Preview: Iowa
The Essentials
WHAT | Michigan v. Iowa |
---|---|
WHERE | Iowa City, IA |
WHEN | 9:00PM EST (8 Local)
February 16th, 2010 |
THE LINE | Michigan -4* |
TELEVISION | Big Ten Network |
*Line provided by online sports betting site Sportsbetting.com.
When Last We Met
In one of the least thrilling games I've seen in Crisler Arena, Michigan kept its foot on the neck of the Hawkeyes for just long enough to show that they could win by blowout if they tried. After that point, they decided to stop trying, putting in a half-hearted effort. They still emerged with a comfortable win. Iowa is a bad team.
Deshawn Sims asserted his dominance early, scoring 11 first-half points on just 7 shots. He would go on to finish with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Manny also finished with 20 points, but he also committed six turnovers. At least a couple of those were due to the malaise that set in, with Michigan players either playing sloppy or trying to make plays a little too spectacular. Though Darius Morris didn't start, he ultimately played more minutes than Laval Lucas-Perry. Anthony Wright managed to log 20 minutes.
For the Hawkeyes, Aaron Fuller was the only double-digit scorer (16 points and 8 rebounds), though Cully Payne and Eric May each put up eight points. John Lickliter, who is awesome, nailed a truly righteous 3-pointer.
Since Last We Met
Michigan's lineup has been shaken up, with Darius Morris inserted into the starting lineup instead of LLP. Morris has started to come into his own, giving Wolverine fans some hope that next year's squad can improve. The Wolverines' rebounding has gotten slightly better (though that is partially attributable to a strong showing against Iowa last time), but other than that, the team's statistics haven't changed radically.
The Hawkeyes have lost to Illinois, Ohio State, and Purdue, while knocking of Northwestern at home. During that run, Iowa has gotten much worse offensively but their defense has improved. Either way, this remains a bad team with very little depth, especially with the permanent departure of Anthony Tucker.
Tempo-Free Breakdown
If you need an explanation of the stats, check out Ken Pomeroy.
Michigan v. Iowa: National Ranks | |||
---|---|---|---|
Category | Michigan Rank | Iowa Rank | Advantage |
Mich eFG% v. Iowa Def eFG% | 211 | 248 | M |
Mich Def eFG% v. Iowa eFG% | 209 | 147 | I |
Mich TO% v. Iowa Def TO%
|
18 | 313 | MMM |
Mich Def TO% v. Iowa TO% | 49 | 269 | MMM |
Mich OReb% v. Iowa DReb%
|
268 | 54 | III |
Mich DReb% v. Iowa OReb% | 223 | 250 | M |
Mich FTR v. Iowa Opp FTR
|
335 | 27 | IIII |
Mich Opp FTR v. Iowa FTR
|
14 | 321 | MMMM |
Mich AdjO v. Iowa AdjD | 95 | 143 | M |
Mich AdjD v. Iowa AdjO | 49 | 153 | MM |
Difference of more than 10 places in the national rankings get a 1-letter advantage, more than 100 gets a 2-letter advantage, more than 200 gets a 3-letter advantage, etc.
Michigan is a far superior team. This shouldn't be a surprise, as Iowa has been hemorrhaging players from its roster for two years straight now: They're basically like the Michigan football team in Year One of the RichRod era except their coach is in his third season.
The only area in which Iowa has an advantage is rebounding on Michigan's end of the floor, but last times these two teams met the Wolverines had one of their best offensive rebounding outings of the year. Other areas of Iowa advantage like Michigan's ability to get to the free throw line and defend Iowa shooting are probably irrelevant and insignificant, respectively. Iowa has had success when they've forced the opposition into lots of turnovers, but that doesn't seem likely in this contest.
Despite Michigan's previous result against the Hawkeyes, Iowa isn't necessarily a pushover. They've had surprisingly close contests at Illinois, home against Michigan State, and in both of their games against Ohio State. That said, they haven't been able to actually, you know, win any of those games. KenPom likes Michigan by 3, and Vegas likes them by 4. I'm a little more confident than either. Michigan gets its second-straight road win 62-53.
Elsewhere
Dylan previews the game at UMHoops, pointing out that Iowa doesn't match up well with Michigan. Black Heart Gold Pants is the Iowa blogosphere's home base.
February 16th, 2010 at 11:36 PM ^
February 17th, 2010 at 8:00 AM ^
February 17th, 2010 at 8:50 AM ^
February 17th, 2010 at 9:49 AM ^
February 17th, 2010 at 9:59 AM ^
February 17th, 2010 at 12:54 PM ^
February 17th, 2010 at 10:27 AM ^
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