Michigan Wolverines basketball picked up a signature win Tuesday night at Crisler Center, 79-69 over Creighton. The Wolverines struggled on the defensive end of the floor and on the glass in the first half before picking it up in the second half, putting together an impressive finish.
Some thoughts and takeaways from U-M's big win over the Bluejays:
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1) Zavier Simpson bounced back after a tough first game to the season
Simpson was uncharacteristically loose with the ball in last week's season opener against Appalachian State. He had 6 turnovers in that game. Tonight, he had 4, but wasn't nearly as sloppy. In fact, he was phenomenal most of the night with the ball in his hands. We didn't expect his struggles to carry over much after App. State, and they didn't.
Simpson had 17 points, 9 assists and 3 rebounds tonight on 7-of-11 shooting and 2-of-3 beyond the arc. Many of his assists came in ball screen situations, which are where he has been most comfortable offensively in his career at U-M. He found Teske on the roll, was able to kick it out to the perimeter and found his own shot at the basket.
"He's one of the best passers in the nation and he's going to find you when you're open," senior center Jon Teske said of Simpson. "Getting him downhill, attacking — he can kick out for threes, he can throw it up to me for lobs. He's very creative off the ball screen."
