#23 Michigan vs #11 Wisconsin Tuesday 9pm est PEAC. Betting Line: Wiscy -2
Michigan is coming off its best performance to date with a dominate win over Xavier last Wednesday. That version of Michigan will be a tough out in March. That was a Final 4 type effort. Can we replicate it tomorrow night? It's going to be tough.
Wisconsin may be the biggest surprise of this season so far. They are 8-0 with quality wins over Arizona and Pittsburgh. (TBD if that Arizona win holds up as quality). This is not your Dad's version of Wisconsin basketball. They are averaging 85.3 pts per game which ranks 23rd in the country. They have the highest free throw percenrtage in the country at 86.4%. They make 20.6 free throws per game which puts them at 8th nationally. They average 9.3 turnovers per game which puts them at 12th nationally. Here's where they have been thriving this year: They average 45.5 2nd half points while holding opponents to 34.9 2h points.. They're making some of the best halftime adjustments you can make. Add all of that up, and that's a winning formula.
Wisconsin isn't without their flaws. They have no depth. They have a 7-man rotation and in their toughest game of the year vs Pitt, it was cut down to essentially a 6man rotation. This is pretty astounding considering how good they've been in the 2nd half. I'd expect the numbers to tell the opposite story. Wisconsin is below average Rebounding team. They give up 22.4 defensive rebounds a game and 8 offensive rebounds a game.
Michigan should get their fair share of fast break opportunities as well as put backs. If I'm Dusty May, I'm approaching this game with the exact same strategy as Xavier. Fast pace. Take care of the ball and wear these guys out. I want to see hands on Wisconsin players heads 30+min into this one. They don't have the horses to keep up with us if we aren't giving away the basketball.
Prediction Michigan 89 Wisconsin 84.
Michigan is coming off its best performance to date with a dominate win over Xavier last Wednesday. That version of Michigan will be a tough out in March. That was a Final 4 type effort. Can we replicate it tomorrow night? It's going to be tough.
Wisconsin may be the biggest surprise of this season so far. They are 8-0 with quality wins over Arizona and Pittsburgh. (TBD if that Arizona win holds up as quality). This is not your Dad's version of Wisconsin basketball. They are averaging 85.3 pts per game which ranks 23rd in the country. They have the highest free throw percenrtage in the country at 86.4%. They make 20.6 free throws per game which puts them at 8th nationally. They average 9.3 turnovers per game which puts them at 12th nationally. Here's where they have been thriving this year: They average 45.5 2nd half points while holding opponents to 34.9 2h points.. They're making some of the best halftime adjustments you can make. Add all of that up, and that's a winning formula.
Wisconsin isn't without their flaws. They have no depth. They have a 7-man rotation and in their toughest game of the year vs Pitt, it was cut down to essentially a 6man rotation. This is pretty astounding considering how good they've been in the 2nd half. I'd expect the numbers to tell the opposite story. Wisconsin is below average Rebounding team. They give up 22.4 defensive rebounds a game and 8 offensive rebounds a game.
Michigan should get their fair share of fast break opportunities as well as put backs. If I'm Dusty May, I'm approaching this game with the exact same strategy as Xavier. Fast pace. Take care of the ball and wear these guys out. I want to see hands on Wisconsin players heads 30+min into this one. They don't have the horses to keep up with us if we aren't giving away the basketball.
- John Blackwell- 6ft 4in 205lb guard from Bloomfield Hills, MI. He's averaging 15ppg 1.8 APG and 4.4 Reb/G. I'm starting with Blackwell because he should be playing for us. I made a stink about not pursuing this kid out of highschool when Juwan was our coach. You simply don't let a kid like this leave your backyard, especially when you struggle recruiting guards. Anyways, he's developed into exactly what I expected him to develop into. A strong physical guard who can defend and has 20+ point per game ability. He's only a sophomore so maybe we can bring him back to Michigan this off-season??
- John Tonje- 6ft 5in 220lbs This name may ring a bell. We faced him in the first round of the NCAA tournament while he played for Colorado State. In that game he proceeded to go 1 for 9 with 3 rebounds and an assist. Fast fowward to this season and the 5th year senior is trying to make a case for NPOY 8 games in. He's averaging 23ppg, 2apg and 5.4reb per game while shooting 42.1% from three. He's their engine. I expect a defense by committee approach just like deployed vs Conwell for Xavier.
- Steven Crowl- 7ft 250lbs He does the little stuff, and he really doesn't even do that stuff good. He's not a scrapper inside like previous Wiscy big men of the past. He's not polished offensively. He doesn't rebound paticularly good but he's their man in the middle. He sets good screens and has pretty good vision for his size. We should match up very well with him. Even Tschetter can keep him in front defensively.
Prediction Michigan 89 Wisconsin 84.
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