Michigan took its share of criticism — much of it from its own fan base — in the first half of the Big Ten season, some of it absolutely warranted, much of it not. But U-M has found its stride, the latest evidence a 74-70 overtime win over a Purdue team hell bent on revenge after losing at Crisler Center, in a game very deserving of March.
Live by the three, die by the three, they've said? Not Michigan, which made only six of 25 triples (that’s 24 percent) and left many short.
Soft? Not Thursday … and really, not for the last several weeks. The Wolverines out-rebounded the Boilermakers 38-37, grabbing 11 on the offensive end, and turned them into 18 second chance points.
And for good measure, redshirt sophomore D.J. Wilson silenced two crowds Saturday — those who said he spent too much time jacking triples (though he did take seven, he made only two and still finished with 26 points on 11-of-18 shooting) and others who said he didn’t have it in him to rebound like he meant it.
Wilson finished with eight caroms and was aggressive for the second straight game. That was a big reason the Wolverines were able to win despite shooting only 41.7 percent from the floor, getting only five points in 17 minutes from sophomore Moritz Wagner.
“I would compare it to Moe Wagner. We don’t know what’s going to happen sometimes,” Beilein said of Wilson. “Throw the ball in the stands, dunk on somebody, shoot a three. Him and Moe in a shooting contest, they would have the same results. Both are excellent shooters now learning if you’re 6-10 or 6-11, you can’t make a living shooting threes.
“People are going to step on your toes, switch ball screens. You’ve got to post, drive and get offensive rebounds. That’s what they’re doing right now. And you are who you can guard. At times this year that was an issue, but the job he did down the stretch and on the perimeter, it was excellent.”
He also took a pair of charges, Beilein noted, something he hasn’t done in his three years in either practice or games.
With senior Derrick Walton Jr. struggling on tired legs, making only 3-of-10 shots and 1-of-5 triples and turning it over four times, and Wagner in foul trouble, someone needed to step up. Wagner was the poison Purdue head coach Matt Painter picked in an 82-70 loss in Ann Arbor because he was worried about Wilson.
This time, Painter went the other way. He started forward Vince Edwards on Wagner, who’d scored 22 in the first half of the last meeting, and took his chances with his bigs guarding Wilson. Wilson responded with a game that, frankly, he could probably have more often if his motor was running consistently.
But the past is the past, and with the postseason in full swing, it’s all about what have you done for me lately. Terry Mills, for example, didn’t always bring it during the 1988-1989 National Championship regular season, but he was a beast in the NCAA Tournament, especially on the boards.
Beilein said earlier this year he was waiting for his ‘X’ factor to emerge — he may have found his guy.
He also made it clear this was no eighth place team on a Cinderella run.
“I think we are an eight seed that tied for fifth. Somehow that all works out with the imbalanced schedule,” he said. “That happens. We have showed this year that we can play with a lot of people. We didn’t finish as many as we wanted to. We’re finishing them now, when it’s important to do it now.”
He was just as firm in saying U-M didn’t come to Washington D.C. to win two games.
“We came down here to win it. We didn’t come down here to try to make the NCAA Tournament … we came down here to win it,” Beilein said. “We talk about championships every single day. Everything we say ends with ‘we will be champions’ … like Bo Schembechler, we will be champions. This is another opportunity to do that since we didn’t win the conference.”
They’re on tired legs after all they’ve been through, but they’re now one of the teams to beat. Whether they’re a team of destiny remains to be seen, but it’s hard to bet against them at this point.
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