Michigan Basketball Falls Short Against Oregon In Sweet 16

Michigan basketball’s incredible postseason run came to an end at the hands of Oregon in the Sweet 16, and it was a pretty freakin’ painful loss.

Statistically speaking, Michigan basketball‘s 69-68 loss to Oregon in the Sweet 16 didn’t look that bad.

The Wolverines shot 35.5 percent from 3-point land and 43.1 percent overall. Those aren’t great clips, but they’re numbers you can win with. Oregon countered with 47.1 percent and 44.8 percent, respectively.

Michigan had a chance to win it. Derrick Walton Jr. got the separation he needed (probably more than he was expecting) and launched a shot right at the 3-point line, but it hit the front of the rim and ricocheted to the right.

Maybe the most significant stat of the night is that the Ducks only grabbed six offensive rebounds. Michigan was killed on the offensive glass in the first two games of the tournament. Then again, one rebound at 1:49 dug the Wolverines’ grave, and then another at with 21 seconds left put them in it.

Defensive rebounding was a favorite target of ours all season, and it’s exactly what allowed Oregon to erase a late three-point deficit and ultimately advance to the Elite 8.

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In the first half it looked as though turnover issues might have been the death of Michigan, but it still ended up staying under its season average with eight.

All of these numbers look respectable, even favorable.

Aside from Walton wanting a second chance to take that shot, surely there’s no one who’s wanting another opportunity to play that game more than Moritz Wagner, who finished with 7 points on 3-of-10 shooting, including 0 for 4 from behind the arc.

Wagner just wasn’t himself during this game. His shot was all over the place—he had two airballs—and he was having a difficult time finishing at the rim. Coupled with two turnovers, there just wasn’t a place for him on the floor.

That led to Duncan Robinson getting more minutes, and although his shooting assisted Michigan, his defense did a lot of damage. Wagner’s struggles had a far-reaching impact in this one.

As sad as it was to watch the season come to an end, it wouldn’t be appropriate to wrap this up without giving due praise to Walton and Irvin, who pretty much single-handedly kept Michigan in the game in the second half—and then eventually gave the Wolverines the lead.

Walton finished with 20 points on 6-of-10 shooting. He also had eight assists and five rebounds.

Irvin hit quite a few big shots in the second half too. He ended up with 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting and also added eight rebounds. Irvin’s defense also played a big factor, which is fitting considering how few people seemed to recognize that when criticizing his play earlier in the season.

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Michigan’s going home earlier than it wanted, but with its frantic home stretch and the fact that the Wolverines have been to three Sweet 16’s since 2013, it’s safe to say this program is in a good place.

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