[mm-video type=video id=01fvwkkyam844acd8dpg playlist_id=01eqbzardvge799bm2 player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fvwkkyam844acd8dpg/01fvwkkyam844acd8dpg-60c9af3805e02250985dd6d32ca07a42.jpg]
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — It’s been a long time coming, but Michigan is finally taking on rival MSU at home. The in-state rivals were set to face off earlier in the season, but a COVID-19 outbreak kept the pair from squaring off, and the game was rescheduled.
MSU opened up with a lead, but the Wolverines were otherworldly shooting the basketball in the first half, jumping out to a 23-11 lead, having missed just one shot in the opening seven and a half minutes. Michigan had a 16-2 run over a 5:02 period, but of course, the Spartans weren’t going to go quietly into the night.
Or would they?
In an inverse of the second half in East Lansing, though MSU made a mini-run, cutting the Michigan lead to seven, the Wolverines pushed the lead to 17, scoring with impunity amid a four-minute Spartans drought. A late MSU run cut the lead to 44-28 at the half.
The Wolverines pushed the second-half lead to 22, but some offensive miscues saw MSU down 17 at the under-16 timeout, and then 15 at the under-12. A minute later, MSU found itself down just 13, as the Wolverines were on a nearly three-minute scoring drought. If Michigan wanted to secure the win, it’d have to hit some shots.
DeVante’ Jones — quiet, thanks to foul trouble in the first half — hit a 3 to create a little distance, but MSU answered with a score, a defensive stop, and another score. It was now a 12-point game with 7:46 remaining.
Then Hunter Dickinson got five consecutive points, pushing the lead back to 17. But MSU wasn’t going away, cutting the lead to 12 in short order. But Michigan pushed the lead to 18 with 1:44 remaining, and put in the subs, winning 87-70. Here are our five takeaways.