Michigan Basketball: Minnesota at Michigan -- Review

Posted at 8:00am — 1/11/2015

Michigan Wolverines Basketball: Minnesota at Michigan — Review

Michigan Defeats Minnesota
Doing What They Can With What They Have — Tough Teams Ahead

The early Big Ten schedule was favorable for the Wolverines. The 62-57 victory over Minnesota at the Crisler Center places the Wolverines at 3-1 in the league standings. The win on the road at Penn State and the better end-game play against Minnesota placed two games in the win column that could have gone south. The game against Purdue on the road was decided by toughness, physical play, and strong second half play, all greatly favoring Purdue.

But, considering the mix Michigan has on the roster, and the shortcomings that will not disappear, most will take the 3-1 start.

At Purdue, Michigan played very well the first half, then turned soft and produced a horrible half of basketball that demonstrated troubling tendencies.

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At Penn State, Michigan reversed the poor shooting of the Purdue encounter. Finally, Michigan hit the three pointers and shot very well the entire night. Caris LeVert smoothly greased the offense and Zak Irvin hit a couple of those aforementioned three-pointers, as did LeVert and Aubrey Dawkins. Michigan still is showing a troubling tendency to just let the other team’s scorer have at it to enjoy a big game. The other tendency continues: turning average three-point shooting teams into memorable nights by providing wide-open looks. Any team that can get Michigan chasing on defense and then reverses the ball effectively should get wide-open looks. The author is convinced this is symptomatic of Michigan’s defensive teaching and philosophy. One could conclude, without verification, that Coach John Beilein simply will trade one marble to take away another.

Michigan caught Minnesota flat and could have taken a big lead in the first ten minutes of Saturday’s game. But some bad ball management and cold shooting by Michigan placed Minnesota in the lead by halftime. The shooting from behind the arc was horrible and Minnesota built a gradual lead until the high water mark of a nine-point lead was attained. Then, at that crossing point, the casual observer likely thought- will Michigan go soft and fold? Michigan did not go soft, but also did not resemble Duke on a hot run. Michigan hung in, played better defense, triggered by some good intensity and Coach Beilein’s change to a zone. While Michigan may be bad at securing loose, highly contested balls, Minnesota is bad at getting the ball to the next guy when running the normal offense. Minnesota gradually helped Michigan, and Michigan gradually made up the deficit. Eventually, Michigan took the lead, a lead that looked safe until Minnesota got many late, open looks from behind the line. Fortunately, only one found the net; again by Rollins, the other team’s proven scorer.

The Wolverines made do with scoring from the starting five. Kameron Chapman’s layup was the only points not scored by the five starters. The Wolverines gave up 18 offensive rebounds to the Gophers, shot only 22 percent from behind the arc, and won. That is somewhat of a head shaker; until Minnesota’s shooting percentages are considered. Minnesota was only 11-20 from the free throw line, about four points from a normal showing. The Gophers also shot less than 40 percent combined from the field.

Michigan is not as good as last year at protecting the ball; sloppy turnovers have increased. There were only nine assists Saturday, demonstrating that Michigan’s best offensive option is Caris LeVert using the dribble and trying to create: sometimes the solo act pays off and then there are times not as productive.

Caris is playing under control and clearly he is becoming even more team oriented and smarter in how he approaches the total game of basketball. High-energy and skilled, Caris has periods of highs and lows, but he remains Michigan’s only big-timer on the floor. His passing and defense have advanced compared to two years ago. His growth and arm length has given him a touch of rebounding skill that Michigan sorely needs.

Michigan Wolverines /

Michigan Wolverines

Derrick Walton Jr. has had to put the brakes on his dribble drive due to the toe injury. He is now best when going straight up with a stand-alone jumper, but that is a luxury that is rare. Derrick has hit the middle and pulled up for some nice 15-foot jumpers. Watch his shooting and notice that the jumping height and balance are limited/effected by the injured foot. Though small, the toe is mighty when it comes to muscular movement of the foot, and therefore the entire structure above the foot.

Ricky Doyle may be a candidate for blue-collar hero. He has clear limitations, but this guy seems to learn fast. Coach Bacari Alexander and Beilein have brought this guy along nicely. Doyle will at least mix it up and produces about what should be expected for a starting freshman center.

However, his strengths are starting to show up as the season progresses and experience is gained. Like a lot of big guys that are primarily screen and clean up types, Doyle has limited mobility and his hands resemble those of a football tackle. On one possession early in the game, Ricky must have caught, dropped, fumbled, and recovered at least three times in 20 seconds. He needs work on rebounding positioning, but at least he puts his body in a place where he has a chance to get the ball, albeit he is a slow jumper, similar to past Michigan centers. Like the typical Beilein center, he fouls ball handlers 25 feet from the hoop, when discretion would have been a better choice.

Doyle was described during his recruitment as a Big Ten type. It would not be hard to imagine Ricky coming off the bench at Michigan State or Wisconsin and fitting in with the physical style of those teams. Ricky has demonstrated he can contribute against average competition, now the quest to go to a somewhat higher plateau awaits Doyle.

Zak Irvin really does appear to be playing for the team, even though the most noticeable quality Zak has is his tendency to launch shots under varied conditions with varied success. It is indeed nice when the shots fall. His defense and rebounding provide some contribution, but the end result is probably a push with the opponent.

Spike Albrecht is playing intense ball and recently has been playing within his limitations. He seems to have become content with being a manager and not the answer. This guy is a future coach in waiting; if that is the career direction he wants to take. Spike’s love for the game, and intensity, have yielded results that place him in the plus column. Spike can be posted low and is not a defensive stopper, but he does know the team structure on both sides of the ball and is one of those lesser talented types who love to compete and thirsts to find a way to win.

The game changed when Michigan pulled a couple of starters, specifically late in the first half. It was a necessary move by Coach Beilein to save some gas going down the stretch. The lack of bench play is troubling and will haunt Michigan when playing talented, up-tempo teams. Until Chapman gains some confidence, and he finds any way possible to contribute, and until Dawkins becomes more consistent, this will be a five-man show.

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Written by GBMWolverine Writer — Doc4Blu

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