Michigan Basketball: Poise and Pressure – UM Will Be OK
Posted at 8:00AM DST — 3/13/2011
Michigan Basketball: Poise and Pressure – UM Will Be OK
Things went as well as could be expected for the Michigan Wolverines during the first half of Saturday’s Big Ten semifinal game. Then the second half took place. One stretch of a 16-0 run killed any chance of an upset. All is not lost however, some good things happened.
Ohio State is the absolute top bar of NCAA competition this year, and as such Michigan had another opportunity to measure the progress of its program. The challenge was good preparation for the upcoming tournament. The game was physical and the opponent had as much talent as any team in the country, probably more. Michigan was forced to play hard on both ends of the court, or get blown out.
The second half meltdown has already been blamed on many factors including fatigue, loss of poise, and just flat being beat down by superior talent. The conclusion here is all of the above. The bad stretch just happened to coincide with a period of poor shots, some loss of poise (and stubbornness by Morris), and turnovers. Michigan was forced to launch threes late and that is not loss of poise; that was the only hope of getting back into the game. By that time the tough play on both ends of the floor made a rain of threes improbable.
Sullinger was the true difference and he has been the difference for Ohio State in many games, not just against the physically undermanned Michigan squad. Truth be known the Michigan players and staff have done about as well as can be expected in the three games against Sullinger and teammates this year. Make no mistake, his bulk and offensive talents are exceptional, maybe not Moses Malone like, but impressive.
The Wolverines continue to execute the dribble part of the offense better, like the three game some bad decisions arise, but this element makes Michigan harder to defend.
With all the talk about good shooters, Michigan is still just ok when shooting threes. The only solution is to gain a feel for better timing. The team continues to do a better job of contesting rebounds although there is and may long be a deficiency in reading the spot and getting the feet moving a little faster. There are not near as many easy trips down the middle for opponents, Michigan is doing a better job of sealing and at least most of the time there was some pressure on the outside shooters of Ohio State. Ohio State’s perimeter gang offers a challenge for any team; lay back or guard in the face. The athleticism is strong enough to give any team a dilemma.
What now for Michigan? Pretty simple really, get the focus off the loss quick, get the game plan in and get ready for a different challenge, the spotlight of the NCAA Tournament.
Some may say this team is too young and may have the deer in the headlight effect. But this team has played under pressure and against good competition for a month. So, the belief here is the team will play well. Like any team going to the tournament, the ultimate question is how well for how long?
Written by GBMWolverine Staff
Go Blue — Wear Maize!