Michigan basketball enters week four at 4-4

ANN ARBOR, MI — What a start to the month of December. Michigan basketball had a golden opportunity against Oregon in Eugene to get back on track after a not-so-ideal stint in the Bahamas. Fortunately, Dug McDaniel had a golden performance, scoring 33 points on 12-21 shooting from the field (7-12 from 3). Unfortunately, the Wolverines have nothing to show for that in the win column.

Week of 11/27 recap

Before last week’s lone game against the Ducks, interim head coach Phil Martelli stated the obvious. He did not like the fact that Michigan basketball was starting double digits down in recent games. In game No. 8 against Oregon, he started the same lineup for the eighth straight time.

Oregon game

In the first half of play, the Wolverines did a good job of avoiding that trend. A spread effort including a Dug McDaniel and-one had Michigan in front of Oregon 16-13 at the first half U12 media timeout. This lead would quickly unfold in a 9-3 Ducks run heading into the U8 media timeout courtesy of star guard Jermaine Couisnard’s 7 straight points.

This Oregon lead extended to a high of 5 points and was never caught for the remainder of the first half, despite Michigan cutting it to a single point multiple times. The first half wasn’t the prettiest, especially with Michigan continuing to turn the ball over at a high rate, but it still stayed within 3 points.

A close game at the half was a luxury that the Wolverines only had once in their last three games. They were unsurprisingly led by Dug McDaniel and Nimari Burnett who had a team-leading nine points and eight points respectively. Burnett has been one of the only Wolverines that has constantly found success in the first 20 minutes, including notching a career-high 21 points in the first half against St. John’s earlier this season.

Nimari Burnett’s fire was extinguished in the second half, but McDaniel’s engulfed all of Knight Arena. It is difficult not to compare the sophomore to NBA star Trae Young due to his ball-handling, vision, and ability to make a shot from anywhere on the court. McDaniel showcased these abilities last night, including a deep three close to the logo with 52 seconds remaining in the game. This was almost a game-winner until the Wolverines’ free throw woes caught up to them.

After a couple of squandered opportunities to put the game away at the line by Olivier Nkamhoua, Oregon’s Kario Oquendo tied up the game at that very place, sending the game to overtime at 73 points a piece. This is where Martelli’s dislike of giving up early leads reared its ugly head.

The Ducks started off the extra time hot, making their first two shots including an and-one. And just like that, Michigan had to play catch up. Enter Big Shot Burnett. Nimari Burnettconfidently released and drained a deep 3-pointer early into Michigan’s next possession.

After a minute of empty possessions, Olivier Nkamhoua found himself back at the line. This time though, he calmly and confidently nailed both. What ensued was a make-and-match with Oregon at the forefront.

Sadly for Michigan, the Ducks’ last make came with 1.6 seconds remaining, breaking the 83-83 tie. Even worse, it was a deep 3 from freshman Jackson Shelstad in his third career collegiate game. A half-court prayer from Dug McDaniel clanked off the back iron and the Oregon bench joyously rushed the court.

This was Michigan basketball’s 4th loss in 5 games after starting the year 3-0.

Juwan Howard is back, kind of

In better news, Michigan basketball officially welcomed back Juwan Howard to the bench. Howard is serving an assistant coach role right now as he continues to recover from the heart surgery he underwent in September. Phil Martelli will remain the interim head coach during this time.

Jaelin Llewellyn is back, kind of

Like Juwan Howard, the Wolverines are easing former Princeton transfer Jaelin Llewellyn back. After suffering an ACL injury one year ago against Kentucky, Llewellyn made his return to the hardwood against Oregon. Llewellyn played 10 minutes, scoring two points (1-2 from the field) and dishing out two assists. His only basket was promising though, as he knifed through the paint and made a crafty layup.

This was good to see because Martelli noted before the game that part of the battle of Llewellyn getting back to form is the psychological aspect. Martelli said that he “has got to get knocked down during practice.” The fact that Llewellyn attacked the paint in his return means his psyche has seemingly improved.

Michigan basketball rankings

The Wolverines’ rankings have been scattered after losing their lone game this week in OT on the road by 3 to a high major.

• AP: N/R
• Coaches: N/R
• Net: 89
• KenPom: 49
• Torvik: 53

Week of 12/3 preview

Indiana game

This is yet another week in which Michigan will have one game. Once again, this game is a big one. Tuesday night, Michigan basketball will have its lone matchup against the (6-1) Indiana Hoosiers. Although the record looks great in front of Indiana’s name, this Hoosiers team has struggled throughout this college basketball season’s first month.

Indiana has begun the season shooting an abysmal 25% from three which puts them at 350th in the country. Combine that with an offensive rebound percentage of 27% (244th in the country), and you get a team that has limited its opportunities to put a crooked number on the scoreboard.

Something that is not a complete struggle for Indiana has been its defense. Martelli noted this, saying, “One thing that Indiana can really, really do is they really guard the ball. It’s a terrific defense they have.” Coach is right. Relative to their 3-point shooting, the Hoosiers’ adjusted defensive efficiency is stellar, being 98.7, ranking 54th in the country (per KenPom).

Michigan has had the opposite struggles, with its issues coming where Indiana excels the most. Coach Martelli explained that the areas that need the most attention are amping up ball pressure and doing a better job of closing out. He said that the closeout issues indicate a lack of trust. The players are more worried about giving up a blow-by and a layup than giving up a jumper.

This trend may turn into a strategy in Crisler on Tuesday night, with Indiana only knocking down a fourth of its attempted threes. Regardless, the defense needs to pressure the ball more and not give up easy opportunities.

Offensively, Martelli made it clear that the team can’t expect Dug McDaniel to go off for 30+ points every night, saying, “For now, the seven guys that are getting in can all score the ball, so we have to run offense that equals that kind of balance.” With balance comes the need for everyone to contribute, and that includes Tarris Reed Jr. who did not score at all in Saturday’s loss to Oregon.

The sophomore was tagged as a breakout candidate in the preseason. Although he has been one of Michigan basketball’s bright spots defensively, he has struggled to find his footing on the offensive end. Indiana’s tough interior including 7’0″ Oregon transfer Kel’el Ware will not make it any easier for Reed Jr. to reach some of that great offense that many hoped for.

Tomorrow night is a fresh start for Michigan. With Big Ten play finally arriving, it’s a chance to get back on track in a big way. A win will recapture a lot of the momentum that has been lost in the last 5 game stretch. A loss will be tough, especially considering this is currently a Quad 3 game for the Wolverines. Make sure to see which road Michigan will go down tomorrow night at 9:00 pm EST on Peacock.

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