Michigan basketball turned the ball over too much, allowed too many offensive rebounds, and allowed a late cover to Rutgers, but the Wolverines still got an important 66-63 road win over Rutgers on Saturday at Jersey Mike's Arena.
It's never easy to win the road. It's especially tough to win against Rutgers on the road. The gym was loud and even without Dylan Harper, it wasn't going to be easy.
There were frustrating moments for the offense. Rutgers had 13 steals, Vlad Goldin struggled at times to assert himself and the turnovers contintue to plague Michigan basketball.
Yet, the defense made up for it even though defensive rebounding was a major issue. The Wolverines allowed 12. They won the rebounding total but Rutgers got a lot of extra possessions. The Scarlet Knights attempted 36 3-pointers. However, they shot just 28 percent.
Ace Bailey finished with just 10 points. He didn't make a single 3-pointer (0-7) and made just 3-of-15 attempts from the field. Danny Wolf finished with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Vlad Goldin pitched in with 14 points and six rebounds, while Trey Donaldson added 10 points and six assists.
The Wolverines are 8-2 in the Big Ten and 16-5 overall. They stemmed the tide after losses to Minnesota and Purdue. They could have easily lost against Penn State a team with less mental toughness could have lost on Saturday.
These games come down to a few possessions -- a few plays here or there and Michigan just made more of them against Rutgers. Here are the gut reactions.
Gut reactions to Michigan basketball win over Rutgers
- Michigan found its offensive identity late. Goldin and Wolf scored 15 of the last 17 points. U-M shot 57.6 percent on 2-point attempts, which is below the season average but good enough to win.
- Justin Pippen's impact won't look like much in the box score, but he's getting more and more comfortable. Just like his dad, he's active on defense.
- Will Tschetter does something good every time he's on the court.
- Rutgers isn't a great offensive team, but holding anyone to 38 percent on 2-point attempts is a good day at the office.
- Sam Walters gave this team a huge spark in the first half with two treys.
- Michigan basketball feels back on track.
- Go Blue!