Michigan basketball had a happy weekend before Thanksgiving as they rolled over George Washington and Providence in two games by a combined 42 points over the weekend. They rolled over the Colonials 84-61 before the main event in the championship game against Providence, topping them 66-47. How'd this go down?
Game Stories:
On Saturday at noon, GW was able to hang around for a while before fading away. Michigan built a quick 28-10 lead in the first ten minutes of the game, thanks largely due to Charles Matthews strong play, but the Colonials fought back thanks to ten straight points off the back of Illinois transfer D.J. Williams to a 30-24 lead. Michigan still went into the half up 35-26, and they ultimately stretched their lead out. For the first time in the season, Michigan truly got into a zone from deep. There was an opening three from Matthews, a pair from Zavier Simpson, and then the capper of three straight from Jordan Poole and a Colonial timeout as they faced a 61-35 deficit with 12 minutes to play in the game. The makes continued: Isaiah Livers hit another, Simpson added two more, and a Livers dunk gave Michigan their biggest lead of the game, a 37-point 78-41 game with eight to play. George Washington put up some garbage time points on the young and inexperienced freshmen of Michigan, but Brandon Johns hit a three in this stretch as well. GW closed on a 20-4 run, but the game still finished a comfortable 23-point game.
On Sunday, Michigan saw more of the same against a lanky Providence team. Michigan jumped out to a 16-7 lead, largely due to Ignas Brazdeikis and his nine early points. Providence was still able to hang around and kept things close in front of a crowd who was pulling for them. With four minutes left in the half, junior Maliek White hit a three to make it just a one-point game, but Jon Teske's response was a three of his own. That was the turning point of the half. Alpha Diallo hit a two, but Michigan responded with an 11-0 run to close the half with a 35-22 game at the half. Providence's second half full-court pressure was a staple of their previous two games, and it helped them in cutting the lead to nine quickly, but once again Livers was the hero from three with back-to-back triples to force a Providence TO and make it a 44-29 game. Michigan, from there, kept the ball in their court and continually pushed the game to further heights. Brazdeikis' three in the corner for his 20th points made it a game-high 24 point lead, and Michigan was comfortable to give their freshmen some added playing time.
What Happened:
It has been largely more of the same for this Wolverines team. A combination of good defense and solid offensive performances have been able to carry the team to a 20-point (or near 20-point) victory. As it stands, Michigan looks absolutely dominant in any aspect of the game. The three-point shooting looked good against George Washington to the tune of a 15-for-30 evening for the team from deep while the side came up with some crucial threes against Providence as well. Players alternated between top performances over the games. Against George Washington, Charles Matthews had 25 points and ten-for-thirteen shooting and Jordan Poole went five-for-eight from three with 22 points while against Providence, it was Ignas Brazdeikis with 20 points and Jon Teske with 17 points who took center stage.
The key component between both games, though, was Zavier Simpson. Simpson found his stroke from deep with fourteen points and four threes against George Washington, to go with eleven rebounds and eight assists. The junior leader followed that up with another eight assists, six points, and six more rebounds against Providence to go along with some good defending at point guard. He quarterbacks the team on offense and on defense and is a key part of this team. They are consistently better with him on the court. Against the press of Providence, he helped calm the team down. Against George Washington, he locked up Armel Potter at point guard. He was the player of the game on ESPN for the championship and he made a strong case to be MVP of the entire two-day tournament.
The other player who must be discussed is Charles Matthews. Two days of lock-up defense on each team's respective best players, a brilliant offensive outing in the semi-final match-up, and general leadership continue to show why the man who tested the NBA draft waters is integral to this team's level of play. Not often you see a bench get hyped up most when a player locks another man down on defense, but we saw that with some great one-on-one defense by Matthews on Alpha Diallo. Matthews was, in turn, guarded well by Diallo, but he did his job forced Diallo to go just three-for-thirteen shooting with ten points and seven rebounds. Diallo's athleticism forced problems to other players, notably Eli Brooks who struggled to keep the bouncy swing-man off the boards, but with Matthews on the court, the Preseason Big East All-First Team player found limited freedom. His performance on Terry Nolan Jr. of GW, who went two-for-nine from the field, was also outstanding and worthy of praise.
This weekend was also important for seeing the rotation of this Wolverines team. With Austin Davis out due to a rolled ankle against Villanova, Davis was not dressed. Because of that, we saw a strict seven-man rotation in the championship with only Isaiah Livers and Eli Brooks playing off the bench until the game was well in hand. Against George Washington, Brandon Johns made an important appearance and saw some competitive minutes. He put in about five minutes of play while the game was still in question, but the East Lansing product still looked raw. He showed the typical freshman concerns you would expect of someone in a Beilein offense as he was still confused it seemed on floor spacing and just showed a lack of proper collegiate court awareness. Still, these are key moments in the freshman's development and the 5-10 minutes the other freshmen like David DeJulius and Adrien Nunez received in the games this weekend are also key.
Looking at the weekend's landscape as a whole, there was a lot to like about it. In no particular order, here were some key takeaways from players other than Simpson and Matthews. First is Isaiah Livers' three-point stroke, which looks incredibly smooth. With an altered release point, Livers comes off the bench hot and ready to deliver. He performs strong on defense whether it's against a power forward or center and he has thoroughly impressed thus far. Next would be Eli Brooks. Brooks went just one-for-five from the field against GW and I did not like the match-up for him against such a long and athletic Providence team. Still, forced into some important minutes with Matthews dealing with foul trouble, Brooks hit two nice threes and showcased some nice range. On defense he was doled some tough match-ups, but this was a really nice learning experience for him, and I think he's more suited to be an off guard than the back-up point. Finally, Colin Castleton. Castleton stood out to me as huge on the court when the freshmen entered the game. These minutes, more than any other player, are important for him to see what the college game is like while he builds up his physical presence to be at a Big Ten level. He is definitely a project, but I am very excited to see his long-term progression for John Beilein.
What's Next:
On deck is a rest until the school goes on Thanksgiving break. Michigan returns home to host Chattanooga on Friday the 23rd, the day after Thanksgiving, at 4 PM. Following that, though, begins another crucial four game stretch with North Carolina, Purdue, Northwestern, and South Carolina all on deck. Only Northwestern is away from home, but good outings in these four games will be important to continued the positive tone that the season currently carries.
Follow me on Twitter @RMAB_Ryan for plenty more Michigan basketball coverage, as well as AFC Ann Arbor and Liverpool FC coverage as well!
Game Stories:
On Saturday at noon, GW was able to hang around for a while before fading away. Michigan built a quick 28-10 lead in the first ten minutes of the game, thanks largely due to Charles Matthews strong play, but the Colonials fought back thanks to ten straight points off the back of Illinois transfer D.J. Williams to a 30-24 lead. Michigan still went into the half up 35-26, and they ultimately stretched their lead out. For the first time in the season, Michigan truly got into a zone from deep. There was an opening three from Matthews, a pair from Zavier Simpson, and then the capper of three straight from Jordan Poole and a Colonial timeout as they faced a 61-35 deficit with 12 minutes to play in the game. The makes continued: Isaiah Livers hit another, Simpson added two more, and a Livers dunk gave Michigan their biggest lead of the game, a 37-point 78-41 game with eight to play. George Washington put up some garbage time points on the young and inexperienced freshmen of Michigan, but Brandon Johns hit a three in this stretch as well. GW closed on a 20-4 run, but the game still finished a comfortable 23-point game.
On Sunday, Michigan saw more of the same against a lanky Providence team. Michigan jumped out to a 16-7 lead, largely due to Ignas Brazdeikis and his nine early points. Providence was still able to hang around and kept things close in front of a crowd who was pulling for them. With four minutes left in the half, junior Maliek White hit a three to make it just a one-point game, but Jon Teske's response was a three of his own. That was the turning point of the half. Alpha Diallo hit a two, but Michigan responded with an 11-0 run to close the half with a 35-22 game at the half. Providence's second half full-court pressure was a staple of their previous two games, and it helped them in cutting the lead to nine quickly, but once again Livers was the hero from three with back-to-back triples to force a Providence TO and make it a 44-29 game. Michigan, from there, kept the ball in their court and continually pushed the game to further heights. Brazdeikis' three in the corner for his 20th points made it a game-high 24 point lead, and Michigan was comfortable to give their freshmen some added playing time.
What Happened:
It has been largely more of the same for this Wolverines team. A combination of good defense and solid offensive performances have been able to carry the team to a 20-point (or near 20-point) victory. As it stands, Michigan looks absolutely dominant in any aspect of the game. The three-point shooting looked good against George Washington to the tune of a 15-for-30 evening for the team from deep while the side came up with some crucial threes against Providence as well. Players alternated between top performances over the games. Against George Washington, Charles Matthews had 25 points and ten-for-thirteen shooting and Jordan Poole went five-for-eight from three with 22 points while against Providence, it was Ignas Brazdeikis with 20 points and Jon Teske with 17 points who took center stage.
The key component between both games, though, was Zavier Simpson. Simpson found his stroke from deep with fourteen points and four threes against George Washington, to go with eleven rebounds and eight assists. The junior leader followed that up with another eight assists, six points, and six more rebounds against Providence to go along with some good defending at point guard. He quarterbacks the team on offense and on defense and is a key part of this team. They are consistently better with him on the court. Against the press of Providence, he helped calm the team down. Against George Washington, he locked up Armel Potter at point guard. He was the player of the game on ESPN for the championship and he made a strong case to be MVP of the entire two-day tournament.
The other player who must be discussed is Charles Matthews. Two days of lock-up defense on each team's respective best players, a brilliant offensive outing in the semi-final match-up, and general leadership continue to show why the man who tested the NBA draft waters is integral to this team's level of play. Not often you see a bench get hyped up most when a player locks another man down on defense, but we saw that with some great one-on-one defense by Matthews on Alpha Diallo. Matthews was, in turn, guarded well by Diallo, but he did his job forced Diallo to go just three-for-thirteen shooting with ten points and seven rebounds. Diallo's athleticism forced problems to other players, notably Eli Brooks who struggled to keep the bouncy swing-man off the boards, but with Matthews on the court, the Preseason Big East All-First Team player found limited freedom. His performance on Terry Nolan Jr. of GW, who went two-for-nine from the field, was also outstanding and worthy of praise.
This weekend was also important for seeing the rotation of this Wolverines team. With Austin Davis out due to a rolled ankle against Villanova, Davis was not dressed. Because of that, we saw a strict seven-man rotation in the championship with only Isaiah Livers and Eli Brooks playing off the bench until the game was well in hand. Against George Washington, Brandon Johns made an important appearance and saw some competitive minutes. He put in about five minutes of play while the game was still in question, but the East Lansing product still looked raw. He showed the typical freshman concerns you would expect of someone in a Beilein offense as he was still confused it seemed on floor spacing and just showed a lack of proper collegiate court awareness. Still, these are key moments in the freshman's development and the 5-10 minutes the other freshmen like David DeJulius and Adrien Nunez received in the games this weekend are also key.
Looking at the weekend's landscape as a whole, there was a lot to like about it. In no particular order, here were some key takeaways from players other than Simpson and Matthews. First is Isaiah Livers' three-point stroke, which looks incredibly smooth. With an altered release point, Livers comes off the bench hot and ready to deliver. He performs strong on defense whether it's against a power forward or center and he has thoroughly impressed thus far. Next would be Eli Brooks. Brooks went just one-for-five from the field against GW and I did not like the match-up for him against such a long and athletic Providence team. Still, forced into some important minutes with Matthews dealing with foul trouble, Brooks hit two nice threes and showcased some nice range. On defense he was doled some tough match-ups, but this was a really nice learning experience for him, and I think he's more suited to be an off guard than the back-up point. Finally, Colin Castleton. Castleton stood out to me as huge on the court when the freshmen entered the game. These minutes, more than any other player, are important for him to see what the college game is like while he builds up his physical presence to be at a Big Ten level. He is definitely a project, but I am very excited to see his long-term progression for John Beilein.
What's Next:
On deck is a rest until the school goes on Thanksgiving break. Michigan returns home to host Chattanooga on Friday the 23rd, the day after Thanksgiving, at 4 PM. Following that, though, begins another crucial four game stretch with North Carolina, Purdue, Northwestern, and South Carolina all on deck. Only Northwestern is away from home, but good outings in these four games will be important to continued the positive tone that the season currently carries.
Follow me on Twitter @RMAB_Ryan for plenty more Michigan basketball coverage, as well as AFC Ann Arbor and Liverpool FC coverage as well!
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