[jwplayer 7Yx6yIKY-XNcErKyb]
Reaching 90 points for the third time this season and the first time in a Big Ten game, the No. 3 Michigan Wolverines defeated the No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes, 92-87, at Value City Arena on Sunday.
Five Wolverines scored in double-figures, led by freshman center Hunter Dickinson’s 22 points and followed by senior guard Eli Brooks’ 17.
The third-highest scorer for Michigan was senior swingman Chaundee Brown, Jr., who finished with 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range, with all his makes behind the arc coming in the first half.
For Brown, this performance was a reminder of the value he provides this team off the bench and came after a quiet stretch of games, as he had reached double-digits just once in the last seven games and had not recorded more than six points in the last four.
Sometimes, shooters have a feeling they are going to have a big game before the basketball is even tipped and, fortunately for the Wolverines, this was the case on Sunday.
“I told (classmate) Isaiah Livers in warmups, I was like, ‘I like these rims, I love these rims,’” he said. “Then, I hit my first shot, I’m like, ‘Yeah, it’s going to be a good one.’”
[lawrence-related id=33356]
Brown also finished the contest with three rebounds, two of which came on one offensive possession in the second half. More than just a 40 percent 3-point shooter, this rebounding effort, along with being one of Michigan’s best on-ball defenders, are points of his game he takes great pride in.
“I told Coach (Juwan) Howard, I’m like, ‘Don’t switch anything up, go to Hunter (Dickinson), go to Hunter,’” he said. “I knew I was trying to crash the glass, do whatever I can to help us win. I told him don’t switch anything up, just keep going to Hunter. All I could do was crash the glass and help my team out, which I did.”
[listicle id=33344]
With this victory, their fifth over a ranked opponent in 2020-21, the Wolverines improved to 16-1 (11-1 Big Ten), while Ohio State dropped to 18-5 (12-5).
A point mentioned by Kevin Harlan during the CBS broadcast, this was the first-ever meeting between these two storied programs with both ranked in the top-five of the Associated Press Poll.
“It felt good, Coach Howard talked about this rivalry between Michigan basketball and Ohio State basketball,” Brown said. “We know, obviously, that it’s a rivalry in football, but basketball is totally different.
“We knew that we had to deliver the first punch and I give them credit, they’re a really good team, but we fought for 40 minutes, we did really good. Everyone played well, everyone contributed, so, I’m just proud of the guys.”
Returning to the Crisler Center, Michigan is set to host another ranked foe, the No. 11 Iowa Hawkeyes (17-6, 11-5), on Thursday at 7 p.m. EST on ESPN.
[vertical-gallery id=33333]