Michigan basketball can't afford any more squandered opportunities
Michigan had another golden opportunity for a good win at Iowa Thursday night in Iowa City. In the end, the Wolverines wilted down the stretch (again) and lost in overtime, 93-84, in a game it should have won.
“We just gave the game away at the end of the day,” junior center Hunter Dickinson said. “We gave it away.”
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And that’s been the theme so far this year — close, but can’t get over the hump. And “close” doesn’t count when it comes to tournament resumes … and as of now, Michigan doesn’t really have one.
That’s because they’ve failed to close games against good teams when they were there for the taking. Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina and now Iowa, they’ve been in it late with a chance to win — they just can’t finish.
On Thursday, it was defensive lapses, bad turnovers, and poor defense down the stretch that gave Iowa the chance to come back down 7 in the last 70 seconds. They took advantage, coming all the way back on a 4-point play by Payton Sandfort.
It was literally the only thing Michigan couldn’t afford with 20 seconds remaining, but Michigan sophomore guard Kobe Bufkin — who had put the Wolverines up 4 just moments before with a key jumper — got in his space and fouled him on the shot. Moments before, Sandfort had hit a triple to cut it to 77-75.
Had they played the 3-point line and not allowed shots beyond the arc, Michigan would have won. Instead, they’re left wondering — again — what happened.
“Unfortunately, we did not do a good job of defending, especially in the last four minutes of the [second half],” head coach Juwan Howard said.
And after Bufkin fouled out on the Sandfort triple and Michigan freshman guard Dug McDaniel missed badly on a last second floater, the Wolverines limped to overtime knowing they had given one away.
“The first two minutes [of overtime], we didn’t look like we had any confidence,” Howard added.
It didn’t help either that the Hawkeyes, a high scoring team anyway, got several second chance opportunities. They came up with 14 offensive rebounds on Michigan, second chances on over a third of their first shots.
Michigan freshman Jett Howard was fantastic offensively, keeping Michigan in it with 34 points. At the same time, he managed 1 rebound and no assists.
“We gave them extra possessions because we didn’t do a good job of putting bodies on guys, didn’t do a good job of holding them to one possession after we played defense,” Juwan Howard said. “We talked about it. We watched it on film for three straight damn days and did not have a carryover when it mattered the most.”
Michigan also didn’t get a great whistle, Howard noted. They shot 6 free throws total, and Dickinson said many times it “wasn’t from lack of aggression.”
“It’s kind of tough to win ball games when you only shoot six free throws and the other team shoots 22. I’m not pointing fingers, but that doesn’t look inviting,” Juwan Howard added.
They know they’re a good team, though, Jett Howard said, which makes it all the more frustrating.
But good teams find ways to finish games, and this Michigan squad hasn’t … yet. If it doesn’t soon, this talented group will be sitting home during NCAA Tournament time wondering how they let a season with so much promise get away.
