Michigan gave Wisconsin a fight in Madison as both teams exchanged the lead six times in the opening half, but the game always had the feel of an inevitable Kohl Center collapse. The margin for error playing on the road at Wisconsin is narrow and there were just too many mistakes, fouls and bad breaks that prevented Michigan from ever pulling away when it was playing well.
The Wolverines never led by more than 7 points and eventually Wisconsin’s run came midway through the second half. Michigan went cold, failing to score for four and a half minutes, while the Badgers heated up and made six straight shots for an 8-0 run and take a commanding lead. The Wolverines were left in comeback mode from that point on and were never able to threaten again in the 68-57 loss.
MVP: Ricky Doyle
Doyle played one of his better games of the season, finishing with 10 points off the bench as Mark Donnal battled foul trouble. He caught and finished more effectively than he has all year and even threw down a big alley-oop midway through the second half.
It Was Over When
Derrick Walton made an incredible play to rip the ball from Ethan Happ while isolated against the Badgers’ big man on the block and then pushed the ball in transition and missed an uncontested finger roll off the front of the rim. A couple of possessions later on another opportunity setup by a Walton steal, Zak Irvin missed another nearly uncontested transition layup.
The missed opportunities put a stop to the Wolverines’s comeback efforts and eventually Bronson Koenig and Vitto Brown buried back to back threes to stretch the lead to double digits and put the Wolverines away.
Statistic of the Game: Finishing
Michigan forced the ball inside all night, but just couldn’t convert. The Wolverines made just 13 of 25 shots within five feet, a collection of shots that included a number of bunnies that just had to be makes. Doyle was the Wolverines’ only consistent finisher inside as he made all of his interior attempts and his teammates shot just 40 percent at the rim.
Four Factors
