Michigan’s seven-minute scoring drought ends the game as Michigan State defeats Michigan.
Redshirt sophomore forward Will Tschetter had just battled through contact, grabbed his own offensive rebound, and effortlessly converted a layup to equalize the score. Despite trailing by multiple possessions just minutes earlier, the Michigan men’s basketball team had managed to claw back into a closely contested match against Michigan State on Saturday.
However, by the end of that 7:01 period, the scoreboard still displayed 63 points next to the Wolverines’ name.
Throughout this scoring drought, the Spartans surged to 73 points, capitalizing on turnovers and fiercely contesting every shot. Despite the Wolverines repeatedly making the same errors, Michigan State ultimately secured the win with a decisive 10-0 run.
“Offensively, some of it was turnovers, some of it was missed shots, some of it was miscommunication,” explained graduate guard Nimari Burnett. “Just got to combine all of those and alleviate mistakes as much as possible, especially at crunch time. Because that time period separated the game for us.”
The game-sealing run began with turnovers, mirroring Burnett’s initial mention of the issue. After Tschetter’s game-tying layup, Michigan experienced turnovers on five of their next seven possessions. The Wolverines played disjointedly, attempting to make big plays instead of focusing on scoring points. Despite Michigan State’s defensive pressure, most of the harm was self-inflicted.
Of the five turnovers, three resulted from traveling violations — mistakes that Michigan State couldn’t have forced. Graduate forward Olivier Nkamoua, in particular, committed back-to-back traveling violations when Michigan needed to mount a comeback.
Wolverines coach Juwan Howard emphasized the importance of slowing down and letting the game unfold, especially during critical moments. He acknowledged that the team’s relative lack of playing time together, compared to their opponents from Michigan State, contributes to their struggles in managing the pace of the game. However, Howard noted that, 26 games into the season, the team continues to make the same crucial mistakes in crunch time as they did early in the season.
These mistakes included failing to secure rebounds on free throws, allowing Spartans forward Malik Hall two second-chance shots that extended the lead. The Wolverines also struggled to make key shots, going 0-for-5 from the field in the last seven minutes. Most notably, they missed the opportunity to take clutch shots, attempting only five in that span.
“Lack of stops and then timely stops,” Burnett remarked. “If we get stops and they don’t score, they don’t get a run.”
While Michigan’s defense held up reasonably well during the final stretch, the offense faltered. Scoring 10 points in seven minutes to match the Spartans seemed achievable, especially considering their average of approximately two points per minute in the first 33 minutes of the game. However, when the Wolverines needed to slow down the game, it paradoxically sped up without them. The end result was walking off the court with the same score from seven minutes prior and another loss added to their record.
Consider donating to The Michigan D.
