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 13th, 2019 at 9:53 AM ^
I would buy that if the atmosphere last night was a departure from the norm. Unfortunately, it isn't.
November 13th, 2019 at 12:15 PM ^
I have been going to Mich basketball games since the late 60s and I thought the crowd was very solid tonight. For an early season, early start, frigid weather game against an opponent that is not well known (though good), last night's crowd was decent-sized and pretty enthusiastic, and compared very well by historical Michigan standards. The wine and cheese meme needs to die because, IMO, it simply is not accurate.
November 13th, 2019 at 1:14 PM ^
It is accurate and the fact that you found last night's crowd to have "compared very well by historical Michigan standards" only serves as confirmation.
Michigan purports to have a top-tier basketball program, no? Go to a game at any other successful, top-tier program (early season or not) and tell me if the crowd last night matches up with what you see. I bet you'll find it underwhelming in comparison.
November 13th, 2019 at 4:00 PM ^
Comparisons are hard. Here's the tangible thing about "football school" vs. "basketball school."
Many of Michigan's basketball season ticket holders are really just football fans/alums/boosters that also get basketball tickets. They are football fans first. They have enough money to just buy the tickets and not mind when they go completely unused (often). Realtors have season tickets that they just give away to clients randomly because they are a nice little throw in; not a real big time event.
Whereas, Kentucky, Kansas, Duke, MSU.... basketball is the only show in town. Every game is a spectacle and people don't buy basketball tickets as an add-on to their football tickets.
That's the tangible difference.
I wish UM would get pushy with the lower-bowl big wigs that never show, but those are the big time donors as well. Not an easy thing for them to do.
But, I do find it funny that a lot of people that don't attend the games like to whine about the people that are there.
November 13th, 2019 at 12:34 AM ^
Nice win. No let down this game. Creighton is a good team. They did what they needed to do.
November 13th, 2019 at 1:17 AM ^
Fun game to watch.
Also, not sure how FS1 got ahold of the ‘90s-era NBA on NBC theme music, but I LOVED hearing it during the lead-in and when cutting in and out of commercial breaks. It was Faaaantastic and should be used for every basketball game forever and ever.
November 13th, 2019 at 2:08 AM ^
That music is a John Tesh composition. Noticed it last year actually. The rights to use must've been available going into last season and Fox took 'em and ran!
November 13th, 2019 at 7:07 AM ^
Seemed like a decent win. They are still adjusting and will probably get better.
November 13th, 2019 at 8:23 AM ^
Anyone else really like the answers coach Howard gave after the game? (Video starts at 3:12)
He just seems really comfortable talking to the press and I like how he broke down the team's performance, was honest about the areas that needed adjustments / improvement, and how the team fought back.
I'm really digging coach Howard! He really feels like a natural here!
November 13th, 2019 at 8:26 AM ^
Not much to add to this conversation. Good to see Howard knows how to coach in competitive games. Being a 4pt favorite had me thinking this could easily be a loss, and that I'd even be okay with it. Early season, new coach, Creighton's a good team, etc. Instead we beat the Kenpom line rather emphatically, and put on a show!
November 13th, 2019 at 8:33 AM ^
Very nice win against a tough Creighton team. Love the ascent of Brooks and DDJ played some positive minutes.
The only way the Nunez issues get fixed is by planting him on the beach when Franz gets back.
November 13th, 2019 at 8:36 AM ^
One other thing Ace may have been wrong about: I don’t see the FIBA line having a material effect on the game/team/strategy/spacing at all yet.
November 13th, 2019 at 8:38 AM ^
And without Wagner to boot.
November 13th, 2019 at 8:48 AM ^
Interested to hear some other opinions on this:
One 'concern' (slight, still early season yet) when discussing with a friend was Teske getting gassed thanks to the fast break that was going both way. I noticed on some of Michigan's limited FT attempts, JH pulled all four non-shooters back and set them up for half court defense.
This struck me as odd but if Michigan is going to run like they did today and be successful on both ends of the break, it's a pretty savvy move to give a quick breather to your guys since they aren't going to be a + offensive rebounding outfit anyhow. I can't say I've seen this before, any reference points or guys smarter than me that can lend some risk/reward insight?
November 13th, 2019 at 9:24 AM ^
I credit Z’s bounceback to having his headband in the proper position this game.
November 13th, 2019 at 9:34 AM ^
Close games but good signs. I like that.
November 13th, 2019 at 9:55 AM ^
What I like so far, is we are still able to hot the three at a high rate, but it doesnt feel like we will "live and die" by jump shooting. It always felt like Beilein teams would drop 2-3 games a year when the shooting went cold.
I know its early, but it feels like with the good inside game from Teske, and the probing of a 3 guard lineup, we should be able to manufacture points easier when the long range shot isnt going down.
November 13th, 2019 at 10:57 AM ^
Great win - enjoyable game to watch. The announcers made a good point that the faster pace we (and Creighton)are running is tiring out Teske (he was wiped out in the first half) and maybe the other players too. Perhaps that is partly to blame for the second half drop off against App State - they were just gassed.
November 13th, 2019 at 1:16 PM ^
It certainly seemed that way in the first game. Everyone stood around on O and played ole D for 10 or so clock minutes in the second half.
Much better against Creighton though.
November 13th, 2019 at 11:38 AM ^
Ace, I think you’re missing an Isaiah Livers article tag - I’m presuming that you meant to put one in for the guy who had a career night.
November 13th, 2019 at 12:20 PM ^
I can't recall a an instance of where we forced up a shot to avoid a shot clock violation, it felt like we used to do that 2-8 times a game under our previous offense.
November 13th, 2019 at 1:20 PM ^
"This is exactly what you'd hope to see from a team under a first-year head coach." And that's exactly it. Obviously with a new coach and system comes the obvious transition times (looks longingly over at football) but this is, so far, showing to be a smooth transition. If they get rolling then the top tier of the B1G isn't out of reach and a solid seed in the NCAA is assured.
November 13th, 2019 at 7:52 PM ^
I had very few expectations this year for the team other that "look like Juwan knows what he is doing".
It's only been 2 games, but my expectations are already being exceeded by quite a bit. Hard not to get a little excited about where this could go if he can pull in big-time recruits.
Obviously Creighton was beat up quite a bit so we'll have to measure ourselves against much better teams, but this is a great start.
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