Michigan basketball rolled past Purdue on Friday night in the Big Ten tournament and here are three eye-opening stats coming out of the win.
; Michigan Wolverines center Danny Wolf (1) and guard L.J. Cason (2) celebrate after a play during the second half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Michigan Wolverines center Danny Wolf (1) and guard L.J. Cason (2) celebrate after a play during the second half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images | Robert Goddin-Imagn Images
Going into the Big Ten tournament, it felt like it was important for Michigan basketball to play well, regardless of the final outcome.
After a grueling stretch of games, some injuries, and illness, Michigan looked fresh for the first time in a long time. Rubin Jones looked like himself, and played a key role, as did Roddy Gayle off the bench.
Michigan still didn’t shoot the ball that well from beyond the arc at just 31 percent, but the Wolverines have been consistently under 25 percent so that was still a huge step in the right direction. You could feel the confidence rising with each shot and some early makes were massive for Tre Donaldson.
However, this win was about Dusty May, too. He told people all week that he believed this team would start making shots again. Then, in practice, Rubin Jones said the coaching staff limited dribbling in practice, which was wildly effective. The ball was moving — players were too, and the result was an elite offensive performance (1.3 points per possession).
That’s hard to do against anyone, let alone Purdue. Michigan basketball has a quick turnaround against a Maryland team that just won in Ann Arbor 10 days ago. The Terps are quietly playing as well as anyone in the Big Ten and it will be a huge challenge.
25 assists on 30 made field goals
This isn’t a stat you’d expect to see in a Big Ten tournament game, but that’s how well the Wolverines played offensively.
Danny Wolf was off the charts. He made 7 of 10 shots from the field and dished out six assists. He wasn’t the only active playmaker for Michigan basketball though.
The 25 assists were impressive, but what’s arguably even more impressive is the fact that U-M had four different players register at least five assists. Tre Donaldson, LJ Cason, and Nimari Burnett all had five assists, which shows just how well players were moving, cutting, passing, and finishing.
It was a beautiful thing to watch.
All eight players score at least six points
Depth has been an issue this season. Dusty May hasn’t shied away from the fact that the Wolverines have a short rotation. But against Purdue, he extended it to eight to get more minutes for Cason, which proved to be a critical decision.
Cason had a huge impact, beyond what the box score showed. He only played 22 minutes but had six points, three boards, and five assists. He didn’t make any of his four 3-pointers, but the shots will fall and the explosiveness gave Purdue fits. So did his passing and his defensive intensity.
Will Tschetter didn’t make a triple but scored eight points. Roddy Gayle earned six trips to the free throw line and made five free throws, which was an encouraging sign as he finished with 11. Jones also scored eight points on just two field-goal attempts.
Every player on the roster had a positive plus/minus ratio — another impressive stat, but if the Wolverines get bench scoring like they got on Friday, they will be a dangerous team.
Michigan basketball turned it over on nine percent of its possessions
Turnovers have been a constant issue for this Michigan basketball team. The Wolverines have turned the ball over more than any other team in the Big Ten.
Purdue has also been elite at forcing turnovers this season. Heck, the Boilermakers forced 22 when the two teams met at Mackey Arena. Michigan had 11 in the win in Ann Arbor.
In terms of turnovers, this was the best showing of the season. Danny Wolf had two turnovers and he was the only Wolverine who turned it over more than once.
After the game, Wolf told the Big Ten Network, “When we only turn it over six times, I like our five against any five.”
After what we saw last night against Purdue, it’s hard to argue.
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