Michigan Wolverines
Big Ten (22-12, 10-8)
Michigan, by their standards under Jim Beilein, have not had the season they were hoping for. There were a few factors that led to Michigan’s bubble status: this team’s defense has not been as good as recent teams, and the injuries to Caris LeVert and Spike Albrecht hampered them all season. Together they only played 23 total games all season. With those two guys out – they are Michigan’s most experienced players – the Wolverines lost a lot of production and that showed as they dug in for conference play. Offensively, they did not run as smooth as they could have without two of their leaders.
Big Wins: 11/27 vs Texas (78-72), 1/12 Maryland (70-67), 2/13 Purdue (61-56)
Bad Losses: 11/25 vs Connecticut (60-74), 2/16 at Ohio State (66-76), 2/28 at Wisconsin (57-68)
Coach: John Beilein
Why They Can Surprise:
The Wolverines best bet is relying on the three-point shot. That is one area this season that they have really excelled. Two of the top three three-point shooters in the conference are on Michigan’s roster. Aubrey Dawkins and Duncan Robinson both shoot over 46% from beyond the arc. As a team, they trailed only Indiana in three-point field goals made. Zak Irvin has also been a great leader in the stead of LeVert and Albrecht. He and Derrick Walton, Jr. have done a great job picking up the slack in scoring. They will need to remain hot for Michigan in the postseason. The Wolverines are not particularly deep, but Coach Beilein has to feel comfortable playing most of his guys. There are not a lot of minutes on his bench, but a significant number of players have seen playing time due to injury this year. They would be able to step in and step up.
Why They Can Disappoint:
Michigan has been so inconsistent all season that they would need to put together some kind of run to blaze through the postseason. Most of their losses have come at the hands of the Big Ten’s best, and they had a tough schedule. But in those losses they could not seem to get things together either offensively or defensively. They either gave up 80-plus points or could not seem to muster 60 points. This is not an uncommon problem in college basketball, but it directly impacts results. Michigan seemed to experience these ups-and-downs as much as any team. Additionally, they have a poor rebounding margin, which hurts them in the possession game. More than anything, they may just not have enough firepower to keep up with other teams in the postseason. As mentioned above, their depth could ultimately become a problem for them despite lots of player experience. Production from those bench players will be a big question.
Probable Starters:
Zak Irvin, Junior, Guard, 11.7 ppg, 3.1 apg, 4.6 rpg
Derrick Walton Jr., Junior, Guard, 11.7 ppg, 4.5 apg, 5.6 rpg, 1.6 spg
Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman, Sophomore, Guard, 8.2 ppg, 1.6 apg
Duncan Robinson, Sophomore, Guard, 11.2 ppg, 1.7 apg
Mark Donnal, Junior, Forward, 7.9 ppg, 3.8 rpg
Key Roleplayers:
Aubrey Dawkins, Sophomore, Guard, 6.8 ppg
Ricky Doyle, Junior, Forward, 3.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 74.9 (137th in nation, 6th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 67.1 (62, 6)
Field-Goal Percentage: 47.2 (35, 4)
Field-Goal Defense: 44.5 (240, 11)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 9.7 (14, 2)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 39.0 (17, 3)
Free-Throw Percentage: 73.4 (45, 4)
Rebound Margin: 0.0 (198, 10)
Assists Per Game: 15.0 (75, 6)
Turnovers Per Game: 9.9 (8, 1)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2014 NCAA Second Round win over Wofford
2014 NCAA Third Round win over Texas
2014 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Tennessee
2014 NCAA Regional Final loss to Kentucky
2013 NCAA Second Round win over South Dakota State
2013 NCAA Third Round win over VCU
2013 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Kansas
2013 NCAA Regional Final win over Florida
2013 NCAA National Semifinal win over Syracuse
2013 NCAA National Final loss to Louisville
2012 NCAA Second Round loss to Ohio
2011 NCAA Round of 64 win over Tennessee
2011 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Duke
2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over Clemson
2009 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Oklahoma
2007 NIT First Round win over Utah State
2007 NIT Second Round loss to Florida State
2006 NIT First Round win over UTEP
2006 NIT Second Round win over Notre Dame
2006 NIT Quarterly Final win over Miami
2006 NIT Semifinal win over Old Dominion
2006 NIT Final loss to South Carolina
2004 NIT First Round win over Missouri
2004 NIT Second Round win over Oklahoma
2004 NIT Quarterfinal win over Hawaii
2004 NIT Semifinal win over Oregon
2004 NIT Final win over Rutgers
*all team stats through 3/6
