Jordan Poole rises to occasion for Michigan Basketball against Indiana

Michigan basketball got a lot of strong efforts in its win over Indiana Saturday, but the best performance might have come from Jordan Poole.

The great thing about sports, is that you never know what is going to happen. For Michigan basketball, it didn’t seem like a good thing when Charles Matthews picked up an early foul.

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But as it turns out, Matthews getting an early foul was the best thing that happened to Michigan basketball against Indiana. Why? Because it brought freshman Jordan Poole onto the floor early and gave him the chance to explode for 19 points in the Wolverines 69-55 win over the Hoosiers.

Poole came out of the gates firing, knocking down three 3-pointers in the first half and scoring 11 points as Michigan built a 34-21 lead at halftime.

Poole continued to play well in the second half, scoring eight more points to finish with a team-high 19. Poole was 5-of-10 from deep, while also grabbing three rebounds. Matthews, who was limited to 19 points, had eight points and three rebounds.

Moe Wagner also had a big day for Michigan, scoring 13 points and grabbing seven boards. Yet, the day belonged to Poole, who continued to emerge as possibly the best freshman in the class of three that also includes Isaiah Livers and starting point guard Eli Brooks.

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Yet, it was Poole that came to Michigan as the highest-rated of the three. Early in the season, he was behind the others in the rotation, but his impressive play on both ends of the floor recently caused him to move up the depth chart.

The win over Indiana was big for Michigan, which was beaten handily Wednesday night at North Carolina. It moves Michigan to 1-0 in Big Ten play, as well as 7-2 overall.

It was the second top-100 win of the season for the Wolverines, who will have a chance to get another Monday against Ohio State. However, the story right now is Poole and a freshman class that continues to emerge.

At the start of the season, no one doubted the talent of Michigan, which was considered by many to be an NCAA tournament threat. But with the solid play of Poole, Livers and Brooks, Michigan is not only more talented than expected, its is also more athletic.

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We will see if Poole can continue to excel, but right now, he looks like an unexpected find, one that has made an immediate impact for Michigan in the Big Ten.