Good grief. 

The basketball game that unfolded on Wednesday night at Crisler Center was a deeply unpleasant viewing experience, even if the Michigan Wolverines were able to notch their third consecutive victory, 72-70, over the Northwestern Wildcats. The win is crucial for keeping Michigan's tournament hopes alive, but very little else will be remembered fondly by the Michigan faithful. Though the home team didn't play particularly well, most of the memory of this one will hinge on it being a foul-fest. There were 46 fouls called between the two teams, forcing both squads into rolling with unfamiliar lineups in a choppy game that lacked any flow due to the fact there was a whistle less than every sixty seconds. 

Shooting fouls, blocking fouls, charges, moving screens, anything and everything in the rule book was getting called tonight and whistles were blown so much you'd have mistaken it for a practice, not a regulation conference game. A deeply strange game that was upsetting to watch, not just when it seemed that Michigan was on the ropes, but even during the stretches when the home team was winning. Nevertheless, more stellar play from Caleb Houstan and a surprise late cameo from Jaron Faulds helped get it done. In a season where Michigan needs all the help they can get to make it into March Madness, a win is a win. And a win it was. 

The first half was a pretty tight back-and-forth affair. Neither team led by more than five at any juncture in the first twenty minutes and all that felt notable at the time was the crazy number of whistles being called, though we came to learn in the second half that that's how the entire game would be. Houstan led Michigan with 12 in the first half, getting to the line for eight free throw attempts, while no other player had more than six points, and they closed the half with Jace Howard at center due to foul trouble affecting Hunter Dickinson and Moussa Diabate. 

DeVante' Jones was a positive steadying force [Fuller]

The second half saw Michigan start hot, with a 12-2 run within the first three minutes of the frame putting the Wolverines up 11. That spurt was catapulted by nine points from Eli Brooks, who was quiet in the first half and who Michigan absolutely needs more from down the stretch of the season. Northwestern quickly called a timeout and for a brief moment, it seemed as if the Wolverines were asserting their control of the contest.

Unfortunately, after a DeVante' Jones jumper put Michigan up 10 with 15:08 to play, the Maize & Blue would notch just five points in the next ten minutes of game play. Over that span, the Wildcats added 22 of their own and flipped a 10 point deficit to a 7 point lead. After Robbie Beran made it 62-55 Northwestern with 5:09 to play, Juwan Howard called timeout. A loss in this game would have very possibly bumped Michigan back off the bubble, and so it was then that the team needed to rise to the occasion. They dug deep and did. 

Over three straight offensive possessions, Diabate made a pair of free throws, then DeVante' Jones nailed a massive three from the corner, and Diabate slammed home a dunk. With two stops sandwiched in between, it was tied just like that. Michigan forced another miss from Ryan Greer and had the ball with a chance to take the lead when yet another sloppy turnover gave it right back to NU. 15 seconds later, Hunter Dickinson was called for what appeared to be a rather marginal foul while guarding the post and that was it for his night. Ryan Young hit both free throws (Northwestern was in the double bonus by now) and the Wildcats were back up two. 

Faulds! [Fuller]

Without their best player on the floor, Michigan needed an answer, and Terrance Williams II delivered one, knocking down a huge three pointer to push Michigan back up one, 65-64, with 2:08 left. But just seconds after that, foul trouble struck again, as Moussa Diabate was whistled for his fifth on a shooting foul. This forced seldom-used backup center Jaron Faulds into the lineup and after Pete Nance went 1/2 at the line, it was tied at 65-65. Faulds made his impact quickly known: he dished out a sweet assist to Caleb Houstan in the corner, who swished a trey, and then he helped force a stop at the other end. DeVante' Jones drew a foul on the ensuing offensive possession, made both free throws, and Michigan led 70-65 with under a minute left.

It seemed at this moment that Michigan might be putting the game away, but the 'Cats had an answer of their own. Guard Boo Buie knocked down a triple to cut it to a two point game. Jones drove to the lane on Michigan's next possession and drew a foul, hitting both free throws again, making it 72-68 with 27 seconds left. 

The final 27 seconds were wild. The sequence began with Northwestern sending big man Ryan Young to the stripe with the score at that margin. Young made the first but the second popped out. Nance tipped it back, and Buie recovered it and called timeout. With Northwestern now down three, Michigan opted for the intentional foul to nullify any chance of a game-tying bucket. Nance went to the line and missed both, and Faulds drew a whistle during the scrum for the loose ball. At this point, with the score 72-69 and eight seconds left, all Faulds needed to do was make one to put the game on ice. He missed them both. 

Nance rebounded, passed it to Buie, who then was intentionally fouled just past half court by Williams. He made the first, missed the second, and again Northwestern got a second chance. Nance snagged the offensive rebound, passed to Roper, who pulled up from three for a chance to win at the horn. The shot was off target, and Michigan had survived. 

[AFTER THE JUMP: A couple thoughts and the box score]

Could have used a little more Eli in this game [Fuller]

It's hard to know what to take away from a game like this. You could throw it all out the window because of the fouls. Or you could praise Michigan for their resilience in storming back to win late, but that feels improper given the long stretches where the team was completely impotent offensively, as well as the way they nearly threw it away at the end. The one thing it does feel like you can say is that Faulds won't be playing in many other late game situations the rest of the season, so that may not be the most applicable takeaway. 

Caleb Houstan led Michigan with 18 points, including 3/5 from three, continuing his Jake Rudock-like midseason improvement of the last week. A very welcome sight. DeVante' Jones is in a similar bucket, playing much better than earlier in the year, scoring 15 points and handling the ball in key moments late, drawing fouls and willing the team forward without Hunter Dickinson on the floor. The big men were quiet due to the penalty trouble, while Eli Brooks had 12, mostly all from that one stretch early in the second half. Northwestern's scoring was quite balanced, four in double figures, but no one with more than 14. In total, three players from the two teams fouled out, while two others on Northwestern finished with four. Weird. 

Michigan is now 10-7 on the season and moves to 4-3 in B1G play. Their tourney hopes still have some life, but they'll need a signature win soon. That could come Saturday, as they head into the Breslin Center to play #10 Michigan State at 12:30 PM EST. That game is on CBS. 

Box score: