WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Michigan basketball players they may need some ice packs after a hard-hitting confrontation with Purdue, and a loud whistle can ring in their ears until Saturday morning. But hitting the road in an imperfect game, Michigan scored yet another unbalanced victory, once again proving that it can be listed among the best teams in the country.
On a night that included an absence of COVID-19, low-scoring nights by Hunter Dickinson and Franz Wagner (16 points out of 4 out of 17 combined shots) and 18 fouls in Michigan and a lot of unnecessary physicality, the seventh placed Wolverines still pulled away for a comfortable victory, punching Purdue, 70-53.
Boilermakers had 30.8 percent shots, including a 11 to 30 clip in layups and a 2 to 12 clip showing in 3 seconds. Michigan saw only two players score double digits in the defensive effort and committed 18 unusual fouls, but he was led by 22 points and 10 rebounds from Isaiah Livers and a courageous defensive effort across the board.
While the Wolverines achieved a double-digit lead, the night did not come without drama. About two hours before the complaint, Purdue revealed that the attacking striker and second-highest scorer Sasha Stefanovic had tested positive for COVID-19 and would be out for 17 days.
While fans expressed online concerns about the safety of playing the game on Friday night, Michigan was evidently informed of the positive tests before traveling to Purdue on Thursday, and after requesting several PCR tests from the players and staff of the Boilermakers , was happy to play.
And play the game that the Wolverines played. Once again, showing a high level of energy and physicality in defense, Michigan invaded the 14-4 lead. The Wolverines held the Boilermakers in 2-by-14 shots to open the game with a couple of turns to go with several missing layups. Michigan didn’t set the world on fire on the offensive side of the ball, but pushed the lead to double digits with a pair of 3s kickout.
This was critical, because while Purdue didn’t capitalize, the Wolverines played an uncomfortable first half forged with potential pitfalls. Hunter Dickinson once again had problems, recording his second foul with nine minutes left, and Austin Davis was called for two fouls. So, while the two played an impressive save, they resigned themselves to the bench when Michigan placed striker Brandon Johns Jr. in 5th place.
Despite a noticeable height and weight handicap against Trevion Williams (6 feet-10, 265 pounds) and Zach Edey (7 feet-4, 285 pounds), Johns remained underestimated. As a team, Purdue made only 3 of his first 10 layup attempts, hit 8 out of 16 in the first half of the painting, got just seven points out of nine shots from Edey and Williams and failed to hit any of six out of 3 point attempts .
The first half was not pretty for Michigan. The Wolverines hit just 41 percent of the field – including a 2-in-10 display by starters Mike Smith, Franz Wagner and Hunter Dickinson – and were hampered by seven fouls. Still, with nine points of deviation, a solid 12 points from Livers and a physical defense, Michigan entered the range with a 34-21 lead.
In the opening minute of the second half, the Wolverines looked set to start with a quick 5-0 run, but Purdue, predicting the rest of the time, responded with a quick 8-1 run.
The Boilermakers, playing with few players and clearly struggling to kick the ball, were successful in their effort to make the game a slugfest. Every Wolverine run that seemed likely to end the game was answered, and Michigan’s lead never reached 19 points again.
Still, the Wolverines have shown throughout the season that they feel comfortable winning in many ways, and won badly on Friday night. Whether it was Livers’ score, Eli Brooks’ courage, Johns’ defense or Wagner’s creation of plays, Michigan made the right moves to emerge at the top of Mackey Arena on Friday night.