As the regular season for Michigan ended with a loss at Michigan State, the Wolverines fell in the national power rankings. Here's where U-M stands before the start of the Big Ten Tournament:
• After the loss to Michigan State, the Wolverines fell to No. 11 in CBS’s Sports power rankings.
“The Wolverines are 17-5 in Quadrant 1/Quadrant 2 opportunities after Saturday's loss at Michigan State,” Garry Parrish writes. “Michigan is 6-4 in its past 10 games heading into the Big Ten Tournament.
U-M Opponents in Rankings: UNC at No. 2, Michigan State at No. 8, Purdue at No. 13, Maryland at No. 18, Wisconsin at No. 19 and Villanova at No. 25
• ESPN also dropped Michigan one spot after the loss to No. 9
“The Wolverines still have one of the elite defenses in the country, but they've begun to look somewhat vulnerable late in the season,” Jeff Borzello writes. “After allowing just four opponents to reach one point per possession in the first four months of the season, opponents have hit that number in three of the past four games. Part of the reason is Michigan State was the opponent in two of those games, but Michigan needs to tighten up at that end of the floor -- and they also need Charles Matthews back from injury.”
U-M Opponents in Rankings: UNC at No. 3, Michigan State at No. 7, Purdue at No. 12 and Wisconsin at No. 15,
• Sports Illustrated slotted Michigan at No. 9 in its latest power rankings.
“When the Wolverines are clicking on offense, they look like they could beat absolutely anyone—see their destructions of Villanova, North Carolina and Purdue at the beginning of the season,” Molly Geary writes. “The defense that got them to the national title game last April hasn’t gone anywhere, and freshman Ignas Brazdeikis’s arrival and the growth of Jon Teske, Jordan Poole and Zavier Simpson on offense have this team arguably better than that one. Michigan keeps opponents off the three-point line (it has the nation’s No. 2 defensive three-point rate) and forces teams to beat them inside via tough shots. It also takes exceptional care of the basketball, ranking third in offensive turnover rate.
“Michigan can run into real trouble when its offense isn’t clicking, which happens more often than it probably should. It has a tendency to have scoring droughts, with several players who struggle with offensive consistency and a lack of depth on the bench outside Isaiah Livers—who has been thrust into a starting role while Charles Matthews is out. If Matthews’s injury keeps him out of the postseason, that’s a hit to the Wolverines’ ceiling.”
U-M Opponents in Rankings: UNC at No. 3, MSU at No. 6, Purdue at No. 11, Wisconsin at No. 14, Maryland at No. 23 and Villanova at No. 25
• Michigan fell two spots in the NCAA.com’s power rankings to No. 10.
“The Wolverines couldn’t beat Michigan State, but are still primed to make a deep March run,” Andy Katz writes.
U-M Opponents in Rankings: UNC at No. 3, MSU at No. 4, Purdue at No. 11, Maryland at No. 23, Indiana at No. 24, Wisconsin at No. 25 and Villanova at No. 29
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