Michigan Basketball: 3 keys to a victory over Villanova

Michigan basketball will take on Villanova in the Sweet 16 on Thursday night and here are three keys to the Wolverines beating the Wildcats. 

Can’t even believe we’ve made it this far, to be honest. By now, all of the readers probably know that I am usually one of the more optimistic Michigan writers out there. I usually try to see the bright side of every situation, no matter how dire it may seem, but boy, this Michigan basketball run is something else.

It’s funny that I even doubted this team in my bracket when I had them losing to Tennessee. I didn’t even follow my own advice and the Wolverines proved me wrong, but I’m glad I was wrong because now we get at least one more game to talk hoops.

Michigan basketball is only one of two Big Ten teams left still in the tournament, as once again, the rest of the Big Ten has failed to carry their weight (what a surprise). That’s five straight Sweet 16’s from this program (a Big Ten record by the way). Only Gonzaga has a better run right now — pure dominance from the boys in blue.

Anyways, up next, Michigan faces the big bad boys from the Big East, the Villanova Wildcats. Coached by one of the very best minds in NCAA History, who does things the right way (and I can’t stress enough how rare that is in today’s college sports world now), Jay Wright.

If Michigan basketball wins, well, they’ll get a chance to exorcise their Elite Eight loss last year. Once Michigan beat Tennessee to reach this game though, they have now had a successful season. This game (and any others that may follow) is just the cherry on top.

Here are three keys to a victory over the Wildcats.

Limit the threes

I feel like this will automatically be put on a “3 Keys” article, but rinse and repeat from the CSU game, Michigan cannot allow Villanova to get hot from three.

Let’s be real. In all honesty, if Tennessee had connected on a few more threes, they would’ve won the game against Michigan. Credit definitely goes to Michigan for playing zone and limiting threes, but the game of basketball is hot and cold. Michigan has since played an opponent in the NCAA Tournament with each distinction.

Against Colorado State, the Rams were hot from three (at least in the first half), but in the game against Tennessee, the Volunteers were cold from three. So, the question is, what version of the 3-pointer will we get from the Villanova Wildcats?

Hey, as long as Michigan does its job and defends to the best of its ability, I am happy. If ‘Nova makes some crazy threes, you tip your cap and move on. All you can do is play defense the best you can.

And while we’re at it, how about Caleb Houstan start hitting some shots? This has had to be an extremely frustrating season for him. He is pretty much like Michigan’s season combined into a human being. One game he is hot, the next game he is cold. 0 points (against Tennessee) cannot happen again the rest of this tournament for Houstan if Michigan wants to win any more games.