There was no way Michigan basketball was going to lose the night Trey Burke got his number retired. Still, there were some nervous moments, especially in the first half.
Michigan didn't shoot well from deep (21 percent). That, coupled with too many first-half turnovers, and missed free throws, allowed Ohio State to hang around.
The Buckeyes had a four-point lead at one point in the first half. The game was tied 30-30 in the final minute of the opening stanza, before an L.J. Cason bucket sent Michigan into intermission with a three-point lead.
Things really felt dicey when Ohio State opened the second half on a 10-1 run. It was gut-check time, and Michigan basketball responded, scoring 11 consecutive points on free throws and 2-point attempts. It wasn't fancy, just good, solid basketball.
Eventually, Michigan grabbed control and won its fourth straight Big Ten game by double digits. Yaxel Lendeborg had 18 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and three steals in 31 minutes. Trey McKenney added 12 off the bench, a total matched by Morez Johnson. John Mobley scored 22 points for Ohio State. Bruce Thornton was limited to 10 on 3-for-11 shooting. Even Mobley needed 17 shots to score his 22 points.
Michigan is 18-1 overall. The Wolverines are 8-1 in the Big Ten, with Nebraska, the only undefeated team left in the Big Ten, going into the weekend, coming to Ann Arbor on Tuesday.
Here are three observations from the win over Ohio State.
The front court bullied the Buckeyes
Michigan won the game from the inside out. If the Wolverines had made 10 3-pointers instead of five, this would have been a blowout. Instead, Michigan just sucked the life out of Ohio State, sort of like the 2023 Michigan football team used to.
Lendeborg, Morez Johnson, and Aday Mara combined for 41 points (all in double figures), 22 rebounds, six assists, five blocks, and six steals. Lendeborg was 6-of-8 on 2-point attempts. As a team, Michigan made 75 percent of its 2-point attempts. Ohio State made 50. That was the game, along with the 35-20 rebounding edge.
The shots from deep will fall. But the fact that Michigan can shoot 21 percent, miss 10 free throws, and win by 12 against a top-40 team in the KenPom is impressive. Of course, when you rebound 46.2 percent of the shots you miss, it makes things easier on your offense.
No Big Ten wins should be underrated
It feels like Michigan set an unrealistic expectation when the Wolverines destroyed three top-25 teams by 30 points or more. There's a reason Michigan is the only team to ever do that.
Beating good teams is hard. It's even harder to do it by a wide margin. After the slip up against Wisconsin, plus the performance against Penn State, fans were right to be concerned. Dusty May even said the Wolverines had gone four games without playing well.
The response was to win four straight games, two of them on the road, all by double digits. That's the kind of performance you'd expect from a Big Ten champion.
Trey McKenney keeps growing up
The five-star freshman has exceeded expectations. It's not easy to come in and be a contributor, especially on a really good team, but against Ohio State, the Michigan kid delivered a 12-point performance.
It's nothing new, though. McKenney is averaging 9.9 points per game this season, coming off the bench. He's shooting 47.2 percent from the field, 35 percent from 3-point range, and 71 percent on 2-point attempts. He's averaging 0.9 assists and 0.9 turnovers.
His game will continue to grow in that area (playmaking and ball-handling). He will only continue to have the ball more in his hands, especially down the road, but the fact that Michigan can turn to McKenney in moments of need is impressive for the true freshman.