Michigan Basketball: Grading Wolverines win vs Texas Southern

Before looking ahead to LSU, here’s one last breakdown of Michigan basketball’s win over Texas Southern with grades for each player. 

After missing out on the chance to play in the NCAA Tournament in 2020, along with everyone else, Michigan basketball returned to the Big Dance Saturday and racked up another win.

Over the last nine years, Michigan basketball has now won 19 NCAA Tournament games and according to Clayton Safie of Rivals, that is the most of any college hoops team during that time period.

The Wolverines can also lock up a fourth-straight Sweet 16 appearance, at least in terms of tournaments played, with a win over LSU Monday.

That’s going to be a challenge, especially as U-M still tries to find itself without Isaiah Livers, but before we break down that matchup, here are the grades for Texas Southern.

Guards

Mike Smith: A

Smith is one of the guys that need to step up and score more with Livers out and he did just that in the first round. Smith knocked down two 3-pointers, dished out five assists, turned it over just twice and had 16 points. Smith will have to be aggressive for Michigan and you kind of get the feeling that the Wolverines will go as Smith does, at least on offense.

Eli Brooks: A-

Brooks was just 3-for-9 from the field, but all three of his makes were 3-pointers, including two big makes early that set the tone. He does need to be aggressive shooting the ball. Hopefully, he can just shoot the ball more efficiently. Other than that, his five assists were a big key. He also had just one turnover. He did get called for three fouls and the team as a whole had an issue there.

Zeb Jackson: B

The Wolverines got a spark from Zeb Jackson who buried two 3-pointers on four attempts Saturday. It was an early rotation for Jackson, who finished with six points in eight minutes. However, I wouldn’t expect to see him that early against LSU, or maybe not at all.

It was a smart move by Howard to get him some confidence and get him familiar with the NCAA Tournament setting and who knows, maybe he will get hot. He’s got all the talent in the world, plus his athleticism jumps off the screen. It’s just about refinement.