Wei Lin's 3-point jumper as time elapsed in the first half gave Oregon the lead going into the locker rooms. Out of the break, Michigan basketball grasped the momentum back to leave the Ducks wallowing in their own pity. Here are some of the takeaways from a successful West Coast trip for the second year in a row.
Oregon is better then their record indicates
No Jackson Shelstad and no Nate Bittle meant Oregon was handicapped from the tip. Minus their two leading scorers, Dana Altman had his team ready to put up a credible fight. They outplayed Michigan in the game's opening 20 minutes. Coming off that 35-point loss to Nebraska, they could have quit, but had Michigan on the ropes at halftime. A healthy Shelstad and Bittle could have turned their season around with an earth-shattering win over a top-five team, had they been dealt a better hand on Saturday.
For the first time this season, Michigan basketball didn't win the points in the paint battle
Oregon matched Michigan's 32 points from within point-blank range. Aday Mara had a sequence where he was getting contested bunnies until Dusty May relieved him for a breather. Morez Johnson Jr. re-entered after three fouls in about 12 minutes. He wasn't as big of a factor as he has been lately. Yaxel Lendeborg only connected on one field goal, and Will Tschetter had eight points from deep and the free-throw line combined.
Six teams are separating themselves in the Big Ten race
Michigan, Nebraska, Purdue, Illinois, Michigan State and Wisconsin are the legit contenders to win the conference as it stands today. The Badgers will own the tiebreaker over Michigan, while Dusty May's club will get a puncher's chance at the rest of the group in mere weeks. The last inklings of January will feature Illinois going to Purdue and Michigan's two jousting's with Nebraska and Michigan State in East Lansing. Everything will be settled on the court.