Michigan Basketball: 3 Keys to Beating Wisconsin for Big Ten Title

Guarding Wisconsin

Wisconsin has a variety of weapons, headlined by Ethan Happ, Nigel Hayes, and Bronson Koenig. Koenig is the sweet shooting guard who destroyed Michigan’s chances of an upset at the Kohl Center in the team’s first matchup. He was money down the stretch, with 10 points in the second half. It remains to be seen if MAAR or Irvin will be the stopper. MAAR has been the go to lockdown defender, but Irvin stepped up to shut down Illinois’ Malcolm Hill.

Nigel Hayes is the jump shooting, post bruiser for Wisconsin. He seems to be bothered by DJ Wilson’s length, however, last scoring only 6 against Michigan. In the win, he needed 11 shots to score 13 points. Wilson may be forced to help on Koenig drives and Happ post ups, so the Wolverines will be hoping the senior forward will remain off against them.

That leaves the problem of Ethan Happ. He wasn’t great in the first meeting, but was simply unguardable at Crisler, scoring 22. Michigan threw everyone at him, including Jon Teske. The big men will have to be careful to avoid foul trouble against the shifty center. If Mo Wagner guards him, he can use his quick hands to disrupt the Wisconsin big man. After all, the Wolverines have been on a defensive mission since that OSU loss. 

The Final Prediction: 74-64, Michigan Basketball

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The defense holds, the seniors and the bigs get involved, and Michigan heads into the Big Dance with momentum.