Michigan Basketball: 3 takeaways from a disputed loss to Virginia

Michigan basketball held an 11-point edge at the break and choked. After executing their best half of basketball of the year, the Wolverines collapsed to the No. 3 squad in the country in the second.

Virginia got off to a 9-2 start, but it was all Michigan basketball once the Wolverines caught fire and settled into things in the first half. They shot over 60% from the field and stretched the lead to 11 by halftime.

The Cavaliers tightened it up within the first five minutes or so with a fury of offense. They climbed all the way back to take the lead and it came down to the wire as Armaan Franklin missed a pair of free throws giving Michigan a chance, but Jett Howard’s 3-point attempt was stripped out of his hands to end the threat.

Here are the three takeaways.

1. Jett Howard was not fouled on his potential game-winning three-point attempt

This may be very hard for some to understand, but the Virginia defenders played textbook defense in not allowing Howard to get a shot off.

As depressing of an ending as it was for Michigan loyalists, they can’t let this loss linger. They competed with the number three school in the country and gave a superior effort.

Virginia’s defense is always hard to handle and Michigan basketball acquitted itself fairly well for the initial 20 minutes. The Wolverines scored 45 on the Cavaliers and that’s as much as they give up in 40 minutes in some of their contests alone.

Michigan basketball has a lot of positives coming out of this despite drawing the short stick.

The Wolverines blossomed in the first half. They looked like they were going to lay down and die early on, but kept creeping back into it. They showed that they can hang with just about anyone in the nation and that should be the revamped expectations moving on to Kentucky in London on Sunday.