If you wanted to find out if Michigan basketball truly is the best of the best, this week is for you. After a scare against Northwestern and a dominant second half against UCLA, Michigan basketball finds itself at the most difficult point of its regular season. The Wolverines, who will be ranked #1 in the nation on Monday, play at Purdue on Tuesday night and in Washington, D.C. against Duke on Saturday.
Purdue, currently the #13 team in the nation, is tied for second place in the Big Ten with an 11-3 record. A loss against Michigan basketball, and the Boilermakers are likely eliminated from Big Ten contention. After losing three games in a row at the end of January, Purdue has won 4 games in a row and seems to be finding its stride.
The Boilermakers have two of the best players in the Big Ten in seniors Braden Smith and Trey
Kaufman-Renn. Mackey Arena is going to be a crazy environment. This game, for Purdue, could make or break their season. A loss against Michigan, and the Boilermakers won't have much to play for the rest of the regular season. A win, however could spark a challenge for the Big Ten championship.
On paper, Michigan basketball should match up well with Purdue. But the Wolverines match up well with just about anyone. Michigan has had some slow starts on the road during Big Ten play. The Wolverines cannot have a slow start against Purdue if they want to leave with a win. Michigan is the better team, but they're going to have to keep their composure in a crazy environment. A win against Purdue would leave Illinois as the sole contender for Michigan's throne.
Michigan vs Duke is a Potential Championship Preview
How rare is it to get a matchup like this at the end of the regular season? Michigan vs Duke could very well be a #1 vs #2 matchup, depending on how far Arizona drops. At the very least, this is a matchup between two likely #1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, and this is definitely a potential championship preview.
With that in mind, it's fair to wonder what level of intensity we'll see in this one. Obviously the players are going to give it their all, but will the coaches? Will Dusty May want to put forth his best game plan against Duke, knowing that he could see the Blue Devils again late in the tournament? My guess is that both teams will go all out to try and stake their claim as the best team in the nation, but who knows.
This is a matchup that the entire country will be watching. Freshman phenom Cameron Boozer leads the Blue Devils in just about every stat. He's their heart and soul, and he's going to be matched up against Yaxel Lendeborg and Morez Johnson all night long. Boozer scores over 1/4 of Duke's points, coming in at 22.8 per game. If you shut him down, you'll win.
The Blue Devils and the Wolverines have a common opponent we can look to: Michigan State. On December 6th, Duke went to East Lansing and beat Michigan State 66-60. Michigan beat Michigan State in East Lansing 83-71 on January 30th.
I actually really like how Michigan matches up against Duke. More specifically, I really like how Yaxel Lendeborg matches up against Cameron Boozer. Lendeborg is listed at 6'9, 240lbs while Boozer is 6'9, 250lbs. They're practically identical in size. Lendeborg is a 2x Conference DPOY, and has shown incredible defending skills at Michigan. If he can stay out of foul trouble, he should be able to limit Boozer.
Get your popcorn ready, because we've got a fantastic week of basketball coming up. If Michigan can go 1-1 in these games, I think that would be considered a success. 2-0 would be absolutely incredible. I can't wait to watch these games.