Michigan basketball is headed on the road for the second round of the NIT. Here are three keys and a prediction for the Wolverines vs Vanderbilt.
The Michigan basketball team is still playing and even though the Wolverines aren’t in the NCAA tournament, they have the chance to get closer to Las Vegas for the NIT semifinals.
Awaiting the Wolverines is Vanderbilt, a team that has won 21 games and is coached by former NBA All-Star Jerry Stackhouse.
Juwan Howard and Stackhouse used to be teammates in the NBA. It will be interesting to see how this matchup plays out but Vanderbilt has a strange arena and the atmosphere will be interesting.
Motivation is key in the NIT. We talked about that last week and that’s going to be key for the Wolverines once again. Jett Howard didn’t play against Toledo and I feel like he won’t against Vandy, but everyone else was engaged. Joey Baker had maybe his best game as a Michigan basketball player.
So I have high hopes for this matchup and here are the keys for Michigan basketball, as well as a prediction.
Defend the shooters
Vanderbilt is a team that sort of lives and dies by the 3-pointer. The Commodores are ranked in the top 64 when it comes to 3-point makes (64th) and 3-point attempts (46th). Vanderbilt doesn’t shoot a great percentage though. That doesn’t mean they won’t make shots at home though.
Tyrin Lawrence is the top scorer. You could call him Vanderbilt’s Kobe Bufkin, but Myles Strute is a name Michigan basketball fans need to know. He averages 2.2 3-point field goals per game and if those two guys go off, it could be a long day for the Wolverines.
Vanderbilt also runs a lot of players for its shooters according to UMHoops.com, so defensive communication and good contests are going to be essential for the Wolverines.
Hunter Dickinson needs to dominate the ball
Vanderbilt doesn’t have their No. 1 big man as Liam Robbins is out for the season with an injury. The Commodores aren’t a great defensive team and they rank 199th in 2-point percentage defense.
That should be a great matchup for Hunter Dickinson. Just like in the first round of the NIT against Toledo, Michigan basketball is going to have to deal with double teams or maybe some zone.
I doubt that we’ll see Dickinson get a bunch of one-on-one opportunities. Michigan needs to feed him the ball and he needs to be aggressive. If Vanderbilt allows him to shoot open 3-pointers or twos, Dickinson should be aggressive in those shots.
Vanderbilt ranks 52nd in 3-point percentage defense, but with Joey Baker, Bufkin, and others getting open looks, Michigan can’t shy away from those opportunities. Baker is going to get good looks — he made them against Toledo and it’s an X-factor here as well.
However, those shots should be created by Dickinson as long as he is fed the ball and makes good decisions.
Kobe needs to play well on both ends
Every time Kobe Bufkin is on the court, I’m hoping it’s not going to be the last time we see him in a Michigan basketball uniform.
I think he could have a shot at being Big Ten Player of the Year if he were to return next season and while he didn’t quite do that this year, his leap in the last two months didn’t seem that far off from what Nik Stauskas did.
Bufkin is Michigan’s best two-way player and his defense is going to be guarding Vandy’s top scorer (playing in the game) Tyin Lawrence. Bufkin has the potential to score at all three levels and when he’s playing high-level defense, Michigan is pretty hard to beat.
If Bufkin has a big night, my bet is that Michigan basketball moves on.
Michigan basketball vs Vanderbilt prediction
The Wolverines are a two-point underdog according to DraftKings, but I think Michigan is a better overall team and with Vanderbilt not having its best big, I see the Wolverines winning outright.