Michigan 79, Creighton 69
They're just getting started.
That's what I can't shake in the aftermath of the first signature win of the nascent Juwan Howard era. Michigan may look at times like a team getting used to a new coach, but it hasn't looked like that coach himself is new to this at all. After Creighton took a 41-38 lead into halftime against the Wolverines, Howard's squad adjusted on both ends, came out of the tunnel with renewed energy, and ran the Bluejays off the court.
Encouraging signs abound for both the short and long term. Isaiah Livers scored a career-high 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting, rising up for jumper after jumper, flying down the court for fast break lobs, and not sacrificing the parts of his game that made him a great role player—he hit the deck following his own miss to come up with the ball amidst three Creighton players to set up a critical Brandon Johns layup down the stretch.
I was proven very wrong about the three-guard lineups featuring Zavier Simpson, Eli Brooks, and David DeJulius, all of whom played well while often sharing the court. Simpson worked his way to the basket at will, scoring 17 and dishing out nine assists; he also shut down Bluejays star Ty-Shon Alexander for large portions of the second half. Brooks had four assists himself, playing his usual strong defense and holding the offense steady when Simpson sat with a third foul. DeJulius looked more comfortable in an off-ball role than before, scoring nine points and repeatedly using the threat of his outside shot to open a lane to the basket.
Isaiah Livers scored a career-high 22 points. [Campredon]
Both teams came out of the gates moving quickly, but against a Creighton squad that needed to run to generate good looks, Michigan found a way to choke the life out of their fast break. The Bluejays have traditionally pushed the pace above 70 possessions under Greg McDermott and created much of their scoring in transition; this was a 64-possession game in which Creighton was credited with four fast break points. By only committing 11 turnovers, picking their spots to run, and getting back on defense, the Wolverines were able to control the pace of play.
They were also able to dictate where the game was played on both ends. Dropping Jon Teske into the paint against pick-and-rolls forced Creighton into a lot of midrange jumpers; when they weren't following up their misses, which was a problem particularly in the first half, these possessions were usually empty. The Bluejays attempted 25 two-point shots away from the basket; they made six.
Teske also proved critical in taking over the game on offense. He scored 12 of his 17 points in the second half by using a variety of ways to finish off the pick-and-roll—posting up after the initial action, bulling his way to the hoop, or even hitting a soft runner off the short roll. When he was done doing his offensive rampage, Creighton was cooked.
Not everything was perfect, of course; it's still the second game of the season. Adrien Nunez again struggled on defense after getting the start. Foul trouble wasn't the issue this time; he played just 11 minutes because he couldn't stay in front of his man. Colin Castleton and Brandon Johns had quiet games despite working with major size advantages. A Creighton squad working with one true big man won the offensive rebounding battle 18-4.
Those are fixable issues, however. Meanwhile, Michigan is getting everything they'd hoped for and then some from guys like Livers and Brooks, the squad is quickly establishing an identity as a tough defensive squad that can run, and Howard is pushing all the right buttons. We'll see how this win against a banged-up Creighton team holds up as a resumé-builder come March, but we don't need to wait nearly that long to feel great about it. This is exactly what you'd hope to see from a team under a first-year head coach.
[Hit THE JUMP for the box score.]
November 12th, 2019 at 9:23 PM ^
Did Michigan get better from game one to game two? That is a big YES!!! I like what I am seeing on offense and defense was better the second half. Keep it going Coach!!!!
November 12th, 2019 at 9:26 PM ^
Are you suggesting we have a decided schematic advantage with Howard-Martelli? Howard did spend a lot of years around smart people in Miami.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:29 PM ^
Not sure how being up 5 with a little over 3 minutes to go qualifies as "ran the Bluejays off the court". This game was dicey until late.
Still, Livers looks quicker than last year, X probed, drove and dished as well as any time last year (AND HIT 2 THREES!), Dejulius is becoming more patient but with timely aggressiveness and Big Sleep will be a big advantage down low in nearly every game we play. Agree with the Nunez benching. No D, no PT. And not a bad crowd for a freezing night. Good game, Coach!
November 12th, 2019 at 9:54 PM ^
Yeah the Nunez thing is still a bit of a head scratcher for me. Maybe coach sees something in practice he’s hoping translates, maybe it’s a Duncan Robinson situation where someone else looks better coming off the bench (Johns I guess?). This was a good game for most of the rest of the team tho. Spread it around nicely. Just want to see some more rebounding! Love what we are seeing tho.
November 13th, 2019 at 9:49 AM ^
Wagner is coming back soon. Leaving Nunez as the starter until then is a way to keep the rotations closest to what they will be. He's going to have to be less of a defensive liability though.
November 13th, 2019 at 6:45 PM ^
Yeah, I think Mr Miggle nails it, and that's telling about where we can expect Wagner to slot in when he gets back: at the 3 spot, not 2.
Seems like a no brainer to put Livers at the 3 and Johns / Castleton at the 4 to get the best five on the floor right now but Howard almost certainly sees Livers as the 4 and Brooks as the 2 long term (and hence Wagner as a 3) and wants to get everyone as much time as possible at those positions.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:55 PM ^
I wouldn't say we ran them off the court but winning by 10 against the KenPom #31 team is a very solid win
November 13th, 2019 at 12:07 AM ^
Sure Creighton were within five later in second half like someone mentioned above who had issue with the run off court comment, but it never felt for a moment like we were gonna lose. And Creighton is no slouch, and I'm picking Creighton as a sleeper in the pool. This was a great win.
Teske has vastly improved...and primarily it's due to Howard teaching , over just being older. We gotta land another big man like Dickinson because right now I can't imagine our team without Teske.
Same goes for Simpson, but DeJulius showed me ALOT tonight....scrappy and a high effort rebounder....it will assauge things next year without Simpson...and Brooks..my goodness, I hope it will now put to rest all the Brooks naysayers here, because he is a very good player.
Castleton still has alot of potential, and we need him to get there. Need another big presence.
I still stand by what I said about Johns that his performance this year will make that needed difference.
Livers is a star. Better stroke than even Nunez. Nunez struggled on D but he is good on O.
I was very enthused by the grit and resolve tonight. Howard did not look out of place, and I love the way they responded in the second half.... They were better than I was expecting for a first year coach.
GO BLUE
November 12th, 2019 at 10:29 PM ^
We seemed to be on the verge of running them off the court for most of the second half but kept it close with some untimely turnovers and defensive errors. Ultimately we did get to mostly cruise the last few minutes to a double digit victory.
Juwan addressed this in his interview after the game but even as the defense tightened in the 2nd half there were some unforced mental errors where guys sagged too far off or got caught in no mans land coming off switches. These lead to some open looks and easy baskets that I don't think will be there later in the season.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:29 PM ^
The halftime adjustments were the best part of that game looking ahead.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:32 PM ^
It’s too bad Nuñez is struggling so badly. His shooting stroke is so aesthetically pleasing.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:50 PM ^
As Duncan Robinson found out, no matter how sweet your shot is, your minutes are going to get reduced until you learn how to defend. Opponents are going to target you.
November 13th, 2019 at 11:12 AM ^
Maybe they can start calling Nunez "Arien" to motivate him like they did with Robinson.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:32 PM ^
Very impressive victory against a very well coached Creighton team. Z and Teske are the guts and glue, and Livers is showing that he can be a go-to scorer. All of which bodes well for the season especially once Wagner returns. GO BLUE!!
November 12th, 2019 at 9:35 PM ^
Underrated stat of the night: David DeJulius with 7 defensive rebounds.
November 12th, 2019 at 10:02 PM ^
Yeah he was trying really hard out there. One time he tried to rip one out of Livers’ hands and it promptly fell right to a Creighton player who then scored.
November 13th, 2019 at 8:21 AM ^
He reminds me of Walton the way he jumps for rebounds.
November 13th, 2019 at 6:49 PM ^
That's even crazier considering how bad Michigan was overall on the defensive glass. Gave up 18 (!!!) OREBs. Livers only had two DREBs in 38 minutes and Johns and Castleton combined for only two in 23 minutes. They need to pick that up a bit.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:35 PM ^
Good win should age well throughout the season.
I’m hoping to win the next three and then play with house money against the winner of the UNC game. Get a second or third major conference win and win all the games we should we should be fine. If we do more than that great.
The team is playing hard and it’s great.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:38 PM ^
Damn this team is fun to watch play. I mean they look like they're having a blast on the court and genuinely like playing with each other and for coach Howard.
Gonna be a fun year however it turns out.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:49 PM ^
A little soft on the glass, that will have to pick up against the MSUs of the world, but a huge improvement from game one to two. Livers looks like a damn All-American out there. Everyone played within themselves tonight, add in Wagner and Juwan has something brewing in AA.
November 12th, 2019 at 10:53 PM ^
It felt the rebounding tonight was a lot of plain bad luck. Seemed like every contest rebound inevitably went to a Creighton guy after the initial contact. We looked in decent position most of the time and the ball just didn't bounce our way a lot.
November 13th, 2019 at 1:59 AM ^
Agreed. It seems the adage long ago got started that rebounding is all about effort. That can be true, like playing defense. Except there IS a factor that doesn't get discussed often but as you say, the path of the ball does have something to do with who gets it. Boxing out and walling your man usually creates a circumstance where "if everyone does their job" the defensive team should be the one to get/rebound the ball. But that just isn't how the game goes anymore with the movement of players and ya know, their athleticism. Anyway, sure, effort goes a long way and you can see how a team can go from poor to average with just upping effort/philosophy. But sometimes the damn ball goes where it goes and just so happens to be more readily available for an offensive player to get a hand on it (this can happen with poor shooting teams where the ball doesn't come off the rim as it does via the usual competent/good shooting teams). That happened a lot tonight.
November 13th, 2019 at 5:33 AM ^
i get that rebound luck can be a bit like 'puck luck' in hockey, but for much of the game on our defensive boards we didn't box out worth squat. it was terrible. i'm sure there'll be some important practice time spent on it in the coming days and weeks and it can and will get better, but that was a glaring issue last night.
still and all, nice win vs. a good team. lots to be positive about. go blue.
November 13th, 2019 at 6:53 PM ^
Yeah, there were a few instances of bad luck but you don't give up 18 offensive boards on unlucky bounces. The positioning was terrible and that needs to be fixed. I'm sure it will be but woof. That was the one bad thing about last night.
November 12th, 2019 at 9:51 PM ^
Things that jump out at me from the box score:
1) The +/- confirms that X/Brooks/DDJ/Livers/Teske was by far UM's best lineup on the court;
2) Alexander/Bullock only combined for 6 points in the 2nd half after scoring 25 in the 1st;
3) Michigan was able to score 41 points in the second half despite only making 2 threes;
4) DDJ committing only 1 TO in 28 minutes on the court is impressive (as were his Walton-esque rebounds);
4) This game would have been a blowout had UM not given up so many 2nd-chance points; and
5) When's the last time that UM had at least 3 players score 17+ points in a game?
November 12th, 2019 at 11:41 PM ^
Z's defense on Alexander in the 2nd half was amazing. Alexander looked like Michael Jordan in the first half, but was demoralized facing Simpson and company by the end of the game.
November 13th, 2019 at 12:32 AM ^
Looks like last year's Binghamton game: Iggy with 21, Poole with 18, and Livers with 17. This game was much more satisfying, though. :)
November 12th, 2019 at 9:51 PM ^
Super impressed so far. Really excited to watch Juwan's career take off here.
November 12th, 2019 at 10:00 PM ^
Great second half effort, which was good to see after the first game experience. The team did a great job of sharing the ball on offense and really tightened the screws on defense in the second half. Teske was a monster down the stretch.
i think this team is well suited for Howard’s style and pace of play. Michigan should keep getting better as they get more comfortable with the new systems.
Johns and Castleton need to keep improving so they can play larger roles.
i can never seem to fully appreciate just how good Simpson is.
November 12th, 2019 at 10:01 PM ^
Creighton with only 2 free throws.
November 12th, 2019 at 10:44 PM ^
In the first 12:00-ish, I think the two teams had one foul. Combined.
November 12th, 2019 at 11:44 PM ^
Yeah -- I liked the way the refs let 'em play. Not a real big home court advantage for Michigan based on the foul calls.
November 13th, 2019 at 12:17 AM ^
That's what I first thought, but it wasn't the refs letting them play...we weren't fouling much at all.
November 13th, 2019 at 7:43 AM ^
What does fouling have to do with foul calls? Bad refs will call them where they don't exist and miss obvious ones. This crew was pretty good and the game had a great flow to it, adding to the excitement.
November 13th, 2019 at 9:54 AM ^
Games with bad refs have more fouling because players know there's a good chance they'll get away with them.
November 13th, 2019 at 3:53 PM ^
I think you're overrating how much attention players give to what specific refs are working their games.
November 14th, 2019 at 12:29 AM ^
Not at all what I meant. If the refs are doing a poor job the players notice and it affects how the game is played.
November 12th, 2019 at 10:22 PM ^
Fun team to watch.
Juwan will attract some big time talent playing this scheme.
November 12th, 2019 at 10:22 PM ^
Isaiah Livers: Quietly one of the best 3 point shooters of the Beilein recruiting era
I did some research, in part because it seems Livers has added off the bounce 3pt shooting (a skill we didn't see much of last year) to his already deadly shooting arsenal. Based off his 3pt percentage, he is in a similar class as Stauskas, LeVert, Walton, and Duncan Robinson (albeit on less volume up to this point). Trying to make this less of a snowflake post by pointing out how much he's improved since he got here, raising his percentage by almost 6 points last year. Amazing development considering 3pt shooting seemingly wasn't one of his main strengths coming out of HS. If you ever get a chance to watch warmups before a game, it's awe-inspiring how good he is at spot-up 3s.
November 13th, 2019 at 12:02 PM ^
I was surprised to learn from the announcers that he led the B1G in 3PT FG% last year. Obviously 43% is great, but I don’t remember it ever being mentioned here that he led the league.
November 13th, 2019 at 7:49 PM ^
He didn't lead the league. I think they said he led MICHIGAN in 3 PT %, which is true.
Grady Eifert of Purdue led the league at 43.8%. Livers was very close at 42.6%.
November 12th, 2019 at 10:36 PM ^
Jon Teske, to the opposing team, is what we call in medicine a "mass occupying lesion."
November 12th, 2019 at 10:43 PM ^
Great bounce back games for DDJ and Livers after they were only mediocre against App St. the minutes breakdown looks pretty good in the box score except I think Castleton could play a bit more.
November 12th, 2019 at 10:50 PM ^
Good win. Creighton stayed in it in the first half by hitting some tough shots and getting tons of offensive rebounds. But their starters played a lot of minutes and M strangled them in the 2H.
DDJ was much better tonight, looked a lot more confident. Slot Wagner in for Nunez in a couple of weeks and you may really have something!
November 12th, 2019 at 10:54 PM ^
This game was really fun to watch. This team is fun to watch!
November 13th, 2019 at 8:35 AM ^
Thought the same thing. Creighton came to play the first half, and some of their offensive sets would have made Beilein blush. Michigan's ability to basically match that offense in the first half, and then come out & raise their game in three aspects (offense, defense, effort) was great to see!
November 12th, 2019 at 11:07 PM ^
I was disappointed in the crowd tonight. When Creighton started fouling to put us on the free throw line with about a minute left (in a single digit game), a large portion of the fans headed for the exits. Several times during the game (including in key moments) Livers, DeJulius, and others had to implore the crowd to get loud and even then, almost no one was standing. Also, even with after a late-arriving crowd showed up there were way too many empty seats in the house.
If MSU played Creighton tonight, the Breslin Center 1. Would’ve been full 2. Would’ve stayed full until the final buzzer 3. Would’ve been rocking well before the players on the court had to ask the fans to get loud.
Michigan basketball fans are more of a wine and cheese crowd, unfortunately. The program deserves better than that given how successful they’ve been.
November 12th, 2019 at 11:49 PM ^
Maybe the weather had just a touch to do with the crowd not meeting your expectations??
November 13th, 2019 at 2:06 AM ^
Considering it's often lame...no?!
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