After beating Illinois on Saturday afternoon, Michigan basketball might finally be back on track following a bad stretch in the Big Ten.
It’s been more than a month since Michigan basketball last won back-to-back games. That happened on Dec. 17 and 22 when the Wolverines beat Maryland Eastern Shore and Furman.
What we’ve seen from Michigan the last three games, though, is a better team that’s starting to find itself, especially on defense. Following their 66-57 win against Illinois on Saturday (a team that beat Michigan 85-69 on Jan. 11), the Wolverines have strung together a good stretch of games and won two of their last three.
Most notably, the defense showed up in the close loss against Wisconsin and then again in the win over the Illini.
Michigan’s defensive numbers have been among the worst in the Big Ten since the conference schedule began, and it’s the main reason the Wolverines haven’t been able to win many games with an offense that’s statistically one of the best in the conference.
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But Michigan might be back.
The Wolverines’ defensive effort has been much more spirited lately, and for the most part, it isn’t coming at the expense of the offensive production. And it’s coming from multiple players. Perhaps the only player getting decent minutes who hasn’t been making an impact is Mark Donnal; everyone else has been stepping up in a big way.
That includes D.J. Wilson, who had 19 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists against Illinois. Derrick Walton Jr. had a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. In Michigan’s high-scoring win over Nebraska, Zak Irvin and Moritz Wagner had 21 and 23 points, respectively.
On the defensive end, it’s been the interior of the unit that’s garnering the most attention. Between Wagner and Wilson, the Wolverines aren’t shutting everyone down, but it’s been a night-and-day difference from what it looked like before this better run started.
Walton and his backup (and sometimes partner on the floor) Xavier Simpson have done a fine job limiting the looks that opponents’ top shooters get. Malcolm Hill, Illinois’ top scorer at 17.8 points per game, only managed 13 against the Wolverines.
Four of Michigan’s next five games are against Indiana and Michigan State, teams that have had some really high moments this season, but also some really low ones. Sandwiched between those matchups is a home game against Ohio State.
After those five, we should have a pretty good idea of if the Wolverines are actually making a resurgence, of if they’ve just had a solid stretch and are about to revert.
If this is a trend that continues, Michigan’s season might be saved.
