Michigan Basketball: 3 keys to Wolverines beating Florida State

Defense, defense, defense

The Michigan basketball team was outstanding on the offensive end against Texas A&M. I mean 14 threes is simply unheard of. Yet, the most impressive thing about the win for the Wolverines was the way they defended, especially in the first half.

The Aggies ended up being the first team in the tournament to shoot better than 40 percent against the Wolverines, but the shots didn’t start falling until the game was already out of reach.

Despite giving up a lot of size to an Aggies team with multiple players 6-10 and above, including Robert Williams, a soon-to-be lottery pick, Michigan controlled the paint. Wagner scored three buckets inside early and that seemed to open the floodgates.

Zavier Simpson’s six steals were also a catalyst. UM forced turnovers and turned those Texas A&M mistakes into easy points. Florida State ranks 227th in terms of turnovers but is averaging just 11 in its first three tournament games.

The Noles not only score a lot of points, but a lot of different guys score them. Three players average more than 12 points a game led by Terance Mann, who averages 12.9. Phil Cofer is next at 12.8 and Braian Angola-Rodas scores 12.7. FSU has six other guys that average at least six points per game and as a team, it also has the fourth-best shooting percentage in the nation (45.8).

Keeping Florida State in check will be a huge challenge for the Wolverines. Kenpom has the Seminoles listed at 33rd in adjusted offense. Yet, Michigan has shut down other offenses such as Michigan State, Houston and Purdue that rank higher. UM also had the third-best defense and the 24th ranked offense.