Michigan 85, Northwestern 78
After a tough end-of-game sequence in Iowa City cost the Michigan Wolverines a valuable B1G win on Thursday night, they returned home with a chance to right the ship against the Northwestern Wildcats today. A strong Michigan start turned into a back-and-forth affair through the middle half of the game before Michigan asserted itself again in the final ten minutes. With 4.5 minutes to play, a nine point lead had been cut to just three and there was reason to wonder if another late game brain freeze was coming. Instead, the script flipped today. Michigan blunted the Northwestern rally, snagged control back, got enough stops late, and broke the NU full court press to put the game away 85-78. Michigan is back in the winning column and are 4-2 on the year in B1G play.
The game started well for the Maize & Blue, leading 18-6 just 5.5 minutes in, making four of their first five from three and 7/10 from the floor overall. They hounded Northwestern defensively and had few issues on the offensive end, getting contributions from everyone to build an early lead. The seamless ball movement that defined their strong start entered a ditch not long after, as Michigan endured a stretch where they turned the ball on five consecutive possessions, as well as six of seven, a very odd development for a team that limits turnovers so well. Northwestern's defense is geared towards forcing turnovers and their tendencies ground the Wolverines to a halt offensively for a seven minute stretch, over which Michigan scored just seven points.
NU didn't get hot during that period, merely using the strong defense to stop the bleeding. They knocked a few points off the margin to get it to 25-19 Wolverines, but once the Michigan offense began to score some, Northwestern's offense kicked it into overdrive. The 'Cats went with a small-ball lineup, playing Robbie Beran as an undersized five, and it gave Michigan's defense all sorts of fits. He helped facilitate a Wildcat offense that was getting to the paint at the same time they were heating up after an ice cold start shooting the ball from outside. Northwestern scored 19 points in less than 4.5 minutes to draw even at 27 all thanks to Chase Audige drilling a pair of threes. After Michigan briefly took the lead back 29-27, Beran put up a personal 5-0 run to give Northwestern their first lead of the game.
[Marc-Gregor Campredon]
The purple-and-black just kept scoring and stretched the lead all the way to 39-33 with 1:15 left, but Michigan closed strong, with Dug McDaniel getting four points on a layup and two free throws in between a pair of stops, the last one being a Hunter Dickinson block at the horn, which made it 39-37 Northwestern at the break. The stat lines were pretty even at halftime, 48% from the floor for Michigan to 46% for Northwestern, Michigan shooting it better from three but turning it over more. Beran led Northwestern with 12 at halftime, while McDaniel and Kobe Bufkin leading Michigan with 10 and 9, respectively.
The second half got off to an ominous start for Michigan. Matthew Nicholson of Northwestern was quickly fouled and he missed both free throws, but Terrance Williams II failed to box out Chase Audige, who snatched the OREB. Julian Roper then missed a shot, but Northwestern snagged the OREB again and Williams was forced to foul Nicholson. This time he swished them both, and Juwan Howard was so displeased from those first 21 seconds from Williams that he yanked the junior off the floor ASAP. Williams would not be seen again until there were under three minutes to go, replaced by Will Tschetter at the four, who did not play in the opening stanza.
Despite that clunker of a start, Michigan started to get it going offensively. They forced Chris Collins to call timeout after Dug McDaniel, on his way to a career high in points, knocked down a corner three to put Michigan ahead 52-49. The response for Howard once Williams exited was a mix of Tschetter, who battled constant fouls, and Tarris Reed Jr., who he used in the double big Twin Towers lineup with Hunter Dickinson for the second straight game. Michigan's offense continued to shoot it pretty well but still struggled taking care of the ball, committing five more in the opening eight minutes of the second half.
[Campredon]
Boo Buie made a two point jumper to give Northwestern the lead 59-58 with 10:17 remaining in the game and from that point forward, Michigan pulled ahead as the better team. They embarked on a 10-0 run, holding Northwestern scoreless for 3.5 minutes while the offense chipped in steadily. Dickinson and Bufkin put Michigan back ahead, and the advantages of the Reed-Dickisnon lineup were put on display, recovering several OREBs in this stretch eventually culminating in a made three by Joey Baker and a Dickinson hook shot. That put Michigan up 68-59 with 6:56 remaining and now it was time for Michigan to try and close out a game again.
A 2.5 minute scoreless stretch for the Wolverines during a period of a made dunk by Matthew Nicholson and a fast break three by Boo Buie (+ a Julian Roper free throw) trimmed the lead to 68-65 with 4:29 left and the creeping feeling of worry began to permeate across many Michigan fans watching the game. Turns out that the fears would be unfounded. Roper missed his second at the line, Michigan went up the court, and a beautiful alley-oop from Bufkin to Reed broke the offensive drought for Michigan. After another stop McDaniel would be fouled by Nicholson, and he made them both out of the under-four media timeout. 72-65 with 3:51 left.
Northwestern got a quick score from Nicholson to trim it back to five, but the biggest shot of the game followed right afterwards. Jett Howard dished to an open Kobe Bufkin in the corner, and the sophomore SG drained the triple, putting Michigan ahead 75-67. The defense got another stop, and a great pass from Dickinson to Reed down low set up Tarris for an easy layup to put Michigan ahead double digits with 2:29 left. The lead would grow to eleven some 30 seconds later when Bufkin finished a tough shot through contact going downhill, and it started to feel reasonably comfortable.
Michigan hadn't yet got on the free throw rollercoaster, though. Northwestern started to get a steady drip of quick scores and when Dickinson bricked both FTs, a quick Buie bucket meant Michigan led just 79-74 with 42.3 left. Terrance Williams II, back into the game, went to the line and missed the first, leading to a collective *gulp* but TWill salvaged it by hitting the second. Northwestern came down the floor and had Audige open for a three but it was off the mark. The rebound landed right where Beran had a chance to score, but it glanced off his hands and into the arms of Hunter Dickinson, who was promptly fouled. Dickinson went 1/2 and Buie's quick score returned the margin to five, 81-76 with 22.5 left. The home Wolverines had no problem with Northwestern's full-court press late, dissecting the defense with good passing that set up a Kobe Bufkin dunk and that more or less sealed it. The final sixteen seconds were merely performative and Michigan had a seven point victory.
[Campredon]
The story of this game for Michigan was the performance of the underclassmen. Dickinson had a decent outing, 10 points and dominant on the glass (15 rebounds), but largely forgettable efforts from Williams and Joey Baker put more responsibility on the young players, and they rose to the occasion. The young guards, sophomore Kobe Bufkin and freshman Dug McDaniel, battled the turnover problems (8 combined TOs), but poured in a combined 37 points. Bufkin was phenomenal, 9/11 from the floor and 2/3 from three, while McDaniel put together an effort that surpassed his Minnesota game as the best outing of his young career. He was an up-and-down 5/12 from the floor, but 3/7 from three and perfect on four FT attempts were huge, as was his ability to shoulder the whole PG load, playing a whopping 37 minutes in this game. He and Bufkin both played nearly all of the game and they were a big part of why Michigan won. They're also part of optimism for the future, and the possibility of getting Michigan back into B1G contention in 2023-24.
Jett Howard didn't have the cleanest shooting performance overall, but the freshman scored 16 thanks to another red hot 3PT outing, hitting 4/6 from beyond the arc. Defensive lapses remain an issue, but his ball movement led to seven assists, and he was the only Wolverine to play significant minutes that finished without a turnover. Tarris Reed Jr., the third freshman to be mentioned here, logged 18 minutes (11 of them in the second half), and continued to show growth. He snatched down eight rebounds in that time (three offensive), swatted two shots, got a steal, and was perfect shooting from the floor (3/3). On the down side, he did commit three turnovers and unsurprisingly went 0/1 from the free throw line, but it was a nice showing from Reed.
Northwestern was led by Buie and Beran, who combined for 38 points. Michigan's Twin Towers lineup way out-rebounded the smaller Wildcats, but they gave Michigan's defense trouble on the other side of the coin. Northwestern's 6/23 from three contrasted with Michigan's 10/22 was the difference in the game, though Michigan's 18 TOs to NU's 8 explains why the score was as close as it was. It was not the cleanest game for Michigan, but after two tough road losses in a row, a win was a must-have and they got it. Michigan is now 4-2 in B1G play and will go back on the road for a tough one on Thursday night @Maryland. That game is scheduled for 7:00 and will be broadcast on ESPN.
[Click the JUMP for the box score]
January 15th, 2023 at 3:52 PM ^
Taking T.Will out in first minute of 2nd half was a key move.NW' edge on offensive rebounds was completely flipped to Michigan's favor.Reed and Cheddar a factor there..Michigan's turn overs kept NW in the game.
Michigan's shooting ( when they don't take dumb ones) has been top notch.45% on threes last 2 games.Need to figure out how to attack post doubles and high hard hedges.
January 15th, 2023 at 8:45 PM ^
T Will is not a starting caliber player on a good team. The loss of Houstan and Shannon getting screwed by his former team probably doomed this season from the start.
January 16th, 2023 at 12:14 PM ^
I think Reed needs to be the starter with heavy rotation. A true old school center and a true old school power forward lineup with Howard as the wing, Bufkin as the combo guard, and McDaniel as the point seems to be the best lineup the team has. TWill, Baker, and Tschetter as your as your primary reserves, with a little Jace, seems to be the best shot to get it turned around in time to make the tournament.
January 15th, 2023 at 10:23 PM ^
Exactly. If you play like Limburger replacing you with sharp Tschetter is the only option.
This was long overdue.
January 15th, 2023 at 4:04 PM ^
He and Bufkin both played nearly all of the game and they were a big part of why Michigan won. They're also part of optimism for the future, and the possibility of getting Michigan back into B1G contention in 2023-24.
_______________________________________________________________________
Back into contention in 2023-24???
We are 4-2 heading into next week. An upset @ Maryland (assuming we are the underdog) and an expected home win v MN would have us at 6-2. That would have us in contention in 2022-23!
January 15th, 2023 at 4:42 PM ^
Yeah, the glass is half full, optimistic take is that we are one brain fart at Iowa away from being tied with Purdue for first. Apparently, Dug was sick before the MSU game and played like it. That could’ve been another victory.
Dug and Tarris should continue to improve as the season progresses. I wouldn’t want to face Michigan in March.
January 15th, 2023 at 5:47 PM ^
Yeah, the notion that it’s too late for this team (as the preview put it) is too much for me.
Granted, they have a big hole to climb out of in terms of at-large bid contention, and the roster has flaws. But there still is a lot of time left.
January 15th, 2023 at 6:41 PM ^
Dylan posted the efficiency numbers for the conference after ~six games each. Michigan is second in the league behind Purdue.
January 15th, 2023 at 4:17 PM ^
Juwan does deserve a lot of the criticism he’s getting, but you can’t deny the young guys are improving. He’s doing something right.
January 15th, 2023 at 4:40 PM ^
It certainly is curious that the young guys are developing as the year goes on while the veterans (namely, Dickinson and Williams) are regressing.
January 15th, 2023 at 5:35 PM ^
I'm not sure Hunter's regressed. His stats are almost exactly the same as last year's, except for 3pt % (where he's improved) and assists (where he's worse). Truth is, he's always been a little up and down, and teams have taken him away offensively by doubling him, as in the last two games. He still posted double-doubles in both games (15 boards today!).
TWill I think is just being asked to do more than he's capable of. He's probably best as an energy guy off the bench rather than a starting 4.
Otoh, Bufkin is light years better than last year.
January 15th, 2023 at 6:02 PM ^
Dickinson seems to be not as effective now than he was at the beginning of the year.
January 16th, 2023 at 12:13 PM ^
He is getting swarmed any time he touches the ball in the low post.
I thought he looked a little lackadaisical in that first half on D. I think he didn't play as much to wake him up, b/c he was a different player in the second half. If our guys can start hitting open threes when he kicks it out on doubles/triples this team could have a resurgent second half of the season.
January 15th, 2023 at 4:32 PM ^
When Llewellyn went down, I thought that was lights out for the season. McDaniel was put in a very tough spot and while he's made some freshman mistakes, he's hanging in there pretty well, all things considered.
We haven't done ourselves any favors with all the close losses, but it shows that we're not really that far away. This team can still do some things.
January 15th, 2023 at 5:16 PM ^
Hanging in there? Wow that’s a tough judge, he’s a very large part of the reason we won today and I would submit had he played earlier and more often we may not be a bubble - team
January 16th, 2023 at 1:05 AM ^
In the playing time he got early in the season he did not play like he was ready for more playing time.
January 15th, 2023 at 7:24 PM ^
When Llewellyn went down I had the complete opposite thought. We have a shot at a pretty successful season.
January 15th, 2023 at 8:30 PM ^
You saw us go down to only one healthy scholarship point guard - a true freshman who had struggled to that point - and thought, "This is good news"?
January 16th, 2023 at 11:12 AM ^
Yes I did. The ceiling for the team with Llewellyn playing 25-30 minutes at Point was well below where we are currently at already with Dug.
January 15th, 2023 at 11:00 PM ^
Forcing Dug to start has been a blessing. He is better than Llewellyn and Frankie would have been.
January 16th, 2023 at 11:14 AM ^
He's leaps and bounds better than Llewllyn. I wouldn't go any further than that on your statement though.
January 16th, 2023 at 12:08 PM ^
All of our grad transfer PGs have struggled in December. For Smith and Jones, the switch flipped around the start of B1G play. Llewellyn didn’t get that chance because of his injury.
January 15th, 2023 at 4:35 PM ^
It seems like they've unlocked the player rotation conundrum, giving more minutes to Reed and Baker. That's good.
The end of game scenarios are a function of their overall youth, so I expect them more often than not to be on the right side at home and on the wrong side on the road.
Aside from Purdue, they should have a chance in every game. There's enough talent between Jett, Hunter, and Bufkin to finish strong in conference play. And who knows? Maybe they make a run through the B1G tourney. Stranger things have happened.
January 15th, 2023 at 5:04 PM ^
I'm liking the twin-towers idea with HD and Reed. No one is going to bully Reed and it enables HD to be more finesse...
And the young collective of Dug, Tarris, Kobe and Jett--even Cheddar--are starting to come on...
Dug and Tarris are starting to give the team an identity.
January 15th, 2023 at 5:18 PM ^
Agree. I thought they should have gone to the two bigs lineup a lot sooner to counter the NU double and triple teams on Dickinson. He could have passed to Reed then who likely would not have been covered, or covered by a much smaller guy.
January 15th, 2023 at 5:28 PM ^
Really good dub against a solid big ten team
Sparking 4-2 conference record entering 2 winnable games
January 15th, 2023 at 6:19 PM ^
I think the constant criticisms of Juwan are unwarranted. Yes, we haven't recruited a good point guard in the past few years (at least one who sticks), and our attempts to rely on the portal have been only inconsistently successful. But we do have a good core with Bufkin, Reed, Howard (if he stays another year) and McDaniel -- not to mention Dickinson -- and I'm eager to see what they can do going forward.
Again, without an experienced guard at the point, this season is likely to be ... problematic, and inconsistent play will undoubtedly lead to a lot of screaming in the MGoBlog comments section. But I have no desire to start cycling through coaches every few years -- I like the idea of stability in our coaching staff -- and surely having a clean program with good kids and decent human beings coaching them is worth a lot.
And I'm confident Juwan is going to do what it takes to get this team competitive, maybe this year, but certainly in years to come. Go Blue!
January 15th, 2023 at 6:33 PM ^
I think Dug McDaniel qualifies as a good point guard, and Juwan landed him before his third season started. He landed Frankie Collins (who is having a good year for ASU) the year before. So basically, the criticism is just that Collins transferred.
You could argue that he could have balanced out the roster more though, with better backcourt depth. That should come next season with George Washington III.
January 15th, 2023 at 8:58 PM ^
Adding one guard does nothing to help depth next year as they will still only have 3 guards. They will have to hit the portal again because Juwans roster construction has been a mess.
January 16th, 2023 at 12:05 PM ^
Llewellyn can come back. That would give us four.
January 15th, 2023 at 9:17 PM ^
the david dejulius transfer still bugs me.
January 16th, 2023 at 9:03 AM ^
" Frankie Collins (who is having a good year for ASU) "
Frankie Collins is Dug McDaniel for ASU. He is only scoring more (and not much) because he is a higher usage player and plays 5 more minutes per game.
Per 40 stats:
Collins:
15.6pts
38% FG
65% FT
6.5 REB
7.2 AST
3.5 TO
2 STL
McDaniel:
11.2pts
37% FG
74% FT
5.1 REB
5.7 AST
2.9 TO
2 STL
January 15th, 2023 at 6:21 PM ^
I know they don't really have an answer at PF so I like that Howard went between Williams, Tschetter, and Reed to see what stuck. And I'm really impressed by Dug, who is willing to take those open threes the offense gives him and is becoming the type of guy you have to at least respect out there. It will help with his development to make those shots now.
Maryland is a huge game now. Win that road contest and they're 5-2 and Purdue is definitely beatable. But they've got to hold onto the ball better then this game (which felt a bit atypical).
January 15th, 2023 at 6:22 PM ^
Why did UM wear blue at home?
January 15th, 2023 at 7:53 PM ^
Was wondering the same, but it looked good on TV and obviously worked!
January 15th, 2023 at 8:50 PM ^
I think it was actually black for MLK Day.
January 15th, 2023 at 9:03 PM ^
No it was blue.
January 15th, 2023 at 9:50 PM ^
Agree. From lower bowl at Crisler, the uniforms looked black, like their MLK warm-up shirts. A testimonial video of Juwan honoring MLK was also displayed during a break.
January 16th, 2023 at 11:52 AM ^
Based on the photos throughout the post, the jerseys look like their regular navy blue to me.
January 15th, 2023 at 6:30 PM ^
It would be hard to not root for these guys. They’re taking their criticism and grinding out close games every time, and they’re only a few buckets a different direction from being a 16-1 team (kinda wild, right?)
January 15th, 2023 at 6:38 PM ^
FG #'s this week :Jett 16-33..Dug 10-27..Kobe 13-22..HD 8-14 (half or more jumpers?)...Reed 4-7 (Mr.Hustle for week) ...Cheddar 5-6...Baker 3-6....T.Will 2-7 ( shrugs shoulders)
January 15th, 2023 at 6:57 PM ^
Assists/Turnovers....When the Jon Crispen's of the World blame Freshman guard play for high turn overs #'s tell them Dug 12/4...Jett 7/2...Kobe 10/7...HD 5/6..Reed 0/5..Cheddar 0/4...T.Will 2/1..Baker 1/0.....Bigs committing the turnovers NOT the Freshman ball handlers.....Iowa,NW games.
January 15th, 2023 at 7:21 PM ^
Hummel had Dug responsible for two of Reed's (both moving screens).
January 15th, 2023 at 7:03 PM ^
Enjoy Jett while he is here
January 15th, 2023 at 7:18 PM ^
McDaniel and Bufkin need to play big minutes. 35+ minutes each. I think they can do it. Backup guards pretty nonexistent. Reed probably the 5th best player on the team. Be interesting to see how the 2 bigs lineup develops. If they win 2/3 in the Big, then maybe?
January 15th, 2023 at 8:36 PM ^
Love to see the effort, the grit, the determination. Frustrations along the way but lots to like.
Also: Win the Game.
Check.
January 15th, 2023 at 10:56 PM ^
Dickinson's effectiveness is all about our shooters hitting threes. They double and triple team Hunter because they know when he kicks it out there is about a 2 in 3 chance the shooter misses the shot.
If we hit our threes like I know we can the pressure comes off Hunter.
Jett, Kobe and Dug are starting to show up.
January 16th, 2023 at 9:45 AM ^
Very pleased to see Bufkin bounce back after a horrible finish vs Iowa. Those type of situations can really rattle a young guard. I was worried that was going to be the start of a major slide for him. He is vital to this teams successes hopefully he can minimize its failures. For all my displeasure with Howard he seems to have Bufkin on a really good trajectory and Dug seems to be improving game to game. Maybe circumstances out of Howards control with Shannon and Frankie have hurt this squad more then we know. We need a few signature wins and this is starting to take shape! I really felt like we were in for a major let down after Iowa vs NW and the team battled! Great to see!
January 17th, 2023 at 12:32 AM ^
Love the photo caption. The guys be hoopling. I’m a dude now.
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