Michigan Basketball: 3 takeaways from a pressing win at Rutgers
By Nick Popio
Michigan basketball went into one of the trickiest places to play in the Big Ten and beat a desperate Rutgers squad by double digits.
Down 13-3 with six minutes gone in the first half, Michigan basketball didn’t allow Rutgers to score 40 points the rest of the way. The Wolverines grabbed the lead by halftime and never gave it back. They picked up another valuable road win to their resume with three games left before the Big Ten tournament tips off in Chicago.
Here are the three takeaways.
1. Michigan’s defense held Rutgers below 50 points
The Scarlet Knights could only muster 22.5 points per half in the home loss Thursday night. Cam Spencer and Cliff Omoruyi were the only two who scored more then 10 for the Knights. Caleb McConnell returned to action for Rutgers and had seven off the bench for Steve Pikiell’s bunch who came in to Thursday night’s showdown hot, fresh off a monster win at Wisconsin.
The 45 points is not a season low for Rutgers, which some might find hard to believe. They lost at home to Seton Hall back in December 45-43. For Michigan basketball it is the fewest points that they have given up all year. That may not last very long though as offensively challenged Wisconsin travel to Crisler on Sunday in another must-win bubble matchup for both clubs.
Rutgers loses to Michigan 58-45. A miserable offensive performance. Shot 38% from the floor, 5 of 16 from the foul line and outscored 17-3 in points off of turnovers. RU held Michigan 15 points below season scoring average and still lost by 13. Painful loss & missed opportunity.
— Aaron Breitman (@aaron_breitman) February 24, 2023
Michigan has not allowed less then 50 points in a contest since the 2018-19 season when it happened three times during that year. It took Rutgers six minutes to jump out to a 10 point advantage and roughly 34 minutes to break the 40 point mark in a loss that could cost them a ticket to the big dance if they lose out.