Takeaways From A Rout Of Nebraska

After a sloppy first half, Michigan turned it on in the second and got the dominant 82-58 win that was expected in the end.

Legacy Night
Senior nights aren't as meaningful as they used to be in college basketball, given the amount of players who transfer and/or leave early for the NBA nowadays. That made honoring seniors Zavier Simpson and Jon Teske all the more special. They played their final home games as the winningest players in school history. Simpson also broke the record for most games played in school history on Thursday night. Fittingly, they both exited their Crisler careers on high notes. Teske finished with his most points since February 1st, while Simpson had his second double-double (points and assists) in Big Ten play. He also had an off-handed alley-oop pass to Austin Davis that was one of the sweetest I've ever seen.

Stars in the Crowd
John Beilein and family returned to Ann Arbor for their first game since he left for the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, and the greatest basketball coach Michigan has ever had received the raucous standing ovation he deserved when he was announced to the crowd. But Beilein wasn't the only VIP in attendance.

Fab Fiver and former Juwan Howard teammate Ray Jackson was there, too. As was Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman, who witnessed firsthand Simpson breaking his most games played mark.

Last, but certainly not least, was none other than Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh sitting court-side behind Howard on the bench.

As goes Isaiah Livers, so go the Wolverines
There were several reasons for Michigan's ragged first half, not the least of which was horrific shooting. At one point the Wolverines missed 12 of 14 and 19 of 23 field goal attempts. The chief culprit was Livers, who came into Thursday night cold and then missed 10 straight shots in the first half. However, he ignited the 14-4 run the Wolverines used to open the second half, and finished with a team-high 18 points. Just another reminder that Michigan's March ceiling is correlated directly to the play of its most gifted and polished offensive weapon.

Havoc Plays
They don't keep this stat in hoops like the do in football, but if they did this would've been a good night for the Michigan defense. The Wolverines had 10 steals and six blocks, to go along with Nebraska's 22 turnovers. The Huskers played without point guard Cam Mack, who was suspended for violating team rules, and Michigan's defense took full advantage.

One trend to rule them all
You've heard this from me before, and now that we're in March you'll be hearing much more. Since KenPom's analytics began in 2002, only one team has won the NCAA Tournament that didn't rank in the top 25 of both his offensive and defensive efficiency ratings. Currently just 10 teams in college basketball meet that criteria -- and the Wolverines are one of them.

Michigan is 13th overall at KenPom -- 23rd on offense and 25th on defense.

How good are KenPom's analytics? They projected Michigan to score 82 points against Nebraska, which was its exact point total.