Before we get started, let me explain some of the numbers. The stat line at the top of each player’s profile is taken straight from last week’s stats post. The darker the maize, the higher his ream rank in that category. The darker the blue, the lower his team rank. At the bottom of each profile are more advanced metrics, such as effective field goal percentage (eFG%) and true shooting percentage (TS%), with my own twist on them to adjust for minutes played in relation to the total available minutes. That way, a player like Eso Akunne who only took eight shots all season and made seven, and played just 3.5 percent of the available minutes, doesn’t blow away everyone else on the team.

The Starters

Burke led the team with 14.8 points per game and will be crucial to Michigan's success if he returns next season

Nobody knew what to expect from the gaping hole that was the point guard position prior to the season, but by season’s end, it’s hard to picture what the team would have looked like without Trey Burke. The fabulous freshman who was plucked from behind enemy lines in Columbus, helped Michigan fans forget about Darius Morris and turned point guard into a position of strength.

He didn’t start the season opener against Ferris State and scored just three points in 18 minutes. But in his next four games, he scored 13, 14, 14, and 17 points, respectively while starting and playing 30-plus minutes each game.

On New Years Day, he racked up 27 points against Minnesota and two weeks later he scored 20 to lead Michigan to its third straight win over Michigan State. In February, he more or less shut down Ohio State’s Aaron Craft and scored 17 of his own to earn the win, and in the first game of the Big Ten Tournament, Burke lit up Minnesota once again, this time for a career high 30 points.

He was the floor general who played well beyond his freshman status. He played 89.2 percent of the possible minutes, averaging 36.1 minutes per game and it seemed to show in the final two games when he didn’t have legs against Ohio State and had trouble keeping up with the guards of Ohio University.

Burke is considering entering the NBA Draft but if he does return next season, Michigan will be poised to make a run for another Big Ten title.

Needs to improve: Turnovers. There’s really not much Burke wasn’t able to do as a true freshman. He played well beyond his years, hit clutch shots, led the team in scoring, and set the Michigan record for assists by a freshman. It’s nitpicking to suggest turnovers, but what else is there? He ranked tied for eighth in the Big Ten in assist-to-turnover ratio, but 10 Big Ten guards averaged fewer turnovers per game. If he can cut it down under two to the same level as Wisconsin’s Jordan Taylor or Northwestern’s Dave Sobolewski, he’ll be a sure Big Ten player of the year candidate.

eFG% – 44.8
TS% –  48.0

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Tim Hardaway Jr struggled from the field in Big Ten play but was the team's second leading scorer

Hardaway was the star of the team last year and had high expectations heading into his sophomore campaign. He began the season right where he left off, averaging 16.2 points per game and shooting 47.8 percent overall and 34.3 percent from three-point range through the first 13 games.

But once conference play began, his scoring average dropped nearly three points to 13.5 and his shooting dipped to 37.7 and 25 percent the rest of the way, respectively.

He had a 2-for-14 night against Minnesota, 2-for-13 against Iowa, and 1-for-10 against Michigan State. He had a six-game stretch in which he hit just 7-of-35 threes.

Despite his struggles, he was still able to get his points and seemed to come alive at season’s end. Against Illinois on March 1, he scored 25 points and pulled down 11 rebounds while hitting 6-of-7 shots, 4-of-4 threes, and 9-of-10 free throws. Against Minnesota in the first game of the Big Ten Tournament, he poured in 20.

He led the team in free throws made and attempted, averaging 4.4 attempts and three makes per game.

Needs to improve: Shot selection and consistency. The root of his shooting woes this season was shot selection as he often forced up off-balance jumpers late in the shot clock or early threes not within the offense. He was at his best when he was driving to the basket off the dribble, drawing fouls and creating plays. The return of Trey Burke would really help Hardaway’s consistency, as will more of an inside presence with Jon Horton coming off of injury and Mitch McGary joining the team. Hardaway shot 36.7 percent from three-point range as a freshman while taking 20 more threes, so he’s capable of hitting them. If he can get back to that level next year, he’ll be tough to stop.

eFG% – 40.9
TS% –  44.4

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Zack Novak was arguably the most consistent player on the team, ranking in the top three in nearly every stat category

Four years ago, Novak was a barely-recruited prospect and one of John Beilein’s first commits. As a senior this season, he was one of Michigan’s most important all-around players. He started every game, averaging the third-most minutes per game (33.7), ranked third on the team in scoring with 9.2 points per game, third in rebounding (4.5), third in overall shooting (47.6) percent, second in three-point shooting (40.9), and first in free throw shooting (85.7).

He scored a season-high 22 in Michigan’s Maui Invitational win over UCLA and also scored 17 and pulled in eight rebounds in a midseason loss at Arkansas. He made multiple threes in 14 games and hit at least one three in 26 of the 34 games. He also pulled down five or more rebounds 16 times.

However, he struggled in his final game, Michigan’s season-ending loss to Ohio, scoring just two points on 1-of-6 shooting. But throughout his career, Novak’s legacy was defined by more than just scoring. While he averaged 8.1 points per game throughout his four years, his main contributions don’t show up on the stat sheet. He played more minutes than any Michigan basketball player in history and his was the body often diving after loose balls and jumping in front of potential layups, drawing charges. Novak also became Michigan’s first academic all-american in 30 years and was just the second three-year captain in Michigan history.

Novak graduates in May with a business degree from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business. He won’t play in the NBA, but he has a bright future ahead and all the tools to succeed in life beyond basketball.

eFG% – 49.1
TS% –  51.4

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Stu Douglass played in more games than any Michigan player in program history

Like Novak, Douglass was scarcely recruited coming out of high school but became one of Beilein’s first commits. All he did was go on to play in more games than any player in Michigan basketball history, never missing a game throughout his career.

This season, he averaged 7.5 points per game, good for fifth on the team, and 78 assists, which was second to Burke. His best game of the season was the opener against Ferris State when he scored 14 points on 3-of-7 shooting from three, grabbed five rebounds, and dished out four assists. He also scored in double figures six other times and scored the game-winning layup in Michigan’s January 17 win over Michigan State.

Through his first three years, Douglass was known as a good three-point shooter, but this season he developed an ability to get to the rim and create a shot off the dribble. Several times, he set up his defender and hit a turn around jumper, something that was hard to imagine in years prior. He also became one of Michigan’s best defenders on the perimeter.

He finished his career fourth all-time in threes attempted (603) and fifth in threes made (205). He started the season coming off the bench, but made his way into the starting lineup for the final 16 games.

He graduates in May with an economics degree and will likely pursue a basketball career overseas. Next season, his steadiness will be missed and Michigan will have to find a capable ball-handler to spell Burke at times.

eFG% – 38.7
TS% –  40.4

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Evan Smotrycz was the team's best three-point shooter, hitting 43.5 percent of his attempts

Smotrycz was the type of big man that John Beilein loves: able to step outside and create a mismatch for a slower big guy, capable of knocking down threes or driving to the basket. This season, his minutes were down, but his offensive productivity increased from his freshman campaign.

He led the team in three-point percentage, hitting 40-of-92 attempts, was second in overall field goal percentage (48.1), led the team with 120 defensive rebounds, and was the team’s second-leading overall rebounder, averaging 4.9 per game.

He had a four-game stretch to end the non-conference portion of the schedule in which he scored 20, 16, 17, and 20, but scored in double figures just four times in the final 21 games. In one of those, his 17-points helped Michigan beat Penn State to clinch a share of the Big Ten title. In another, his 15 points helped keep Michigan in the NCAA Tournament game against Ohio. He hit 6-of-7 shots from the field and both three-pointers and also pulled in seven boards.

Smotrycz began the season in the starting lineup, but lost his starting job to Douglass for the final 16 games. He averaged 21.1 minutes a game and was efficient on the offensive end, but was often a liability on defense.

At season’s end, he announced he was transferring to a yet-to-be-named school. In hindsight, it explains some of the frustration with Smotrycz all season. His on-court demeanor and lack of effort at times were frustrating but his ability to knock down shots somewhat made up for it. Had he returned next season, his minutes may not have increased but if his offensive production remained the same, he would have been a crucial player to Michigan’s success.

eFG% – 30.7
TS% –  32.2

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Jordan Morgan led Michigan in FG percentage and rebounding

While Morgan’s scoring numbers were slightly down this season from his redshirt freshman year, he remained an important piece of the puzzle inside. Read: only pice of the puzzle inside. When fellow big man Jon Horford was lost for the season, Morgan’s inside presence became all the more important as the only guy big enough to defend opponents’ bigs.

He led Michigan and finished second in the Big Ten in shooting percentage (61.9) and led the team in offensive rebounds (75), total rebounds (191), and rebound average (5.6). His offensive rebound average (2.2) was good for sixth in the Big Ten.

Though his scoring average fell from 9.2 to 7.3 this season, he had a few great games offensively. His season high was 16, which he scored twice, against Iowa State on December 3 and Arkansas on January 21. He also had three double-digit rebounding nights, one of which was the highlight of his season when he recorded a double-double, grabbing 11 boards and scoring 11 points in helping Michigan defeat Ohio State. In that game, he virtually shut down Jared Sullinger.

Needs to improve: Playing like a big man. One of the most frustrating things to watch all season was Morgan grab an offensive rebound or get the ball under the basket, take a dribble, and get the ball stolen by a guard. If I had all the game tape to count, I bet it would tally at least a dozen times. He has the ability to score and once he has some help next season with Mitch McGrady and Jon Horford, should be able to excel as an upperclassman with a couple of years under his belt.

eFG% – 37.4
TS% – 36.7

As you can see, Michigan was essentially a six-man team. Matt Vogrich played in every game, getting a fourth of the game’s minutes on average and hit some big threes at times, and Blake McLimans played in roughly three-fourths of the games in a minor role but showed the ability to knock down some shots and pull down some rebounds. However, only six were actually regular contributors.  A healthy Jon Horford all season would have given Michigan seven.

Trey Burke was obviously the star, leading the team in points, assists, threes made, field goals, made, minutes, and blocks. Yep, you read that right; the point guard led the team in blocked shots. Tim Hardaway Jr led the team only in free throws made and attempted, though he did place second or third in the rest of the categories, the obvious outlier being three-point percentage in which he was sixth*. Zack Noak was steady all season long, starting every game, leading the team in free throw percentage, and placing third in virtually every other category. Jordan Morgan shot the best and pulled down the most offensive and total rebounds. Evan Smotrycz was probably the most efficient player on the team, at least offensively, compared to minutes played. He had the best three-point percentage and most defensive rebounds while serving as the team’s fourth-leading scorer and ranking highly in most of the other categories despite playing in barely over half of each game on average.

Further analysis will follow in the individual player season profiles over the course of the next couple weeks, but I also wanted to highlight some overall team stats and how they compared to last season.

Below are the final team stats from this season and the previous year. The column on the far right shows the percent difference for each stat category. Maize highlight means the team improved in that category and blue means it declined. Shockingly, this year’s team was virtually the same as last year’s across the board, but it produced three more wins and four fewer losses (and four more conference wins and five fewer conference losses).

The defense gave up one point fewer per game while defending the three declined slightly, although opponents shot 108 fewer three-pointers against Michigan this year. The team shot one more free throw than it did last season but made 12 more to improve its free throw shooting by 2.3 percent. On the glass, despite pulling down one less rebound per game, opponents grabbed two less per game, so Michigan still came out on top this season rebounding-wise. Assists were down by one per game and turnovers were up by one per game, but at least some of that can be attributed to starting a true freshman point guard and with Burke as the best player on the team, that’s not a huge deal.

The main area of increase was in attendance. The Crisler Center pulled in nearly a thousand more fans per game than it did last year thanks to a nearly perfect home record, staying in contention for the Big Ten title all season, and earning an ESPN College Game Day appearance for the Ohio State game.

Stay tuned in the coming days for the individual player season profiles, where we’ll evaluate each player’s contribution to the season, how it compared to his previous season(s), and the main areas of improvement for next season.

* Category rankings didn’t strictly go based on percentages. In some instances, such as three-point percentage, a player who rarely played had the highest percentage on the team (Eso Akunne) due to such a limited number of attempts (4-for-5). In those cases, priority was given subjectively to the starters and regular contributors before moving on to the role players.

Beating Ohio State was one of the highlights of the season (photo by MGoBlue.com)

This team accomplished what the 26 Michigan basketball teams since 1986 could not: win the Big Ten, and it did so in a year in which the conference was at its best. Was Michigan truly the best team in the Big Ten? I think we would all by lying if we said yes, but it conquered the conference portion of the schedule well enough to earn a share of the title with two legitimate national title contenders, Michigan State and Ohio State.

This team featured a pair of seniors that will forever be remembered as the foundation of the Michigan basketball resurgence. John Beilein’s first two recruits came to a Michigan program that had just struggled to a 10-22 season, and took the Wolverines to the Big Dance three out of four years. Are Stu Douglass and Zack Novak among the best players in the Big Ten? Again, to say yes would have to be done while wearing maize colored glasses. Yet Douglass started more games in his career than any player in Michigan history and Novak became the first Wolverine to be named an Academic All-American in 30 years.

This team took a big step from being an under the radar bubble team with the ability to pull off upsets to a formidable foe that became the hunted rather than the hunter. It’s not an easy thing to do: live up to heightened expectations, especially when the crux of your team is underclassmen. Yes, the aforementioned senior leadership of Douglass and Novak cannot be understated, but the bulk of the weight was carried by a true freshman and a bunch of sophomores.

After routing Tennessee in its opening round game last season and narrowly missing the Sweet 16 with a near upset of Duke, Michigan looked poised to take another step forward.  But when sophomore point guard Darius Morris declared for the NBA Draft, the prospects of even matching that season’s record appeared dim. Enter Trey Burke. The “pride of Columbus, Ohio,” as he was called by Michigan’s public address announcer during pregame introductions of the Ohio State game, put Michigan on his shoulders and more than filled Morris’ shoes.

Burke quickly became a fan favorite, flashing a solid handle, the ability to knock down big shots, beat the defender off the dribble, and finish around the rim. He set the Michigan freshman assist record and was named Co-Big Ten Freshman of the Year, as well as a Sports Illustrated Second-Team All-American.

His backcourt running mate, Tim Hardaway Jr., entered the season with high expectations after an outstanding freshman season of his own, but fell into a sophomore slump that he could never quite get out of. He finished second on the team in scoring behind Burke, but while his overall shooting percentage remained about the same, his three-point percentage plummeted from 36.7 percent to an abysmal 28.3.

Evan Smotrycz showed flashes of brilliance throughout the season but was also prone to mistakes, and the season-ending loss to Ohio was a perfect example. His 6-of-7 shooting night kept Michigan in the game, but his mishandling of the ball in the final seconds sealed the victory for the Bobcats.

Even Denard caught the Michigan hoops fever this season, regularly appearing in the Maize Rage (photo by MGoBlue.com)

Jordan Morgan also flashed some ability to dominate the game, such as in Michigan’s 56-51 win over Ohio State on February 18 in which he virtually shut down Jared Sullinger and recorded 11 points and 11 rebounds of his own. Yet, he also had a remarkable ability to disappear at times.

Each of Michigan’s returning contributors has plenty of upside to go along with plenty to improve and the team will get a shot in the arm next season when the nation’s 11th-best (5th according to Rivals) recruiting class comes to town. Michigan should be able to play much bigger next season, which will be key to competing for the Big Ten crown once again.

But before we look ahead to what’s to come, let’s revel in the success of the season that just concluded. Take pride in the accomplishment of a Big Ten title, forget the early loss, and bid Douglass and Novak adieu as they move on to post-basketball careers. It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to take pride in Michigan basketball, so soak it up.

Biggest Areas of Improvement:

1. Develop depth. Michigan was mainly a seven-man rotation all season long with the same five starting every game and Smotrycz and Matt Vogrich coming off the bench. Others, such as Blake McLimans and Colton Christian played sparingly, but rarely enough to contribute.

If Michigan is to continue to progress, it will need to build depth to give the starters some rest without significantly decreasing production. Burke played 1,227 of the 1,375 available minutes (89 percent) this season with the majority of his rest coming at the beginning of the year. By season’s end, the grind seemed to have taken a toll, especially after playing 45 minutes in an overtime victory over Minnesota in the Big Ten tournament. Michigan didn’t have a backup point guard to spell him. That blame can certainly fall on Darius Morris for leaving early just to wind up in the NBA’s D League, but the need for depth applies across the board as well.

Getting Al Horford back from injury and Mitch McGary will instantly boost the frontcourt, and Smotrycz’s development and the additions of Glenn Robinson III and Nik Stauskas will bolster the wings. Hopefully Burke’s classmate Carlton Brundidge will be able to develop enough to see the court as well, giving Beilein a solid eight- or nine-man rotation.

Mitch McGary should help solve Michigan's interior woes next season (photo by Jeremy Hogan, Herald-Times)

2. Become less one-dimensional. Early in the season, Michigan had some success inside with Jordan Morgan and Al Horford. But once Horford was lost for the season, Morgan was unable to command the paint and Michigan became very one-dimensional. It worked for the most part, but eventually became the team’s greatest undoing late in the season when opponents figured out how to slow down Burke’s penetration and Michigan’s three-point shooting.

Michigan shot 788 three-pointers this season, 17 more than the Big Ten’s next highest, Northwestern, but converted just 35 percent of them, which ranked eighth in the conference. Too many times, the offense couldn’t even get the ball down low, and when it did, Morgan had very little in the way of a post game. That’s okay when the shots are falling, but late in the season with tired legs, they weren’t.

Michigan is always going to be a three-point shooting team under Beilein, and there’s nothing wrong with that. However, without any sort of threat inside, it leaves Michigan prone to losing games it shouldn’t. Horford and McGary will help greatly.

3. Become a better defensive team. Michigan ranked near the middle of the pack in the Big Ten in most defensive categories: scoring defense (4th), opponent field goal percentage (6th), and opponent three-point field goal percentage (5th), which isn’t inherently bad. But with an offene that wasn’t the best shooting offense and ranked eighth in scoring, there wasn’t much room for error. Michigan ranked last in the conference in steals and blocked shots and eighth in rebounding.

What that tells is that Michigan’s defense wasn’t stopping opponents as much as it was opponents just not executing. The one time all season that Michigan’s defense did really step up in an obvious way was the win over Ohio State when it harassed Aaron Craft all night long and made the Buckeyes work for every basket. The way Ohio University pressured Michigan on every possession in the NCAA Tournament game is the way a defense needs to play. Unfortunately, Smotrycz is a defensive liability every time he’s on the floor and Morgan isn’t tough enough or big enough to body most big men. Douglass and Novak, while hard-nosed, simply weren’t athletic enough to keep up with most guards.

Of course, when a team wins a conference title and earns a 4-seed in the NCAA Tournament, it’s hard to find too many faults without nitpicking. But fixing those three areas of improvement could be the difference between a 10-loss season and a legitimate national championship contender next season.

Check back in the next few days for a profile and grade of each player’s season and areas for improvement next year.

With a highly rated recruiting class coming in, Beilein has a lot to look forward to (photo by Kevin C Cox, Getty Images)

Michigan fell behind in the first half of its NCAA Tournament opener against Ohio University on Friday night and was unable to fight back, falling 65-60. And just like that, it’s football season again.

With spring football beginning in the morning, Michigan basketball was hoping to keep its season alive, but ran into a touch matchup with an Ohio team that features outstanding guard play and smothering defense. Despite being just a 13-seed compared to Michigan’s 4-seed, the Bobcats were a tough draw from the get-go, and that’s why it’s called March Madness.

Michigan hung around early on after OU hit the first two shots of the game. Michigan went on a 9-2 run to take a 9-7 lead. The teams then battled back and forth with Michigan taking another lead at 18-17 with 9:35 remaining in the half. But it would be the last time the Wolverines would lead the game as Ohio used an 18-4 run to open up a 13-point lead. Michigan went on a 7-0 run of its own to end the half but still trailed by six.

The second half was much of the same as every time Michigan would pull within striking distance, Ohio would find an answer with a big shot. The Bobcats led by nine with 8:11 to play but Trey Burke scored nine straight for Michigan to cut the lead to three. After an Ohio free throw and layup, Burke hit another three to keep the Ohio lead at three with 4:12 to play.

However, Michigan went scoreless the rest of the way, missing all six of its shots, five of them being three-point attempts. Ohio didn’t score either until two free throws to seal the game with seven seconds left. Prior to that, Burke got a good look at a three but couldn’t connect. Michigan got the ball back but couldn’t get off a shot as Evan Smotrycz mishandled the dribble and OU took it away.

Burke led Michigan with 16 points, but made just 2-of-9 three-pointers and 5-of-15 shots overall. Smotrycz added 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting and Tim Hardaway Jr scored 14.

Ohio shot 51.2 percent from the field – its fifth-best total of the season and nearly nine percentage points higher than its season average – and hit 6-of-16 three-pointers while holding Michigan to 40.7 percent shooting and 7-of-23 from long range.

Michigan’s season ends with a 24-10 record and despite the early exit, it should still be considered a successful season. The Wolverines won the Big Ten for the first time in 26 years and earned a 4-seed in the tournament. Stu Douglass graduates having played more games in the maize and blue than any other Wolverine and Zack Novak graduates having been named Michigan’s first academic all-american since 1982.

Replacing the two will be one of the best recruiting classes in the nation, led by Mitch McGary, ESPN’s 22nd-ranked player who held offers from Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Florida. Also in the class is ESPN’s 27th-ranked player, Glenn Robinson III, and the 79th-ranked player, Nik Stauskas. So remember, as much as it hurts right now, next looks even more promising.

NCAA Tournament Friday, March 16 – 7:20pm EST – TNT – Nashville, Tenn. 24-9 (13-5) Record 27-7 (11-5) Ferris State 59-33
Towson 64-47
W. Illinois 59-55
#8 Memphis 73-61
UCLA 79-63
Iowa State 79-66
Oakland 90-80
Ark. Pine-Bluff 63-50
Alabama A&M 87-57
Bradley 77-66
Penn State 71-53
Minnesota 61-56
#16 Wisconsin 59-41
Northwestern 66-64 OT
#9 Michigan St. 60-59
Purdue 66-64
#20 Indiana 68-56
Nebraska 62-46
Illinois 70-61
#6 Ohio State 56-51
Northwestern 67-55 OT
Illinois 72-61
Penn State 71-65
Minnesota 73-69 OT Wins Tenn.-Martin 74-65
Lamar 85-78 OT
Ark. State 69-54
Marshall 70-68
Morgan State 61-53
Oakland 84-82
Portland 72-54
Marietta 88-54
Wright State 82-54
N. Iowa 76-59
N. C. A&T 82-66
Kennesaw 71-63
Buffalo 60-52
Kent State 87-65
Miami Ohio 69-65
W. Michigan 56-51
Ball State 59-55
N. Illinois 67-58
C. Michigan 68-42
Bowling Green 72-59
UNCA 81-62
Buffalo 88-77
Akron 85-61
Miami Ohio 63-54
Toledo 65-57
Buffalo 77-74
Akron 64-63 #6 Duke 75-82
Virginia 58-70
#11 Indiana 71-73
Iowa 59-75
Arkansas 64-66
#3 Ohio State 49-64
#10 Michigan St. 54-64
Purdue 75-61
#7 Ohio State 55-77 Losses #7 Louisville 54-59
Rob. Morris 67-70
Bowling Green 57-67
Akron 63-68
Toledo 73-77
E. Michigan 55-68
Kent State 61-68 66.5 Points Per Game 70.7 61.4 Scoring Defense 62.4 786-for-1,723 (45.6%) Field Goal % 839-for-1,954 (42.9%) 734-for-1,725 (42.6%) Def. Field Goal % 707-for-1,717 (41.2%) 269-for-765 (35.2%) 3-point % 251-for-743 (33.8%) 197-for-572 (34.4%) Def. 3-point % 182-for-614 (29.6%) 354-for-492 (72.0%) Free Throw % 476-for-699 (68.1%) 10.7 Free Throws Made/Game 14.0 30.8 Rebounds Per Game 34.8 31.8 Opp. Rebounds Per Game 34.6 12.7 Assists Per Game 13.2 10.9 Turnovers Per Game 13.2 5.0 Steals Per Game 9.4 2.2 Blocks Per Game 2.9 G – Trey Burke (14.8)
G – Tim Hardaway (14.6) Leading Scorer G – D.J. Cooper (14.6)
G – Walter Offutt (11.7) F – Jordan Morgan (5.5)
F – Evan Smotrycz (4.8) Leading Rebounder F – Reggie Keely (5.1)
F – Ivo Baltic (5.1)

The last time out, Michigan laid an egg against Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals, falling 77-55. This time, the Wolverines face the other Ohio, Ohio University. Much has been made of Michigan referring to the Buckeyes as simply “Ohio” and the fact that tonight Michigan faces the actual Ohio, but the fact remains that despite the Bobcats being the ‘other’ Ohio, this won’t be a cakewalk.

Head coach John Groce happens to hail from my alma mater, Taylor University, a tiny school in the middle of nowhere Indiana and knows a thing or two about coaching. His mentor, Paul Patterson, is the winningest coach in the state of Indiana and preaches a disciplined, defense-oriented, motion-based approach. For a school with just 2,000 students, he has quite the coaching tree. In fact, Michigan assistant Jeff Meyer is also a Taylor alum. Groce has turned the Bobcats into a perennial NCAA Tournament contender and is on the verge of landing a major conference head coaching job.

The Bobcats have the best defense in the MAC, force a lot of turnovers, and loves to push in transition. Defensively, they love to hedge the high ball screen, which is a staple of the Michigan offense. Akron was able to exploit it fairly well and the good news for Michigan is the guys doing the hedging aren’t quite at the level of those from Purdue or Ohio State that caused Michigan fits late in the season.

Ohio is led by junior point guard D.J. Cooper who averages 14.6 points. He’s the guy who creates everything for the Bobcats, will shoot from anywhere at any time, and loves to penetrate. He’ll be a tough matchup for Michigan’s guards.

The good thing is Ohio isn’t a great shooting team, especially from outside. Their overall field goal percentage ranks 201st nationally and three-point percentage ranks 197th. The sharp-shooter is sophomore guard Nick Kellogg, the son of former Buckeye star Clark Kellogg. He shoots 41.8 percent, having connected on 77-of-184. To put that in perspective, Michigan’s leading three-point shooter in terms of makes is Trey Burke who has hit 55. Tim Hardaway Jr has attempted 181 but hit just 51. If there’s one guy to guard tight, it’s Kellogg. He has only made 21 non-three-pointers all season so he’s not a threat inside the arc.

The second leading scorer behind Cooper is 6’3″ guard Walter Offutt, an Ohio State transfer who averages 11.7 points per game. He’s more of a slasher than Kellogg and has the ability to fill it up. He has a season high of 23 points against Buffalo last month. In the MAC championship game against Akron, however, he scored just two after getting in early foul trouble.

On the inside, Ohio relies on 6’8″ junior forwards Ivo Baltic and Reggie Keely. Baltic is similar to Evan Smotrycz in that he’s flexible enough to shoot the midrange jumper, drive, or post up.  He averages nine points per game, but has scored more than eight points just four times in the last 15 games. Keely is active and physical, averaging 9.2 points and 5.1 rebounds a game.

Overall, Ohio is a small team like Michigan that relies on forcing turnovers, scoring in transition, and creating bad shots. Opponents shoot just 29.6 percent from downtown against the Bobcats, although Akron hit 9-of-12 in the MAC championship.

Michigan doesn’t turn the ball over a lot – fourth in the Big Ten in turnovers per game – and should be able to control the temp of the game. Ohio sometimes gets overaggressive on the hedge, so look for Michigan to have a plan in place to exploit that. In the MAC title game, Akron was able to do a good job of beating the hedge and kicking it out to open shooters.

When it comes down to it, if Michigan takes care of the ball, it will win. If it gets into a running match and if Burke struggles like he did against Ohio State, it will be ripe for an upset. I think the former will happen and Michigan will win by eight or ten.

Michigan has won its opening round game in each of its last three trips to the NCAA Tournament. In 1998, Michigan beat Davidson 80-61 before falling to UCLA; in 2009, Michigan beat Clemson 62-59 before falling to Oklahoma; and last season, Michigan beat Tennessee 75-45 before falling to Duke. In fact, Michigan has won at least one game in 19 of its 22 trips all-time to the Big Dance. This year should be no different.

As for the rest of the bracket, I found the toughest pick to be Vanderbilt-Wisconsin in the second round. Both are perennial underachievers in the tournament but both are strong this year. I went with Wisconsin because of their performance in the Big Ten. On the other side of the bracket, I took a flyer on Wichita State to upset IU in the second round. Other than that, my bracket is pretty straight forward; the fewest upsets I’ve ever picked. Kinda boring, right?

Check back tomorrow morning for a game preview of the Bobcats of THE Ohio University.

]]> http://maizeandgoblue.com/2012/03/15/brackets/feed/ 0 http://maizeandgoblue.com/2012/03/11/join-the-maize-and-go-blue-bracket-challenge/ http://maizeandgoblue.com/2012/03/11/join-the-maize-and-go-blue-bracket-challenge/#comments Mon, 12 Mar 2012 01:28:13 +0000 maizeandgoblue http://maizeandgoblue.com/?p=9412

Michigan received the 4-seed and will face THE Ohio University on Friday in Nashville. At first glance, it’s a great draw for Michigan, getting to face either Temple, California, or South Florida in Round 3 and then the most beatable of the 1-seeds, North Carolina, in the Sweet 16.

We’ll have more evaluation of the Bobcats to come, but in the spirit of competition, we would like to announce the Maize and Go Blue Bracket Challenge. It will be be hosted on Yahoo Sports, so please click here to register and join. The group ID number is 72625 and password is mgoblue.

It’s free to enter and there will be a prize for the winner.

Good luck and Go Blue!

Time to regroup and get ready to cheer on the Maize and Blue in the Big Dance (photo by Andy Lyons, Getty Images)

Michigan needed 45 minutes to beat Minnesota on Friday night but it took just a few to dig a hole too deep to climb out of against Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals on Saturday afternoon.

Ohio State came out feeding Jared Sullinger and hedging Michigan’s screens and the Wolverines had no answer.

The Buckeyes stormed out to a 16-3 lead and while Michigan somehow found a way to keep it within reach at the half, the door was blown wide open in the second as Michigan’s shooting woes continued. Just four minutes into the second half, Ohio State had opened up a 20 point lead to end any possibility of a comeback.

Trey Burke, a day after scoring a career high 30 points, was held to five on 1-of-11 shooting. He missed all seven of his three-point attempts and committed a career high eight turnovers. He did lead Michigan with seven rebounds, which just goes to show the kind of night it was for Michigan.

Tim Hardaway Jr led Michigan with 13 points on just 3-of-10 shooting, while Zack Novak added 10 and Corey Person scored seven in the last few minutes when the game was well out of reach.

For the game, Michigan shot just 30.9 percent and hit just 4-of-25 three-pointers while Ohio State shot 49.2 percent and made 5-of-14 from three. The 18 turnovers committed were the second highest of the season behind the 19 surrendered in a 63-50 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on December 13.

Sullinger led Ohio State with 24 and Deshaun Thomas added 22. The pair combined to hit 19-of-29 shots.

As disappointing as the loss was, it means nothing in the long run. Michigan won a share of the regular season Big Ten title for the first time in 26 years and that’s the title that really matters. Conference tournaments exist for television and a chance for bubble (or worse) teams to get hot and play themselves into the NCAA Tournament. The Big Ten Tournament didn’t even exist until 1998. In short, it’s not the real conference championship; it’s just the cherry on top.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ll never say a loss is a good loss, but the extra day of rest before the real tournament begins should benefit Michigan. After playing 45 minutes against Minnesota and then facing a bitter rival on Saturday, playing another bitter rival on Sunday would be draining. Burke was obviously not himself from the start against Ohio State after playing all 45 minutes against the Gophers. It will also take some of the focus off of Michigan heading into the Big Dance and John Beilein teams have always shown they play better as an underdog. Regardless, Michigan will still likely be a 3-seed or a 4-seed at worst.

Michigan will find out its fate during the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on Sunday evening. The brackets will be announced beginning at 6pm EST on CBS.

Saturday, March 10 – 4:10pm EST – CBS – Indianapolis, Ind. 24-8 (13-5) Record 26-6 (13-5) Ferris State 59-33
Towson 64-47
W. Illinois 59-55
#8 Memphis 73-61
UCLA 79-63
Iowa State 79-66
Oakland 90-80
Ark. Pine-Bluff 63-50
Alabama A&M 87-57
Bradley 77-66
Penn State 71-53
Minnesota 61-56
#16 Wisconsin 59-41
Northwestern 66-64 OT
#9 Michigan St. 60-59
Purdue 66-64
#20 Indiana 68-56
Nebraska 62-46
Illinois 70-61
#6 Ohio State 56-51
Northwestern 67-55 OT
Illinois 72-61
Penn State 71-65
Minnesota 73-69 OT Wins Wright State 73-42
#8 Florida 81-74
Jackson State 85-41
N. Florida 85-50
VMI 107-74
Valparaiso 80-47
#4 Duke 85-63
UTPA 64-35
USC Upstate 82-58
S. Carolina 74-66
Lamar 70-50
Miami Ohio 69-40
Northwestern 87-54
Nebraska 71-40
Iowa 76-47
#8 Indiana 80-63
Nebraska 79-45
Penn State 78-54
#22 Michigan 64-49
#20 Wisconsin 58-52
Purdue 87-84
Minnesota 78-68
Illinois 83-67
Northwestern 75-73
#5 Mich. State 72-70
Purdue 88-71 #6 Duke 75-82
Virginia 58-70
#11 Indiana 71-73
Iowa 59-75
Arkansas 64-66
#3 Ohio State 49-64
#10 Michigan St. 54-64
Purdue 75-61 Losses #13 Kansas 67-78
#15 Indiana 70-74
Illinois 74-79
#12 Mich. State 48-58
#19 Michigan 51-56
#15 Wisconsin 60-63 66.9 Points Per Game 74.6 60.9 Scoring Defense 58.5 769-for-1,668 (46.1%) Field Goal % 845-for-1,755 (48.1%) 703-for-1,662 (42.3%) Def. Field Goal % 658-for-1,615 (40.7%) 265-for-740 (35.8%) 3-point % 152-for-459 (33.1%) 192-for-558 (34.4%) Def. 3-point % 179-for-562 (31.9%) 337-for-470 (71.7%) Free Throw % 471-for-675 (69.8%) 10.5 Free Throws Made/Game 15.2 30.7 Rebounds Per Game 36.7 31.7 Opp. Rebounds Per Game 29.3 12.9 Assists Per Game 15.3 10.7 Turnovers Per Game 11.8 5.0 Steals Per Game 7.4 2.2 Blocks Per Game 2.7 G – Trey Burke (15.1)
G – Tim Hardaway (14.6) Leading Scorer F – Jared Sullinger (16.9)
F – Deshaun Thomas (15.3) F – Jordan Morgan (5.6)
F – Evan Smotrycz (4.8) Leading Rebounder F – Jared Sullinger (9.3)
F – Deshaun Thomas (4.9)

Michigan needed overtime to survive Minnesota, but it got 30 points from Trey Burke to beat the Gophers and advance to a semifinal matchup with 3-seed Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament.

The Wolverines got off to a slow start and had to fight from behind all day against a determined Gophers team. Trailing by six with 1:17 to play, Michigan got back-to-back threes by Zack Novak and Evan Smotrycz to tie it at 56 with 19 seconds remaining. Minnesota missed a pair of jumpers and the game went to overtime.

In the extra period, Michigan got things started with threes by Stu Douglass and Burke sandwiched around a Minnesota free throw. Douglass hit another jumper to give Michigan a seven point lead, but Minnesota wasn’t done. The Gophers cut it to two with 21 seconds left but Michigan hit its free throws down the stretch and held on.

Burke led the way with a career high 30 points, topping his previous high of 27 the last time Michigan played Minnesota. Tim Hardaway Jr added 20.

Michigan now has a rubber match against Ohio State on Saturday at approximately 4:10pm Eastern time. The Buckeyes advanced by beating 6-seed Purdue 88-71 in the final game of the night on Friday.

The Buckeyes are obviously led by sophomore forward Jared Sullinger who averages 16.9 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. Just like his buddy Burke, Sullinger poured in 30 points on Friday night. In the two matchups this season with Michigan, Sullinger was held below his season average both times, scoring 13 and 14, respectively.

Senior guard William Buford and sophomore forward Deshaun Thomas are also talented scorers, each averaging over 15 points per game. Thomas scored 25 and added 13 rebounds against Michigan on February 18. Buford was held to just six points in that game, hitting just 3-of-12 shots from the field.

The winner of the semifinal game will play the winner of the Michigan State-Wisconsin matchup, which is the first game of the day, beginning at 1:40pm EST. This marks the first time ever all of the top four seeds have advanced to the semifinals of the BTT.

Below are the final game stats from Michigan’s win over Minnesota.

Burke scored a career high 30 points (photo by MGoBlue.com)