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Two of the hottest teams in the Big Ten collide at the Crisler Center as Michigan hosts Wisconsin tonight.
The Badgers enter Thursday’s matchup having won four consecutive games and five of their past six. The Wolverines, meanwhile, boast the best streak in the league with five straight wins, and have won seven of their past eight contests.
Michigan is without starting shooting guard Eli Brooks, who took a hard shot to the nose in the Wolverines’ win over Purdue this past weekend.
Wisconsin got off to a hot start offensively against a sluggish Michigan squad and leaped to a 19-9 in the opening five minutes of play. The Wolverines responded to cut their deficit to 24-22, but the Badgers punched right back with a 12-0 run to take their largest lead of the game.
By the time the halftime buzzer sounded, Wisconsin led 43-33 as the teams entered the locker rooms.
POSITIVES:
- Zavier Simpson got off to an unbelievable start in this one, and was overall outstanding in the first half. The senior point guard scored 9 points in less than six minutes of play to open the contest. Simpson finished the half with 18 points on 8-of-13 shooting, and added 3 rebounds. It was an eye-opening performance in the first 20 minutes from the senior captain, but he’ll need more support from his teammates in the second half if Michigan is to make a comeback.
NEGATIVES:
- Where’s the defense? The Wolverines have made great strides on the defensive end of the floor in the month of February, but you wouldn’t have guess that with the way this game started. Wisconsin got whatever they wanted in the early-goings tonight, scoring 19 points in the opening five minutes and change. The Badgers stayed hot for the remainder of the half as well, converting on 17 of 27 attempts to shoot a blazing 63 percent from the floor. The Wolverines need to lock in defensively in the second half, and hope that Wisconsin cools off.
- Michigan’s offense was humming in the first half, especially early, as the Wolverines knocked down nine of their first 14 shot attempts. However, the train ran off the tracks following that hot start, as Michigan missed its next eight shot attempts. Michigan closed the half shooting 45 percent (14-of-31) from the floor, but was just 1-of-3 from the three-point line.
- Who’s going to help out Simpson? The point guard’s teammates were just 6-of-18 from the floor in the first half. Jon Teske (5 points), Isaiah Livers (4) and Franz Wagner (2) need to get going in a big way in the upcoming 20 minutes.