anthony cowan

The Big Ten has unveiled their all-conference awards. ASSSEMBLE YOUR ALL-BIG TEN TEAMS!

Seth: So here are the rules: your starting five can't be unplayable together.

Brian: There is an absurd amount of shoehorning going on.

Seth: I think I just read one where the selector was deciding between Zavier Simpson and Xavier Tillman for his starting two.

Brian: We all love Brendan Quinn but his three All Big Ten teams have NINE centers on them.

Seth: I'd like to point out none of these guys playing in the paint have the league's best sky-hook.

FIRST TEAMS

We have most of a consensus. Thoughts on point guards?

Well, do you? [Campredon]

Ace: Cassius Winston is a pretty obvious choice, in my opinion. The Guy on the Big Ten’s best team. Still a pick-and-roll murderer.

Seth: Can't disagree. Also went through an unspeakable personal tragedy, and was the loudest voice in MSU Athletics speaking up for its victims. Winston is now at the top of my list of favorite rivals' players.

This is Cassius Winston when asked if players are seeking out information or isolating themselves and focusing on basketball.

If there's anything to be encouraged by in this whole mess, this might be it. pic.twitter.com/AfgYztw5pv

— Brendan Quinn (@BFQuinn) January 28, 2018

Ace: Also showed up to demonstrations. Seems like an outstanding dude.

Brian: Winston is obvious even if shoehorned a bit. Simpson goes on the first team: #5 nationally in assist rate and that's with teammates who can't friggin' shoot. Main driver of Michigan's offense. Maybe took a small step back as a defender but still a top-end guy on that end of the floor.

So now it gets tricky. Make the case for your wings!

*twitch* [Campredon]

Ace: Illinois plays Ayo Dosunmu as a lead guard but he’s functionally a 2/3 on defense so this isn’t a shoehorn. Not a great shooter but has improved in the halfcourt and is a monster in transition. Also a good defender.

Matt EM: League-wide the lack of quality SGs/Wings is sort of damning.

Seth: I started trying to avoid a team where everyone's out of position and ended up with 1st teamer C.J. Fredrick.

Ace: See, that’s overcorrecting. Ayo literally plays the two. Being a lead guard doesn’t eliminate your height.

Brian: He's the Alpha on a much improved Illinois team, suffered somewhat from clunky pieces around him who were one-dimensional players.

Seth: I don't think it matters that much who's officially slotted where. I picture a starting five in 2020 should have three guys somewhere on the guard scale.

Ace: Did you watch the Big Ten this year, Seth?

Seth: Till my eyes bled.

BiSB: That's how you know the Northwestern is working.

[After THE JUMP: It's even harder to make a second team]

Maryland's Senior Day took on a game of destiny feel from the early going. The afternoon's primary honoree, Anthony Cowan, scored the first points. Jalen Smith gave Michigan's big men a difficult challenge. Most difficult to overcome, the Terp shooters—who've been wayward for most of the season—kept connecting on three-pointers.

David DeJulius did his damndest to keep the Wolverines in the game anyway, scoring a career-high 20 points on 12 shooting possessions in 20 minutes on the floor. His contributions plus strong offensive games from Franz Wagner (15 points on 11 shooting possessions) and Zavier Simpson (13 points, six assists) kept Michigan hanging around until the end. The third bad outing in four games from Isaiah Livers, however, made it tough to keep pace—he mustered six points on 2/8 shooting from the floor.

Scoring wasn't really the issue, though. Maryland scored 1.30 points per possession, the fourth-worst mark Michigan has allowed this season. While star center Jalen Smith only made 1/5 three-pointers, the mere threat of his outside shot changed the way the Wolverines defended, and the extra attention paid to him opened up opportunities for others. Eric Ayala and Aaron Wiggins, both languishing near 30% as three-point shooters this season, each made 3/4 shots from beyond the arc to score 19 and 15 points, respectively. Cowan hit 7/9 two-pointers with Michigan's big men often drawn away from the hoop, finishing with 20 points and eight assists.

Smith, for his part, was a nightmare when he wasn't shooting from the outside. He scored 18 points, with his lone triple a deflating 35-foot runner to beat the first-half buzzer. He pulled down three offensive rebounds among his 11 boards. On defense, he added four blocks and a steal. Michigan only made five shots in the restricted area; Maryland hit 12.

Eric Ayala, presumably after sinking an unlikely dagger [Sherman]

Some of the defensive issues for the Wolverines were communication breakdowns. Some were personnel problems borne from having to match up with Smith. Some were just bad luck; seemingly every time Michigan made a push, Ayala canned a tough jumper to kill the momentum.

In fact, the box score shows a remarkably even game with a critical difference. Maryland pulled down only two more offensive rebounds and committed one fewer turnover than Michigan, and their three-point advantage on five extra attempts at the free-throw line only occurred because of late intentional fouling. Both teams attempted 20 three-pointers; the Terps hit eight to Michigan's six. Both teams attempted 30 two-pointers; Maryland made 20 to the Wolverines's 18.

Meanwhile, Simpson became the first player I can remember to foul out between free-throw attempts when a DJ Carstensen-led crew reviewed his fall after getting hammered at the rim by Smith with under 30 seconds left in a game that was functionally over. Simpson helped break a hard fall by grabbing Smith's jersey, which tugged the mesh but did nothing to put Smith in harm. Despite, you know, the conference going over this very play with this very ref to correct this very problem, Simpson got called for a flagrant that fouled him out of the game. Jon Teske had to sub in to take the second free throw. His miss was initially credited to Simpson, presumably because StatBroadcast isn't prepared for officials to be this incompetent.

At least that one didn't impact the outcome of a rivalry game.

Anyway, Michigan was locked into the 8/9 game against Rutgers regardless of this game's outcome, while Maryland gets to celebrate a shared Big Ten title that nearly slipped out of their grasp down the stretch. You'll probably forget any details from this game within a week. Except the Carstensen fiasco. Good lord, man. Get it together.

[Hit THE JUMP for the box score.]

THE ESSENTIALS

THE US

Seth's graphic [click to embiggen]:

Michigan is all but locked into the 8/9 game in the Big Ten Tournament, most likely as the eight-seed, and they'd face either Rutgers or Purdue in that matchup. There's a slim chance of moving up to the seven-seed, in which case Indiana comes into play as a potential opponent. Here are all the possibilities as of today:

Update: After Thursday's games, there are now 128 tiebreaker scenarios still in play for the Big Ten men's basketball tournament. pic.twitter.com/ND1dhTGgLr

— Kevin Pauga (@KevinPauga) March 6, 2020

Maryland is playing for a share of the conference title and an outside shot at the BTT one-seed.

The Wolverines are a six-seed in the most recent Bracket Matrix and they're popping up as a five-seed on a decent number of projections. A win would probably get Michigan up to a five-seed and maybe even a four-seed on some brackets—that's where Bart Torvik projects them should they pull the upset on Sunday. A loss wouldn't hurt Michigan's standing much; this game provides more upside than downside.

THE LINEUP CARD

Seth's graphic [click for big]:

[Hit THE JUMP for the rest of the preview.]