Michigan Basketball: 4 factors that shaped the season so far
By Nick Popio
Road Woes Mounted
Michigan’s first true road test came at the KFC Yum center in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Going in Michigan looked like the favorite to take over the number one spot in the rankings with a win, but it never held the lead and was on the verge of getting blown out. It turned out to be Michigan’s worst offensive performance of the year up to this point.
Two games later Howard took his crew to Champagne and got used and abused by freshman sensation Kofi Cockburn.
The 3-point shot was non-existent and no one could have guessed that these two would go in completely opposite directions from that night on. Issues were beginning to mount with a top ten battle with Oregon directly on deck.
Losses to an average program in Minnesota and an Iowa bunch that hardly ever loses at home hit hard. The Wolverines were primed to take both until they fell apart during crunch time. It turned out to be a four-game losing skid that put them near the basement of college basketball’s elite conference. Not until this past Tuesday night could Howard’s shorthanded squad finally get over the hump against Nebraska in a must-win contest to save their hopes on a ticking clock.