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Here is my video from inside Crisler. There were probably around 1500 people in there and it was a great event. I am pretty sure the fans, players, and coaches will remember it for a long time.
Michigan is headed to Kansas City with a 10 seed to take on Clemson.
Game time is 7:10 PM Eastern.
Ticket information has been released and there will be plenty of coverage throughout the week.
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If anyone has the moment when they picked michigan and showed the crowd please post, was amazing
Oklahoma is nervous!
Why is this such a bad matchup for Michigan? Clemson isn’t that big, and that seems to be our main matchup problem. I think we can hang with most teams that don’t have dominant post player.
So whats the word on Clemson, for those of us who haven’t seen them this year?
When do they announce the game time?
Yeah, what is the game time?? Might go.
The loooooooooong desert walk is over
I think I’ve seen 3 or 4 Clemson games this year, and just spent a few minutes looking at their stats. For what it’s worth:
Looking closer at Clemson, I don’t think this is as bad a matchup as we initially thought. Booker is their best scoring big, and he goes at 6-7. They’ve dropped four of their last five, including home losses to Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech, and only beating Virginia at home. They commit almost 15 turnovers a game, and they aren’t great passers (key to beating the 1-3-1), only dishing out 15 assists. A big part of their defense is the press and forcing turnovers, and M excels at holding on to the ball.
On they negative side, as a team they shoot 38% from 3, and their top three scorers all shoot about 40%. They absolutely demolished Maryland at home (by 30), won at Illinois, and of course crushed Duke by 30 in one of their worst losses ever. They beat Savannah State by 32 four days before M needed overtime to beat them.
Looking at their schedule though, they certainly appear to be less strong now than they were at the beginning of the season. Let’s hope so, anyway. GO BLUE!!
Finally, at long last, a “One Shining Moment” that will include us once again.
Clemson – basically a three guard lineup with Oglisvey, Stitt, Rivers (more of a wing). With Booker and Sykes up front. Booker is a beast in the paint. 6′7 240 and pretty decent moves. Sykes is a 6′9 athlete with little offensive polish. They play about 9 guys, and press as much as possible. Its not the greatest press in the world but they do trap agressively. All their guards will shoot it, and Oglisvey will shoot from anywhere, and I mean anywhere. He has the green light as soon as they cross half court, but he is far from consistent. Rivers is very good off the dribble, and he is a lefty which causes some problems in defending him. Stitt is a good point guard, but not much of a scorer, prolly around 8 or 9 a game.
I think the key is handling the press, Novak boxing out on Sykes, and setting a good tempo. Clemson wants to run and run. If the game gets going too fast, that is when their press becomes deadly, and their shooters get open. They are decent on the boards but not great. Grady will prolly have to play a little bit to handle the pressure.
I’m working on getting some video together from the game. Nothing very professional but it captures the moment…
Nice that the curse is over.
Seems like justice that one of the teams they beat out was San Diego St.
Funny I like it.
Yes I would love to see the reaction of crisler again!!
Below is a comment on a Clemson blog about their lack of height. I’ve also included a link to the blog:
http://the-op.blogspot.com/
Tiny Tigers
In examining Clemson’s profile on kenpom.com, one thing immediately jumps out at you, and that’s their height. Or rather, their lack of it. The Tigers rank 200th in Division I in effective height, which obviously makes them vulnerable against taller teams.
Sure enough, that’s been a factor in their recent losses. Here’s the ranking in effective height of their losses: Georgia Tech (Effective Height – 28), Wake Forest twice (1), Florida State twice (4), Virginia Tech (194), Virginia (33), North Carolina (67)
Clemson’s lack of height has really been on display on the defensive boards, as they’ve allowed opponents to grab 36.4 percent of offensive boards, which ranks 299th in D-1. The Tigers have only one player over 6-foot-7, and that’s Raymond Sykes. And though the 6-9 center is a nice complementary player, he’s no match for elite bigs. Trevor Booker plays big at 6-foot-7, but he is the Tigers’ only real interior threat. And part of the reason he grabs so many rebounds (9.7 rpg) is because no one else is around to get them. When Clemson plays bigger teams in the Tourney, they’re going to be in trouble if they’re not shooting well from deep.
yea Larry I agree they dont live off their size or lack thereof, but Booker is an extremely tough cover inside. And while Sykes has very little to offer on the offensive end besides rebounding, I think that Novak is going to have to guard him. That makes it a little easier for him to just get dump downs or passes over the top for layups. I dont think there is anyway we can play Novak on Booker and survive. They are actually somewhat similar to Michigan in that they have one big scorer inside, a good scorer on the wing, and then shooters around that. However, they play at a tempo well beyond anything Michigan is used to. Whoever can establish their tempo to the game, probably ends up winning.
Wed, Feb 4 (4) Duke W 74-47
They beat Duke up pretty good. Mich usually does well against teams like clem so hopefully they shoot well and play defense.
I think that everyone should consider giving Dylan some major props for his work on this blog. I’m sure he’s not disappointed that work will continue into late March for the first time in a long while.
I dont know that Michigan has played anyone like Clemson this year. In terms of the tempo that they play, maybe only Savannah St. But ofcourse they did not have the players. Uconn sort of played a little faster, but not at this level. Its tough to prepare for a team like Clemson when you have not faced their pressure before. You just cannot simulate that type of thing. The same way that Michigan’s opponents cannot simulate the 1-3-1. Its expecially true when you do not have real good experienced guards.
Dang, I was at Crisler and thought I had the DVR set to record the Selection Show, but just got back and found out that I ran out of room or something. PLEASE say there’s someone out there with the video of the Crisler reaction!
How do you measure effective height? Where does Michigan rank in it?
i would love to see a sims v griffin matchup rd 2……..somebody as soon as michigan was put up against clemson said……”oh well theres a hard game for michigan”……this is a great game for michigan one in which we could very easily dominate or vice versa but in no way should we be scared of clemson……..the only teams that wanna play michigan at this point are teams with more than one skilled big man and id love to see that oklahoma rd 2 matchup as well
I hope the Big 10 goes 7-0 first round, so that Feinstein and Digger will shut their pie holes.
Can I say that here Dylan.
GO BLUE WE’RE IN BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think Clemson is a decent matchup for UM. I know this is way too simplistic a view, but to me, it will probably come down to what it usually does, anyway. If they hit the trey, they win. If they don’t, they lose.
I like the matchup because UM isn’t at a gross size disadvantage. Because the trey is a great “wild card factor” for this team, this game is a toss-up to me. At this point, I think they all are. UM can lose to anyone, but they have proven that they can beat anyone, too, if they have a great game.
So, while the chances of UM winning could be as high as 50-50, the chances of them winning it all is comparable to winning six straight coin flips or six straight times on a roulette wheel.
I plan to enjoy that fact that the Wolverines are back and if they win any, it is a huge bonus. And, if they somehow have a hot streak for the ages, I will go ballistic. In a good way, of course.
Yep just enjoy being choosen. This is about building a program not winning the championship this year. If they win one iceing on the cake. It’s taken a long time to get back.
http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball
If you click on the south region it will show the initial reaction at Crisler.
It would be fun if Sims pulled a Glenn Rice and they came roaring out of the south bracket. Of course this team would need 5 guys shooting like rice to pull that off.
Who’s up for a UMHoops bracket challenge?
Michigan Sports Center has the magic moment from Youtube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....enter.com/
We live in ACC country & the wife went to grad school @ Duke so I’ve seen my fair share of Clemson games. At first glance, I was concerned about the Clemson/Oklahoma draw & Clemson has played very well at times this year. But (like M) they are quite up & down & don’t have tons of size. M matches up well against their strengths (the press) & their weaknesses (turnovers). Hold onto the ball & shadow Oglisvey & M should be fine.
While not a wonderful match-up, it’s not terrible. I also think the X’s & O’s matchup is easily in our favor as Beilein can out-coach Purnell with one hand tied behind his back. Thanks again for the site Dylan; great work as always….
Everyone is talking about clemsons speed and tempo, but I think we have one thing that can neutralize that, and its the ability to play multiple zone defenses fairly effectively. If we get back on d, and get into our zone, whether its the 1-3-1 or 2-3/3-2 it can force clemson to go east and west opposed to playing mainly man where guys will be stuck on islands by themselves and therefore forcing us into a lot of help defense…where that will really open things up for them. If we can play some very active and aggressive zone I think we can prevent them from going up and down on us. The flip side will be we have to score. I look at a game like the big east championship last night, where a team like Louisville likes a tempo much like clemson, but Syracuse was able to pull the reins back on that games tempo because of their zone. I think if Cuse would have had fresh legs they could have taken the trophy.
If anyone can strategically come up with a game plan to break the press it would be JB. Im wondering if possibly KG, Wright, and maybe even Shep get some more minutes against clemson…in a lot of our non conference games both of those guys played a lot and were fairly effective. I think if KG can make good decisions he would be one guy who could really cause headaches for clemson. We are going to have to be strong with the ball, make good passes, and good decisions with the ball.. Manny, Novak, and most of all when Merritt is in there come to mind when talking about doing a tad better job of taking care of the ball.
With all that said…WOW!! I cant believe we are dancin!! GO BLUE!!
UMHoops bracket challenge! Great idea jgunnip!
If my math is correct, kenpom will give us a 32% of winning with a predicted score of 71-66
Clemson is a double edged sword matchup for us..They dont have the REALLLY BIG bigs that kill us but they have a very athletic team from 1-5 with length and athleticism all over the court. Booker vs Simms will be interesting to watch. The good thing is that Clemson is not a good shooting team..Its contrasting styles of play, but we do have a good shot in this one and the next because of they didnt put us in with alot of legit 5’s. Blake is another monster but I rather face a 6′9 monster solo then, a 6′9 & 7 foot monster on the court at the same time. Happy to be back in the tourney!
Clemson sounds like it should be a fun game to watch. Looks like there are some similarities in that we are both small, we have similar scoring threats, and have some unique attributes like our 1-3-1 and their tempo (8 games with 90+ points). Now we get to talk about Grady again all week?
And tv info anyone…
jay – hate to burst your bubble but taylor griffin is 6′-7″…
The winning % against Oklahoma should we win would be 29%, so we’re just a little over 9% shot to make the Sweet 16…SWEET!
haha that’s me in the bottom left… the only one in the student section with a blue jersey… I snuck it in. Zac is next to me in a banana suit. Epic.
Giving Beilein 4 days to prepare the team…I see a W. He is a genius when he has multiple days to prepare for a team. He will be up ALL night looking at tapes….
One other reason I do not like the Clemson matchup. They lost last year in the first round when they were a 5 seed against Villanova. As a general rule, I always like to pick teams to win that lost the previous year when seeded higher, and are again seeded higher the following year. As long as the players are relatively the same, and in this case they are. Its not always true, but a lot of times that team performs well. You have to think that they are going to be a little bit hungrier than Michigan. Especially considering that Michigan was not expected to make the tournament this year, and just making it there is a big accomplishment. This team has settled a lot this year – played one great game, and not shown up the next – hopefully they are not going to settle with just making it to the dance.
I love the video of us getting the bid!
6′ 7″s not really that tall. Novak is 6′ 5″ and Wright is 6′ 6″…
What’s the deal with game times. Who decides them? When will they be announced?
uhh, Novak doesnt stand a chance in hell of guarding 6′7 Booker. Booker is 240 pounds and a very good athlete. Dude can score in the post. Sims will have to guard him, and Novak will have to guard the 6′9 Sykes. Sykes is not a good offensive player, but he is also very athletic and will give Novak problems on the glass.
Michigan will win Thursday, what time is the game??!!!
best… video… ever.
I just watched that video about 12 times. Love it. That atmosphere was as good as almost any game I’ve been to in my 4 years of being a student here. I also have a “We’re In” video that I’ll get up on YouTube soon.
For those of you that weren’t there it was an absolute blast and Coach B had such a great speech before the show started. Something along the lines of…. “We didn’t want to watch this alone sitting in some room. We wanted to be with all you because you helped us get here. So if we get in we’ll get in together. And if things don’t work out, they don’t work out, but we’ll be together” It was pretty awesome. Hopefully someone has video of it.
Does anyone have a video of the interview that Beilein did with CBS around 5:45-5:50 (before the show actually started). I was at Crisler but it was so loud that it was impossible to hear.
I can’t help but feel like Michigan got a tough draw. If I remember properly, Clemson plays a “40 minutes of Hell” defense, which is basically full court press the whole game. Follow that up with a potential matchup with Oklahoma and Blake Griffin. So the two things standing between us and the sweet sixteen are two teams who each exploit one of our two weaknesses: size and point guard play.
I live in St. Louis and will likely be headed to KC. Any season ticket holders buying tickets to sell? I will gladly take them off your hand. Wouldn’t you rather have an alumnus there screaming like a wild banshee than some random bloke. If anyone is interested, please let me know.
GO BLUE! How sweet it is!
Yeah Tom too, sounds amazing. Wish I could have been there. What a breakthrough for this program! Even better times yet to come
I mean Tom Also.
my buddy tells me 8:10 ET game time. now gotta figure out comcast.
According to Clemson’s scout.com, the game is at 7:10 EST.
http://mbd.scout.com/mb.aspx?s.....;t=4087149
The game is at 7:10 p.m. They don’t usually start night games til 7ish. So we have the first night game, and Oklahoma game is after ours. Hopefully we’ll be out scouting them…
I am so happy for this team and all of the long suffering fans who went to all the games these past 10 years. I think we can beat Clemson as long as we shoot well and take care of the ball (which is no easy task). I like our chances to at least win one game but this was a successful season.
Go Blue!
I am definitely going to the game…
looks like 7:10 according to the bracket at ncaa.com
At The Sprint Center
Kansas City, Mo.
Clemson (23-8) vs. Michigan (20-13), 7:10 p.m.
Oklahoma (27-5) vs. Morgan State (23-11), 30 minutes following
From NBC Sports….
wooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
matchup, smatchup! we’re in fools! celebrate!
sorry mgoblue had it at 7:10 CT at first but they corrected it.
MGOBLUE says the game is 6:10 Central time. So 7:10PM eastern time game. That is riht from the front page.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5hZy-e8UQM
Gets pretty shaky and wild, but I think it captured the moment.
Golden State Warriors give up 154 points to Phoenix in a regulation game. Golden State subsequently applied for ACC membership.
Thanks for the video Dylan, Tom. I wish is was Chris in AA for a day. Still, it looks like it was a lot of fun! I saw coach B’s speech on the live feed and it was really nice. Here’s to at least one more game. Win or lose, dang these guys make me proud!
Anyone see the shirts the team had on today? I heard that they were pretty sweet. Any idea where one can be acquired?
Tweeter: They were pretty sweet: “Michigan Basketball: A Brotherhood”. No idea where to get one.
These are the shirts but I don’t see a Michigan version or see them for sale on the adidas store.
http://www.adidas.com/campaign.....collection
I am not liking the matchup with Clemson. They’re the type of team that will give Michigan a lot of trouble if they’re not careful. With Clemson’s playing style, Grady is key if JB ever let him on the court because Grady is the only player on the team who can handle full court press.
Regardless, it’s great to see Michigan finally in the NCAA tourney. They’re ahead of the rebuilding curve and better days are still ahead.
I really hope Beilein accepts the fact that Grady is going to have to play in this game.
Is it a bad thing if the first thing I thought of when I saw Clemson was on the screen was that all of my commenters were going to be discussing Grady ALL week?
Just kidding of course… This site would be nothing without you guys.
I don’t see how any message board posters can question JB’s decisions after he gets us to the tournament with his first recruiting class. The man is a genius as far as I’m concerned.
If he needs Grady, he will put him in.
I actually agreed with Bilas and his comment on our matchup. He just said it’s pretty simple; if Michigan makes shots they will win.
I think we will handle the press OK, and our D has been solid lately. If we have a cold shooting night, we’ll be coming home early. If we have a 40% plus night from 3, we should see round 2.
Brick, any teams who can make shots should win most games.
Beast,
It is just that this is especially true for Michigan. They dont do other things that win basketball games very well. Our opposition usually outrebounds us, so its imperative that we either win the turnover battle or shoot a high percentage.
Yep, but some teams can win even when they’re shooting poorly. We can’t.
oh great hockey plays alaska in the ccha playoffs friday at 8.
Dear Avery..hate to burst your bubble but the “monster” I was referring to is Blake and hes 6′10..and saying I would rather play him then a team with 2 true bigs not necessarily OK. This is big for the program, I remember when Kruger finally got UNLV back to the tourney 2 years ago and how everything from enrollment, fans, and level of recruits has increased over the past 2 years. Its been along time coming
Good point, Jay. The increased national exposure should hopefully aid in recruiting in the near future.
Jay I misread your first post and thought you wrote two big men like 6′9 and 6′7 instead of 7′. And 6′9 and 6′7 are what the Griffin’s are.
However, while neither is particularly tall they are very physical and both would be a handful for Sims and Novak. I’ll give you that to compare to say Blair and Sam Young they don’t look quite as bad.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XeV8ecADKG8
Eric Puls jumps out of his shoe at the end.
That is exactly how we all feel. Go Blue.
Really Fired Up This Morning! Is it Thursday Yet???
Does anyone have a sense as to how hard it will be to get tickets on the street for a first round game?
The sense of pride that we all are feeling today was a long time coming. I want to thank Coach B and all his staff and of course the players for this experience. I can see great things in the future for the football program sooner rather than later also.
Ticket sales at the conference tournament were terrible. I wouldn’t expect the NCAA Tourney tickets to be too hard to come by. The average fan is broke these days.
The game is sold out to the public but I would expect a lot of Kansas fans to be selling.
Nick, Clemson is outstanding in rebounding on the offensive end and Michigan doesn’t rebound the ball very well. They can shoot the ball pretty well. Clemson is very good at forcing turnovers and it’s a result of a full court press. Like I said, if Michigan are not careful, it could get ugly real quick. Michigan typically don’t turn the ball over but they tends to turn the ball over more when they play a team that likes to play aggressive full court press rather than passive full court press.
I’m worried about Clemson and Clemson is underseeded at #7. They lost in the 1st round last year and they tends to win the next year if they’re a higher seed.
I can seriously see USC upsetting MSU. USC has been playing well and DeMar DeRozan is starting to live up to the hype. USC is a very dangerous team.
Anyone have Beilein’s interview with Gumbel/CBS at about 5:45?
Couldn’t hear any of it at Crisler.
We will have high demand for our tickets, but Morgan St. and Clemson won’t. We and Oklahoma will eat up all their tickets…checked craig’s list and ebay too, and tickets are going at/under face after neither kansas or missouri was selected. Tickets will not be a problem, especially on gameday, where great values are to be found.
What if we ended up being matched with West Virginia…that would’ve been fun.
Someone asked for links to videos showing the reaction of the team once it was announced. Here is a story that has that video:
http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-u.....82b7841824
also:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....r_embedded