MBB vs. LSU postgame snowflakes
1. I know Michigan started off slow (well, really LSU came out playing with unbridled energy) but I really enjoyed seeing Brandon Johns show some early assertiveness. Also, that dude has a Maurice Hurst-level first step.
2. Eli Brooks probably made himself some money tonight. Obviously, he’s not going to garner a lot of NBA interest, but it would be hard to see him not being on a high-level squad overseas with that type of versatility, defense and leadership acumen.
3. Chaundee Brown may have also made himself some money. That +19 stat looked very real, Even though he and Johns got called for some phantom fouls.
4. Here’s something I didn’t think I would be saying in an NCAA tournament game: I am really enjoying Terrance Williams’s minutes. Other than getting caught at the top of the key with no help, he made very good basketball decisions, and his mind meld with Dickinson paid off again.
5. Tip of the cap to LSU’s Thomas and Smart for a highly entertaining game. There is a different script to this game and team where a better-coached squad plays more fundamental defense and looks like a Final Four squad.
Plenty more to say, but what did you all think?
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:36 PM ^
Very gritty and pretty performance. Eli and Chaundee hit some great threes against a team that gives that up they played pretty good defense on a potent offense with Cam Thomas, an absolute stud. Just a huge all around team effort. I loved how they fought back. The margin of error is smaller but this is still a dangerous, well-coached team. And they can still get better.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:37 PM ^
People forget - even if the BIG was allegedly overrated - M dominated for the first 3/4 of the season. That LSU team was legit and M took their best punch and won relatively comfortably.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:37 PM ^
This is just the type of game Michigan needed heading into the Sweet 16. LSU came out of the gates HOT with their NBA lottery pick(s) playing lights out - but Michigan never gave up. If they can win this type of game, the sky is the limit the rest of the way. Lets GO!!!!!!!
March 23rd, 2021 at 12:46 AM ^
Is he (they?) really a lottery pick?!
Cam Thomas has a stroke that looks incredibly similar to Kobe Bryant’s. Baby fade away and makes tough shots. Kid will be a stud at the next level. Really impressive the adjustments Howard made with Chaundee to limit his effectiveness.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:37 PM ^
Excellent post. Watching the game live from high up, the difference between a playground team and a well-coached team was stark. Our off the ball movement, screening, cutting, and passing was incredible. We had 22 assists vs 8 assists. Juwan Howard is turning us into Princeton with the talent of Kansas. We are going to have lots of fun for a long time.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:38 PM ^
Officiating was sketchy on both sides--I felt Franz got away with a couple in the last 6 minutes or so of the game. Dickinson seems to be developing a pattern of two stupid fouls a game, which he cannot continue. Smith tonight...yeesh.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:47 PM ^
Dickinson hasn't helped himself after getting a foul called on him. Whether justified or not, he is always mouthing off or over exaggerated body language after. Refs hate that shit and don't forget.
I know this from my heavily penalized hockey career. Wish I could tell my younger self to just shut up and go to the box.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:49 PM ^
Fouling a guy from behind 30 feet from the basket is not what you want to see from your center. However I much prefer the 11 rebounds, and 3 assists to 3 turnovers to Saturday’s 2 rebound, 0 assist 6 turnover performance.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:05 PM ^
as dumb as that foul looked, it may not have been that dumb as it stopped a fast break.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:13 PM ^
I may be wrong, but wasn’t that his third foul? It might be a fine foul halfway through the second half if you have zero or even 1 foul, not so smart a third foul with more than ten minutes left.
March 23rd, 2021 at 12:17 AM ^
Man, that was one of the worst fouls Hunter has taken in his short career at Michigan. Awful, and he cannot do that crap anymore. Full stop.
Yes, stupid foul. He was just frustrated because he was clearly fouled right before that and no call. Had guys hanging on him the entire night and just lost his focus a few times.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:38 PM ^
Loved how we never gave up on making adjustments. We had enough in our bag of tricks.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:52 PM ^
Smith was off tonight - bad passes and shots. Glad he got that game out of his system!
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:57 PM ^
Smith had many coachable moments tonight.
This was the first game that showed that Smith was over his head athletically. He couldn't keep up with defense (numerous blocking fouls) and turnovers...Just too slow for these fast twitch NBA guys.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:39 PM ^
Eli and Chaundee deserve the praise they are already getting. I just wanted to give props to Wagner for coming on strong at the end. He was having a pretty rough game but he hit that running hook shot and clutch three to seal it.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:07 PM ^
also a late game offensive board and putback as the shot clock expired after HD had his shot blocked near the basket.
March 23rd, 2021 at 12:18 AM ^
Imagine if he played like that in the first half as well. Tonight would've been a 15+ point no doubt type victory.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:42 PM ^
Agree Joby and first posts here. Gritty win. Thomas and Smart were amazing shooters, and this team hung together with special contributions from C. Brown and Eli to overcome. Agree they can get better too. Franz played great the last 6-7 minutes of the game. Many on the team contributed big effort and answered the challenge. Excited about tonight and the next game.
Go Blue !
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:42 PM ^
Great synopsis.
I'm hoping Smith can get his head straight.
I think Howard will still start him, but he may be on a shorter leash against FSU.
I started noticing Johns quietly making the most of his minutes after the long COVID break. He definitely has the ability to break out.
This game is what the team needed. They got their game together when LSU came out hot and didn't play not to lose at the end.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:02 PM ^
This is the definition of feelingsball, but Johns looks to me like he's gaining confidence out there. I'd trade feet with Livers if I could, but Johns getting the chance to find himself could be a silver lining to Livers' absence.
Johns had a very strong game. Not at Livers' level, but he can contribute and did. He's had a little tendency to be loose with the ball, but maybe only one such time in this game. He's getting better with a little confidence.
My biggest frustration in this game was our defensive strategy in the second half. For most of the game it was one of two guys going one-on-one with our whole team. The freshman tired, but then it was Smart literally every possession just taking his man to the hoop. I was screaming double that guy! Forget everyone else because they are literally all just spectators. After a timeout Juwan seemed to deliver that message and Smart never really got to the hoop again. Game over.
Also somebody please wake Franz up a half hour earlier next Sunday.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:18 PM ^
Of course Howard will start him. He had a rough game. It wasn't the end of the world. He'll have another tough time with FSU's length, but we still need him out there.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:22 PM ^
Although I appreciate most of your takes, you can be such a condescending prick.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:35 PM ^
I think you're reading too much into his comment.
March 23rd, 2021 at 12:50 AM ^
Who are you replying to?! Regardless, your odd response is more on you than anyone else.
March 23rd, 2021 at 12:20 AM ^
Smith is still our most capable ball handler. But he's gotten a little bit of the yips or something of late. It's odd because he always looks so calm and composed in his play.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:43 PM ^
Williams has 7 assists on the season. He had 3 tonight and has 5 for the tournament.
How can we get Wagner to play a full game the way he seems to in the last 5 to 10 minutes.
No matter what Chaundee decides to do next year, I will be a fan.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:46 PM ^
Wagner continues to go in and out of a coma. He's passed on a ton of wide open shots the last two games and goes through spurts where I'm trying to figure out where his head is at. Then tonight when Dickinson had to rest with 4 fouls, he played like an absolute stud. And we desperately needed him to at that time. No more comas and we're living a little less stressfully.
The officiating will never change, unfortunately. You have to play through it even if when it's as cartoonishly evil as it was tonight. That makes the frosting on the victory cake even sweeter.
Kudos to the bench tonight too.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:47 PM ^
Michigan drew 4 1 and 1 fouls in the 2nd half. They went 8-8. This was absolutely massive in this win.
I legit don’t understand LSU’s defense. They don’t contest shots and it appears to be by design.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:02 PM ^
LSU doubles and traps all over the place to force turnovers. If they get beat on-ball, they're just as likely to let backdoor help to swing down and strip/block. Not my cup of tea, but they have some dogs that show up on many occasions.
March 23rd, 2021 at 12:52 AM ^
They don't roll deep and getting into foul trouble is a huge issue. Like mentioned, with the athletes they have they can force some bad play from certain teams but when pressure is broke or a lane opened they really don't want to foul.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:47 PM ^
This was quite the test of mental fortitude for the team and they passed with flying colors. Mike Smith struggled with the size of LSU's guards, but I'm not too worried about him as he has been excellent for us all season. Lots to be excited about!
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:16 PM ^
It was a test of mental fortitude for fans as well,
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:49 PM ^
Gutsy gutsy game. This is the recipe for how you get to the final four without Livers. Lots of guys step up a little (Johns, Williams, Chaundee), good defense, good shooting. This still looks like a top 10 team to me. Why not us?
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:49 PM ^
I'll offer a couple :
1) Juwan's sideline demeanor about a third of the way into the opening half lit the fire of enthusiasm for a Michigan team that really looked lost, listless, and in need of a spark in the early going.
Enter Juwan!
I had flashbacks to the early 90s, a time back when Juwan had that same never-say-die attitude that was sometimes needed as a counterbalance.
Tonight, Juwan was that counterbalance, that spark, that leader. The team fed off him and kept doing so in a game of runs, they never looked for a moment like they were bothered by the offensive surges of LSU. From about the 14 minute mark of the first half on, that was a focused and confident Michigan team.
2) Biggest team stat: Assists.
We had 22, spread out among 6 players (Brooks 7, Smith 6, Dickenson and Williams 3 each Wagner 2, Brown 1).
LSU had 8 assists from just 2 players. That. Was. All.
A 22-8 lead in assists is gonna result in a "W" almost every damn time.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:50 PM ^
1) Our bench, led by Chaundee, had 26 points. LSU's bench contributed 2. Terrance Wiilams alone doubled LSU's bench production w 4.
2) We had 22 assists. LSU had 8.
Ballgame! The cream rises to the top, by god!
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:51 PM ^
This is a fun group, has to be hard for an opponent to game plan when you never know who the offense will run through (other than Hunter). I understand Smith was totally physically outmatched but the mental mistakes were shocking. It looks like FSU also has big guards. I wonder if we will see Eli at the point more often next game.
I heard Howard yelling "lets go" on offense many times trying to keep the pace up. I really hope that continues. When they allow Smith to dribble too much and Hunter to post up a bit too much the rest of the offense can't get involved. The ball movement tonight helps everyone.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:51 PM ^
Best Monday in a long time. Fun to have my kids screaming in the house along with me
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:52 PM ^
That was a solid March Madness win. If we continue to get great efforts from Johns, Brooks, and Brown, we can still make it to the Final Four.
Every win from here on out is gravy, especially without Livers. There are no easy games after the Sweet Sixteen.
Winning the Big Ten Championship and going to the Sweet Sixteen already makes this a great year. A Final Four without our best player would be legendary though.
At the beginning of the year, if you would have told me a regular season conference 'ship and the Sweet Sixteen, I woulda said gimme all that. After the regular season dominance, it became Final Four or bust. Now, with Livers out, Elite Eight is my selfish want right now. It's been a very good year, but I'd love for the boys to show everybody (especially everyone making Michigan a trendy upset-alert candidate -- especially on social media, clearly a lot of people never actually watched Michigan beyond maybe the Illinois game) that we are a dialed in team that picks each other up.
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:57 PM ^
Eli had his best game as a Wolverine. 21 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds, only 1 turnover. He kept them in the game at the beginning, helped them build the lead, and then helped them hold on to it. Great poise and leadership when they needed it the most. Go Blue!
March 22nd, 2021 at 10:57 PM ^
This weekend with the first extended competition without Livers had us ripe for an upset. This team is still learning to play without Livers, with new rotations and line ups. They can realistically improve more than any other team in the tournament from weekend to weekend. FSU might be in for a surprise.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:03 PM ^
Don’t feel too bad for Smart. He already got his strong ass offer money.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:03 PM ^
I love how many fouls Johns draws. Seems like he is fouled nearly every time he gets the ball.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:05 PM ^
Really, really gutsy win. LSU came out flying, shooting out of their minds. Michigan maintained their composure, chipped away and got back in it.
LSU couldn't keep up their pace, and it showed in the 2nd half. Michigan stayed sound and in control. Well done.
- Thought Juwan and coaches did a good job of adjusting defensively. Michigan played smarter basketball than LSU. They controlled the pace and style in the second half.
- Brooks absolutely kept us in the game early on. Clutch, clutch shooting. Chaundee was the difference maker in the 2nd - so good to see him get back on track!
- Smith had one terrible pass and one bad travel, but overall I thought he and the team did a good job breaking a pretty ferocious press. I especially when they broke it down completely a couple of times for dunks. He had a rough game - very challenging matchup for him.
- Toughness. Michigan attacked the board really hard, especially at the end. There was some serious fighting going on under the boards.
- Officiating. Jesus, the refs will not let anyone play any defense whatsoever. It take so much away from the game when half the players are in foul trouble, and every. single. drive. gets a whistle. Can't stand it.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:06 PM ^
Great sign Michigan defeated LSU at their own game. 86-78. LSU averages 80pt a game.
UM can play you slow, they can play a track-meet, and defeat you any style you want.
The FSU game is gonna be brutal. FSU is better than LSU. How much better? We will find out Sunday evening when its practically guaranteed UM plays FSU prime-time on CBS.
Oh, and letting 25% of the stadium full of fans is a nice advantage for UM. These are home games for UM, and it will be another home game vs FSU.
March 22nd, 2021 at 11:09 PM ^
I think the big games are usually early.