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After a strong February, Michigan is limping into the postseason following a 83-70 loss to Maryland on Sunday.
The Wolverines had a rough go of it in the first half, struggling to defend the quickness and athleticism of the Terrapins as Maryland took a 41-28 lead into halftime.
In the second half, Michigan began chipping away at their deficit with some efficient offense of their own, closing to within 56-53 with just over ten minutes to play in the game. However, the Terrapins answered every surge by the Wolverines down the stretch and pulled away for the victory.
With the loss — the Wolverines’ third in their last four games — Michigan finishes the regular season 19-12 overall and 10-10 in Big Ten conference play.
1. Too little, too late in second half
Michigan played pretty good basketball in the second half against the Terrapins, but that hole they dug for themselves in the first half was too much to overcome. The Wolverines outscored Maryland in the back-half, and got themselves within five points on a couple occasions, but just didn’t have enough juice to get over the hump. You never want to accept losing, but how a team plays matters. The Wolverines in the first half played like a team that didn’t have anything to gain — Michigan was already locked into the 8-9 game of the Big Ten tourney — but played like a team preparing for the NCAA tournament in the second half. To have success in the postseason, they’ll need to bring that intensity for the full 40 minutes.
2. Defending the dribble drive
The quickness of Maryland’s Anthony Cowan Jr. and the other Terrapin guards gave Michigan fits on defense throughout the game. Cowan Jr. got into the lane repeatedly for Maryland, and it allowed him to be an efficient 7-of-11 from the floor for 20 points while also handing out 8 assists. The Terrapins were a fine-tuned machine on offense on Sunday, and they had the Wolverines spinning in circles. Head coach Juwan Howard mixed in some zone looks to try to button-down the driving lanes, but Maryland had answers for everything Michigan threw at them. The Terrapins shot 56 percent from the floor, and got hot from outside in the second half to finish 8-of-20 from three-point range.
3. DeJulius scores career-high off the bench
David DeJulius was fantastic off the bench for the Wolverines. His play in the first half was the only thing that kept Michigan’s head above water, as the sophomore scored 13 points on 4-of-6 shooting in the opening 20 minutes. The sophomore continued his strong play in the second half as well, and finished with a career-high 20 points. This was perhaps DeJulius’ best game in a Michigan uniform.
4. Livers struggles again
Perhaps the biggest concern for Michigan heading into the postseason is the play of Isaiah Livers the past two weeks. The junior has struggled with injuries throughout the year, and has appeared a step slow defensively at times in the past four games, and has shot the ball well in just one of the past eight halves of basketball — the second half against Nebraska. When Livers missed an extended stretch in January, the Wolverines were at their worst. With his return, Michigan showed signs of a team capable of making a run in March. But Livers doesn’t appear to be fully healthy right now, and that’s troublesome for the Wolverines.
5. On to tournament play
The regular season is in the books. Michigan finishes in ninth place in the Big Ten Conference standings, and put together a resume that will earn them a bid in the NCAA Tournament. Up next, the Wolverines will battle Rutgers on Thursday in a second round matchup of the Big Ten tournament. A win over the Scarlet Knights would earn Michigan a shot at the tournament’s No. 1 seed — Wisconsin. Based on projections I’ve seen amongst different bracketoligists throughout the sport, I believe the Wolverines’ floor is a 9-seed in the Big Dance. Should Michigan make a run in their conference tournament, I can see them climb as high as a 6-seed. If you had to ask me right now where I believe they’ll end up, my guess would be an 8-seed.