan was terrific all night," Turgeon said. "They were shot out of a cannon, they made shots. They were great; we couldn’t guard ‘em.
"That was a heck of a team. I think the last two teams we played [Wisconsin and Michigan] could be Final Four teams. They’re just terrific, terrific basketball teams."
Sunday night, Michigan dominated Northwestern — the darlings of the Big Ten early on in conference play — winning 85-66, though the final score was actually closer than how the game really went.
"Michigan just had their way with us tonight," NW head coach Chris Collins said. "I thought we got off to a pretty good start — got some stops early, executed well, got some buckets — and then Michigan just kind of settled into the game there.
"We haven’t really seen that kind of size and physicality and length in any of our games we’ve played yet, and I think that really knocked us back."
The Wildcats were holding opponents to just 29.5 percent from long range coming in, but allowed the Wolverines to shoot 12-of-27 (44 percent) from beyond the arc. Michigan shot 50 percent overall and scored 1.269 points per possession.
Collins tried man defense. He tried zone. Neither were effective.
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"We were really having a hard time guarding them in man-to-man," Collins said. "I thought they got into a really great rhythm, their offense was humming, they were playing with great pace, they were moving it side to side. We took a look at the zone, just to see if it could slow them down a bit. I thought it did for a few minutes. It got us back in the game a little bit, it got us back within five...
"We lost some guys at times. Sometimes when you’re in zone, you’re going to give us some looks, and they shot it great. Nine threes in the first half. Some of them were wide open, and then I thought three or four of them were contested, and they made them."
The Wildcats attempted to send furious double-teams at Michigan freshman center Hunter Dickinson in the first half, and played the aforementioned 3-2 zone to limit post touches, but again, it was a helpless cause. Dickinson is an extremely effective passer, rare for a freshman 7-footer, and Michigan's offense swung the ball around the perimeter to find the open shooter.
"That’s what makes them very difficult, because they have a guy in Dickinson who commands a lot of attention down low — he’s big, he’s strong, it’s hard to play him with single coverage," Collins said. "He’s doing a good job of recognizing where help is and where to get the ball, and with that kind of shooting, it just makes them really difficult to defend. And for them, it just really came together tonight."
Michigan's defense was outstanding, as well, holding the Wildcats to 41 percent shooting and 28 percent from long range, an area in which they've thrived this season. Sophomore guard Boo Buie is the straw that stirs the drink for the Northwestern offense, but he was held scoreless by Michigan senior guard Eli Brooks, the team's top perimeter defender.
"I thought their length and physicality," said Collins, after being asked what made U-M's defense so good. "I mean, [sophomore wing Franz] Wagner had five shot blocks, and not only just the shot blocks, but it’s the ability to kind of cover ground, the ability to challenge shots late, make them a little bit harder.
"I thought they just did really well, played really hard. When we had our opportunities, we weren’t able to take advantage of them, whether that was around the basket or with some open looks we did have. I just thought in general, the physicality they brought to the game, and then the length that they provide, it just bothered us."
It was a great night on both ends of the floor, and turned out to be the Maize and Blue's best game so far this season, against a Wildcats bunch that ranks a solid No. 56 in Kenpom.
Big Ten Network color analyst Robbie Hummel said that it was a game in which Collins and his staff may just need to throw out the game tape, because of how thoroughly their Wildcats were beaten and how well the Wolverines performed. Collins shared similar sentiments postgame, while tipping his proverbial cap to U-M.
"They came out and just beat us," Collins said bluntly. "Sometimes we can talk about the things that we didn’t do, and we’ve got to get better in a lot of areas, but I think this was an example of Michigan just being the better team.
"We just played Iowa and Michigan on the road — in my opinion, two of the best 10 teams in the country right now. There’s going to be a lot of people come in here and get beat."
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