Five Takeaways: Michigan Basketball Drops Overtime Heartbreaker
1) This will be a game that Zavier Simpson will want to forget, and not because he missed the game-winning shot as time was expiring (though that certainly adds to it). Simpson was taken advantage of on the defensive end probably worse than any other point in his career, with Oregon point guard Payton Pritchard scoring 23 points, including 19 in the second half and overtime.
Perhaps because of those struggles, Simpson seemed to overcompensate on offense, forcing layups too far from the basket as he finished the day 3 of 11 from the floor. In overtime, Simpson settled for "hero ball," possessing the ball at the top of the arc, waiting for the shot clock to get into single digits and then go. It didn't work, and if not for offensive rebounds and second opportunities, Michigan probably gets blown out in OT.
Simpson certainly did some good, with a game-high 11 assists, but for every positive thing he did today there seemed to be a negative play. A day of one good, one bad play on repeat won't cut it against teams as talented as Oregon.
2) After a disastrous first half in which Michigan's five starters—Simpson, Isaiah Livers, Jon Teske, Eli Brooks and Franz Wagner—combined to make only 3 of 18 first-half shots, contributing nine points. The Wolverines rallied in the second half thanks to slump-busting efforts from Livers and Wagner.
In U-M's previous three games and half of Saturday's contest, Livers hit just 8 of 30 shots (26.7%), including 0 for 6 in the first 20 minutes against Oregon. It was a smorgasbord of hardship, missing a thunderous dunk, two open threes and a layup for good measure. Coming out of the locker room, however, Livers caught fire, going 5 for 5, including three threes, to jumpstart the comeback effort.
He finished with 13 points, but didn't take a shot in the final 19 minutes of play, and that shouldn't happen. Livers appeared to cede the floor to Simpson in critical time (though Wagner was getting many of the open looks too).
It was a bad half for Livers, followed by a great stretch, followed by a stretch in which he faded. It's always easier to say in hindsight a team could have used more from such a player but ... the Wolverines could have used a little more.
3) Wagner entered play hitting just 34.9% of his shots, including 21.7% from three, and then drilled his first attempt, from beyond the arc. However, Wagner missed a contested layup after that and finished the half 1 for 5 (1 for 3 from three), getting the boot (with most of his starting cohorts) for the final eight minutes.
In the second half and overtime, however, Wagner showed no fear, and relished big-game shot opportunities, scoring 18 points on 7 of 8 shooting (3 of 4 from threes). THAT'S the Wagner that head coach Juwan Howard has been praising in post-game and midweek press conferences.
4) U-M doesn't have a deep bench but the spark provided by David DeJulius and Brandon Johns Jr., with eight minutes remaining in the first half, and Michigan trailing 22-9, was exactly what the "proverbial doctor" ordered.
DeJulius proceeded to go 4 for 7 from the floor, hitting a pair of threes en route to scoring 12 points, while Johns grabbed three boards, converted a pair of free throws, and generally provided great energy on both ends of the floor, helping the Wolverines close to 31-23 at the half.
DeJulius had a key bucket in overtime, to make it 71-70, and forced a turnover, giving U-M the ball with 34 seconds left but three shots came up empty. Still, he provided a key contribution on a day when Brooks scored just two points.
Johns was the biggest difference-maker for the Maize and Blue, as Howard committed to small ball—Johns in for Teske for 14 minutes between the second half and OT—as he contributed six rebounds, two blocks, an assist, a steal, and, most importantly, more of that energy.
Michigan was plus-10 with Johns on the floor for 22 minutes. Had his tip-in of Simpson's final shot gone in, Saturday probably would go down as a legacy game for Johns. It was still a great performance, though, and one that will continue to earn him more and more playing time in the future.
5) Tough, tough game to lose.
Michigan trailed for most of this one (only leading for 4:47 out of 45 minutes) but clawed back from a 16-point deficit to take a few leads late in the second and in OT. When Oregon's game-winning three at the end of regulation was deemed to arrive a split-second too late, sending the two teams into overtime, it seemed like momentum was on the Wolverines' side and that victory would be snatched from defeat. But it wasn't meant to be.
U-M has now lost three of its last four after starting 7-0, and Howard and Co., must find a way to overcome unforced turnovers, poor shooting stretches, and bad decision-making by veterans. The energy Johns and DeJulius can provide will help, and they need consistency from Livers and Wagner.
Most of all, though, the Maize and Blue need Simpson and Teske, their two seniors, to be far bigger positive influences. Teske finished a game-worst minus-11 in his 24 minutes and was largely a liability on both ends of the floor for the second consecutive loss. Simpson ... as detailed above, just far too many negative plays.
With more freedom from Howard, there is more responsibility, and Simpson has to stop being such an up-and-down, pendulum-swinging player.
