A former 5-star prospect that was generally considered the best shooter in the 2021 class, Caleb Houstan largely struggled during the first half of the season. Prior to the Maryland game, Houstan was shooting just 29.4% from beyond the arch on 68 attempts.

In the last three contests though, Caleb is torching the nets by connecting on 11 of his 16 shots from distance. The perimeter shotmaking has been a welcome sight for a team with a player in Hunter Dickinson that forces a secondary defender on the majority of his post-touches. A reliable release valve places the opposition in a pick your position quandary. 

So the question is what's behind the turnaround? We'll take a detailed look at just that. 

EARLY STRUGGLES

In the early stages of the season, Michigan was using Houstan as a primary option. He was getting shots off actions specifically designed to free him up for a catch and shoot threes off movement.

From a shot mechanic perspective, Caleb generally has a clean looking shot. Going through his shots earlier in the year, I didn't notice the fading back that Houstan made reference to, but there is one very minor issue. He generally extends his right foot out a bit in relation to his left foot, which can result in an off-balance shot, particularly when coming off movement. The clip above is paused at the release point of each shot so you can visualize this slight mechanical flaw.  

The footwork flaw is also present in his midrange pull-up as you can see in the clip below.

As you can see from the shot attempts in the two clips above, Caleb has some bad misses when he's forced to shoot when coming off screens or even simple relocations when tasked with moving with any sort of speed/tight windows. The synergy numbers back that up, as Houstan is generating .522ppp off screens on 23 attempts, good for 10th percentile nationally. 

[AFTER THE JUMP, the come-up!]

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]

If there are such thing as moral victories when your season is on the rocks, tonight is one. With just nine bodies, two of which were the seldom used Jaron Faulds and Jace Howard, Michigan Basketball managed to hang with #25 Illinois for all of 35 minutes tonight, before the heavily favored Illini pulled away at the end en route to a 68-53 victory. Many fans expected a blowout from the jump, after it was announced that Hunter Dickinson could not go in what was set to be a premiere clash with Kofi Cockburn, but the Wolverines hung tough and in the process, put together maybe their best emotional effort of the season. Problem is, it was still a loss, and that's why Michigan is now 7-7 and in massive trouble. 

As expected, the Wolverines were brutal offensively with this particular lineup. It was a surprisingly high level of defensive compete that kept them in the game for most of the contest, in addition to a high offensive rebounding clip. Michigan was tight with Illinois from the very beginning, with both teams trading scores until the first eight minutes ended tied at 10 apiece. In that stretch was the morsel that epitomized how the first 35 minutes went for the visitors: 6'7" Jace Howard swatting 7'0" Kofi Cockburn. Something no one could have imagined happening back in October.

Part of the reason that happened, however, was the bad news that struck Michigan in the first eight minutes, when Moussa Diabate, Michigan's lone scholarship player capable of playing the five available, took his second foul on a stupid over the back just five minutes in. To the bench went the Frenchman and Michigan was forced to bring Faulds out, as well as Howard to try and cobble together small ball lineups to hang in there. Which, as the Jace block showed, went far better than anyone anticipated. 

Not exactly the size matchup we wanted, but hey we got a cool block out of it! [Campredon]

The first half continued in back-and-forth fashion with both teams bricking three pointer after three pointer. The two squads combined to start the game 0/12 from distance when Alfonso Plummer finally made a three with 6:09 remaining in the first half. At the time, it stretched the Illinois lead to seven, which would soon jump up to nine, but Michigan was not done. DeVante' Jones, who played one of his best games in a Michigan uniform, poured in the next six points for his team to cut the Fighting Illini lead back down to three. Illinois had a couple answers from Cockburn sandwiched around a Jones three pointer, and it was 26-22 at the break in favor of the home team. 

The second half was a constant battle between Illinois trying to run away and Michigan making it close again through a combination of defense, hustle (notably offensive rebounds), and contributions from surprising places. The youth movement took full force to start the latter stanza, as Michigan's first nine points in the second half were scored by freshmen, with Kobe Bufkin and Frankie Collins getting an extensive run for the Wolverines. Illinois would stretch it to 8 or 10, and then Michigan would answer and cut it to one score, and the cycle would repeat itself. 

Indeed, Michigan was running up the floor with the ball down just one with a little over seven minutes to play after a Kobe Bufkin steal. That possession would come up empty, though, and a couple turnover-riddled possessions + productive Illinois offensive trips later and it was a 7-0 Illini run in the span of about a minute. Michigan then trailed by eight with just 5:36 to go. That was the moment when the car ran out of gas and a quick closing spurt by Trent Frazier was enough to slam the door and the ranked Illini won. The final was 68-53, but the game as outlined above, was much closer for the first 35 minutes or so. It was just the ending that got away. 

Some more Frankie and Kobe please? [Campredon]

Jones led Michigan with 17 points; no other Wolverine scored in double figures. The point guard was a reasonably efficient 7/16 from the field, and 1/2 from three. No other player made a three pointer, and the rest of the team combined to shoot just 34% overall. The 15 offensive rebounds help, but part of that stat is a function of missing so many shots. It was ugly offensively. There were some brief moments of brilliance from Kobe Bufkin and Frankie Collins that merit more of a look, but the two also combined for four turnovers. If nothing else, perhaps this effort forces Juwan Howard to give the reserve freshmen more of a look. 

The one freshman consistently in the starting lineup, Caleb Houstan, continued his skid. He was a woeful 2/9 from the field and 0/4 from three, now 2 for his last 21 from three in the past five games. Woof. Moussa Diabate showed the whole Moussa experience, inopportune fouls, solid defense, offensive potential, but also wildness and turnovers. Both Faulds and Howard were ofer from the floor, while Eli Brooks scored just seven points on 3/11 shooting. Not good enough. It was a good team effort to hang tough shorthanded, but wins are going to be needed ASAP for a team that's now lost three straight and four of five. 

Michigan is now 7-7 and 1-3 in the conference, facing a crucial week against Indiana and Maryland. That matchup with the Terps is at 7:00 on Tuesday night on ESPN2. There is no content after the jump.