Uncle Drew said basketball is all about getting buckets; tonight, Michigan shot 20-57 from the field en route to a 72-51 road loss to North Carolina.

The game started positively for the Wolverines as they led for 11:27 in the first half. North Carolina took a 29-27 lead going into halftime as Caleb Love knocked down a 3-pointer with less than ten seconds to go. That is when the bottom fell out for Michigan.

North Carolina went on to outscore Michigan in the second half, 43-24.

“We are giving them easy points,” Michigan senior Eli Brooks said following the game. “Allowing them to get layups. It is hard to get stops on defense when you are giving up the quality looks they are getting.”

Michigan shot 20-57 from the field and 5-16 from three for the game. UNC outrebounded Michigan 38-35. Michigan turned the ball over 13 times and only forced UNC into six. Michigan game up 34 points in the paint and 13 points off turnovers.

The Final Score

UNC - 72Michigan - 51

The Bright Spot

Moussa Diabate earned the first start of his career tonight. The 6-foot-11 freshman responded with a team-high 13 points (5-9 FG/1-1 3P) and the team’s lone block of the night.

“Moussa earned the start,” Michigan head coach Juwan Howard said after the game. “He has been playing well for us.”

Diabate, a 5-star recruit, was the No. 25 player in the 2021 Rivals150. He has been playing 17.8 minutes per game in this game, scoring 7.7 points and grabbing 5.5 rebounds. Diabate played a career-high 30:47 minutes tonight.

“Moussa is a high-energy guy,” Eli Brooks said. “He brought a big spark, and he made some plays.”

What They said

“Every moment is a teachable moment. We have a great group; they accept coaching and grow. From this game, there are moments we will take back and learn.” -Juwan Howard

“Coming out of this game, we will just stay the course and continue to grow.” -Eli Brooks

“UNC took advantage when Hunter got his fourth foul; they scored inside pretty easily...It is tough to win any game when your best player only plays 17 minutes.” -Juwan Howard

Stat Leaders

Points - Diabate (13), Brooks (11), Houston (8)

Rebounds - Houston (7), Brooks (6), Dickinson (5), Jones (5)Assists - Jones (3), Brooks (3)

Steals - Brooks (2)

Blocks - Diabate (1)