Michigan Basketball: 3 keys to Wolverines beating Wisconsin

Win with defense

Michigan basketball played really well on offense in the first meeting with the Badgers, but the Wolverines won the game because their defense was flat-out dominant.

The defense is also the biggest reason why Michigan is 13-1 overall and 8-1 in the Big Ten conference. U-M is an elite defensive team and that’s the kind of thing that translates much easier than offense, especially when you haven’t played an actual game for weeks.

I’ve come to not underestimate Juwan Howard and I’m sure the coaching staff had ways of at least keeping these guys in shape and as sharp as possible.

And with a week of practice, it’s possible the offense could be humming like it was before the pause, however, in my eyes, if Michigan wins this game, it will be with defense.

Wisconsin is down to 10th in the Big Ten in 3-point percentage, 11th in points and ninth in overall field goal percentage. Michigan leads the Big Ten in scoring defense, 2-point percentage defense, overall field-goal percentage defense and defensive rebounds.

Michigan is also fifth in 3-point percentage defense, but the caveat there is that the Wolverines allow the second-fewest 3-point shots in the Big Ten, so they limit attempts and force teams into a low percentage.

The defense will probably be ahead of the offense to start but Wisconsin breaking out of its shooting slump against the Wolverines doesn’t seem all that likely, which could lead to a defensive affair, and if that’s the case, I like Michigan’s chances.