The Michigan Wolverines faced a gauntlet of a schedule last week with two top-10 showdowns (vs. Nebraska, at Michigan State). It wasn’t perfect, but the Wolverines went 2-0 last week to remain at the top of the Big Ten standings as we now are in the month of February with more big games on the docket.
Here are a couple things we learned about Dusty May’s squad this past week.
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Turnovers are the team’s biggest crux
It’s no secret Michigan has one of the most prolific offenses in the country. Every player in the rotation can take over stretches of a game, which is part of what makes the team so dangerous. When the Wolverines are clicking, they’re arguably the best team in the country.
May’s fast pace is paramount to his strategy, but the problem is it can get reckless, especially when the other team is keeping up. That was the key issue against Nebraska; Jamarques Lawrence was playing out of his mind in the first half, scoring 10 straight points on four consecutive possessions that put the Huskers up double digits.
The streak was spelled after a TV timeout, where Michigan came back out with their reserves. The next five possessions for the Wolverines — LJ Cason turnover, Cason turnover, Roddy Gayle turnover, Cason layup, Elliot Cadeau turnover. Nebraska astoundingly converted off just one of those mistakes, which kept the Wolverines in the game.
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There are going to be times that players get hot, that’s just part of basketball, but responding to it more immediately will be vastly important as the Wolverines head towards March. But it’s also what is going to keep them ahead against good teams. Michigan beat the snot out of Michigan State in the first half at the Breslin Center in part due to only having four first-half turnovers and the defense forcing bad shots.
Again, the Wolverines came out of the break looking sluggish, as they had eight turnovers in the first 10 minutes of the second half. That allowed the Spartans to climb back from a 16-point deficit to take a brief lead.
In the final stretch, Michigan had one turnover and scored 31 points to not only regain a lost lead, but also cruise to a double-digit win. That’s the difference of this Wolverines’ team being a title contender or just a likely No. 1 seed that fizzles out in the NCAA Tournament. When they take care of the ball, I’m not sure any team can slow them down.
Will Tschetter is the veteran stability Michigan needs
It’s easy to talk about Yaxel Lendeborg, Aday Mara, the rest of the starters, and even freshman Trey McKenney. But the two biggest shots last week came from fifth-year senior Will Tschetter.
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Michigan’s offense was amuck to start that second half against Nebraska, scoring just eight points in those first 10 minutes. On the brink of being down double digits, steady Tschetty delivered.
That three-pointer in a pivotal moment sent the Wolverines on a 19-8 run to finish the game and earn a huge win.
Michigan was in a similar position on Friday night in East Lansing. Michigan State surged back to open the second half and had taken the lead. The Spartans had that lead for less than 20 seconds in what May called “the biggest shot of the game” in his postgame press conference.
These were the big moments, but there were little ones in these two games, too. At MSU, Tschetter savvily drew a foul on a three-point attempt, and then called a timeout as bodies were on the floor and a teammate had the ball. Against Nebraska, he drew a foul when his arm got tangled with Sam Hoiberg to the chagrin of many Huskers fans.
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Tschetter is playing his role to perfection. He doesn’t have stat sheet stuffing numbers, but he’s the captain of that locker room and is always putting this team in a winning position. His performance in the two games last week was the peak of what we already knew: Tschetter is a Michigan Man. And we know what happens for those who stay…
