Michigan 99, Texas A&M 72 Comment Count

Ace



when the walk-on hits [photo courtesy Sam Mousigian/Michigan Daily]

We've seen this game before. A freshman Nik Stauskas shooting Florida out of the gym from the same spot; Texas becoming so overwhelmed the Longhorn Network tweeted a shruggie. Enter this into the canon:

THE MODERATOR: Coach, an opening statement?

BILLY KENNEDY: Felt like we ran into a buzz saw.

Michigan played a near-perfect first half before settling into remarkably productive cruise control in the second. They scored 99 points, the most Texas A&M has allowed this season, on an astonishing 1.38 points per possession. They shot 64% on twos, 58% on threes, and 88% from the line. Eight different players made a three-pointer. One of them was CJ Baird, who started the season as a student manager.

"It was kind of hard to see," said A&M's Admon Gilder. "Because I was just wondering when they were going to miss."

After both underperformed last weekend, Moe Wagner and Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman led the way. Wagner was the star of the first half, pouring in 14 of his 21 while seemingly gaining confidence with every shot, the most spectacular a running left-handed bank after his patented behind-the-back dribble. Abdur-Rahkman scored 16 of his 24 in the second half, teaming with Charles Matthews (18 points, 13 in the second half) to drop the hammer on an A&M squad trying to cover a 20-point deficit with post-ups. Two more Wolverines, Zavier Simpson and Duncan Robinson, finished in double figures.

"We knew that we could pick and choose our spots on offense," said Abdur-Rahkman. "And we didn't shoot too well in Wichita, but we knew that we were confident coming into the game that we could hit get our shots off. We just picked and chose our shots, and we took them."



Abdur-Rahkman led the team with 24 points and 7 assists. [Mousigian]

Meanwhile, Simpson made life miserable for self-proclaimed "unstoppable" Aggies point guard TJ Starks, who made the freshman mistake of giving Michigan's best defender extra motivation. Starks, who'd averaged 19.6 points in his last three games, finished with five on 2-for-11 shooting, a lone assist, and five turnovers. Simpson equaled his mark's point total with a career-high five steals in the first half and added one more in the second for good measure. The Aggies mustered only 28 points on 32 first-half field-goal attempts; Michigan had little issue letting them work post mismatches in the second on the three-is-greater-than-two principle.

Last weekend's Wolverines were just good enough to get through last weekend. Tonight's Wolverines were great enough to beat any team on any day. It didn't take long for them to get into a groove and ooze confidence; Wagner talking trash after an in-your-eye three, Matthews flashing a rare smile after a tough bucket, Simpson eyeing his man with pure disdain after a particularly obvious flop, the whole team running back on defense as Abdur-Rahkman let loose a three-pointer. (Yes, it went in.)

It reached the absurd in the late going. Abdur-Rahkman went behind the back on a fast break pass to Wagner for an emphatic dunk. Austin Davis threw down an alley-oop. Baird sent the bench into hysterics with his three-pointer.

The swagger is carrying over.

"I think we're a very confident team, and I think that's all that matters," said Wagner. "We've been playing within ourselves all year and not looking at the opponent too much. Looking at the game plan, trying to execute that, and I think we've been believing all year we can beat anyone if we play our best basketball. So, Yep."

Michigan will face the winner of tonight's Florida State-Gonzaga matchup on Saturday. No matter which team advances, the Wolverines will enter the game knowing they can—and should—win. Given how they've played over the last month or so, they're not wrong.

[Hit THE JUMP for the box score and more photos.]

All photos courtesy of Sam Mousigian of the Michigan Daily.

 

Comments

Indy Pete - Go Blue

March 22nd, 2018 at 11:25 PM ^

“We just picked and chose our shots, and we took them."

I love how nonchalant he was in post game interviews. That guy is such a cool customer. We absolutely blew the doors off of that TAMU team. Our shooting percentages were delirious. The thing is, MAAR is so businesslike after the game, it makes you think that this team has plenty left in the tank. And, his quote is so right on: we picked wide-open layup and wide-open threes the entire game, and the stats reflect that! Great summary Ace. You have a way with words. And this team has a way with winning - every way possible!

J_Dub

March 23rd, 2018 at 1:23 AM ^

Stadium was LOUD when he hit that three. I am confident most people didn't even know his name, but they knew he didn't get a lot of minutes and that was going to be a lifelong highlight for the guy. Great fun all around. See everyone Saturday for another one.

rc90

March 22nd, 2018 at 11:34 PM ^

Zavier SImpson has become so good at this game. He has put on a defensive clinic the last month. Geez, the game is so different when your point guard is a fucking wall.

kjs0311

March 22nd, 2018 at 11:35 PM ^

Zavier Simpson is just a monster on D. He's consistently gotten in the head of seemingly every opposing PG we've faced in March. He bothers almost every shot, and is too quick to let anyone drive past him. And rarely fails to strip the ball from someone a few times each game.

winged wolverine

March 23rd, 2018 at 10:40 AM ^

The first few possessions when Texas A&M had the ball you could see that Z was making him uncomfortable. To call yourself "unstoppable" before facing one of the best defensive PGs in the country was a huge mistake. Z was excellent.