In the midst of a five game losing streak, its longest since 2011, the Michigan Wolverines welcomed the 24th ranked Ohio State Buckeyes to the Crisler Center this past Sunday. A season ravaged by early NBA entries and injuries has forced John Beilein to play Michigan's freshman and walk-ons big minutes. While they've played hard and have been competitive against the Big Ten's best, they seem to be running out of gas. However, Sunday, the Wolverines controlled a game from start to finish against one of the Big Ten's best teams.
Sophomore shooting guard Zak Irvin pumps up the crowd (Photo from The Detroit Free Press)
First Half
Michigan started the first half quickly, seizing control of the game from the outset. Zak Irvin started hot for the Wolverines, pouring in a quick eight points to jump-start the Wolverine offense. They would not relent for the entirety of the first half, as Irvin added four key assists in the first frame, as he showed off his improved court vision by finding Michigan's big men off of pick and roll plays numerous times. Spike Albrecht, playing with a hip injury that will require surgery in the offseason, played a gritty 38 minutes, and hit two big three pointers late in the 1st half to stretch the Michigan lead. Ohio State freshman and sure-fire NBA lottery pick, D'Angelo Russell, struggled to get open looks against Michigan's changing defenses, as they switched between primarily man-to-man and a 2-3 zone that prevented Russell from penetrating and making plays inside the paint. Michigan went to the locker room in full control, up by a surprising 16 points.
Second Half
Ohio State dominated the first ten minutes of the second half, going on a 14-0 run at one point to cut the Michigan lead to three, 49-46. The run was jump started by Russell, who managed to beat his man off the dribble time after time, getting into the lane with relative ease, while also pouring in a couple of triples. However, Zak Irvin hit another huge triple to extend the Wolverine lead to six, and Michigan would never look back. Spike Albrecht played another great half of basketball, finishing with 16 points, 5 assists, and zero turnovers. Ohio State exclusively ran a full-court man-to-man pressure defense in the 2nd half, designed to force the ball handler into feeding the ball towards the sides of the court where Ohio State could unleash their highly effective trapping defense. Despite the intense pressure all afternoon, Albrecht was flawless at beating the pressure and getting into the half-court to initiate Michigan's offense. Other big contributors were the aforementioned Irvin, who stuffed the stat sheet with 15 points (3 triples), 7 rebounds, and 4 assists, and freshmen Ricky Doyle and Kam Chatman, who combined for 14 points and 8 rebounds.
State of the Current Team
Sitting at 14-13 (7-8 in the Big Ten), Michigan will almost certainly miss its first NCAA tournament since the 2010 season. Despite the obvious disappointment, the fact that Michigan has stayed above .500 and is competitive in almost every game despite being forced to play five freshman and two walk-ons significant minutes speaks volumes to the coaching abilities of John Beilein and his fantastic staff. Injuries to Derrick Walton III and Caris LeVert certainly derailed any hopes of a successful season, but pending their return next year (Walton, definitely, LeVert is more of a toss-up), this team can be extremely dangerous in the Big Ten title race. Add in transfer Duncan Robinson, who reportedly could be the best Michigan shooter Beilein has ever had (including Nik Stauskas, yes), and Michigan could be a dark horse to make some noise in the NCAA tournament next year.
As always, Go Blue!
