When you are without your starting point guard, someone who is as calm and who has performed as well recently as DeVante' Jones has, someone else must step up. Ideally that would be the person ascending into the starting role vacated by said injured point guard. For Michigan, that was Frankie Collins, and indeed he stepped up. Collins gave Michigan 14 points on 6/7 from the field, rising to the occasion in the biggest moments. Collins helped stabilize a struggling Wolverines squad, playing the game of his career. When Michigan trailed by 15 with five minutes to go in the first half, many in the fanbase were wishing there was a way to fast forward to the offseason. Instead, this shorthanded team in the Maize & Blue uniforms dug deep and found a way to pull out a win, and a comfortable one at that- a 75-63 win over Colorado State. Michigan isn't done yet, with another game on Saturday for a ticket to the Sweet 16. 

The first half felt like a worst case scenario half from Michigan, yet the Wolverines trailed by only seven at the break. Michigan turned the ball over on 28% of possessions, surrendered six offensive rebounds, didn't make a single jump shot, and scored only four points over a nearly ten minute stretch, but found themselves down only 36-29. Colorado State came out hot, nailing four of their first five three point attempts, but then the offense quickly dried up. However, even though the Rams scored just two points over a five minute stretch, Michigan didn't cut into the lead at all. Stagnant offense, comical turnovers, and missed shot after missed shot from outside the paint hurt the Wolverine offense. 

Colorado State began to wake up with about eight minutes remaining in the first half, ripping off a quick 10-0 run in the span of two minutes off the backs of pick-and-pop threes. With five minutes to go in the half, Michigan found themselves down 28-13 and it felt like the game was on the verge of being over by halftime. That's when Frankie Collins first stepped up, cobbling together a personal 5-0 run via an and-one, and then a steal leading to a jam. The last four minutes of the half were close to even, but after Eli Brooks went 1/2 at the free throw line with three seconds left, Michigan trailed by seven at the break. Dischon Thomas of the Rams was the star of the first half with 12 points on 4/5 from three, but the Wolverines were still alive. 

Threes were CSU's only source of offense [Fuller]

Colorado State opened the half with a quick make, but then Michigan responded with a 6-0 run. Collins continued his strong play and made a once-in-a-blue-moon three pointer to trim the Rams' lead to three points. Michigan's defensive compete was strong in the first seven minutes of the second half, allowing just six CSU points in that time frame. Their offense wasn't perfect, but the big story was the threes started to fall, giving Michigan another offensive weapon besides pounding it inside against the undersized opposition. The Collins three was the first to go down, but Caleb Houstan made one a few minutes later and after an Eli Brooks jumper, Michigan led 45-44 with 12:52 left, their first lead of the game.  

The Rams responded with a 5-0 spurt, but Michigan came right back, again riding Brooks and Houstan's shooting, which represented a marked change from the first half. Eli nailed another deuce and then Houstan swished back-to-back threes, making it 53-49 Michigan with 9:49 to go, their largest lead of the game at the time. The Indianapolis crowd, which was pretty favorable to Michigan, started to get into it, and the combination of shots from the perimeter finally going in, with the continued defensive effort bolstered Michigan's confidence. 

CSU wasn't quite done yet. Makes from Jalen Lake and David Roddy kept the game a one possession contest up until around the six minute remaining mark, when Hunter Dickinson's awkward heave from the post went down while drawing a foul. He made the free throw and Michigan's lead stretched to 60-54. After this point, the margin would never again come within one score. The closest it came was four points after another Lake three, but Michigan exploited their advantage in the paint again and got a quick Dickinson layup on the very next trip down the floor. 

Michigan dominated inside [Fuller]

With a decent but not overwhelming lead, Michigan's defensive effort got the job done. They held CSU scoreless for a 2.5 minute stretch between the 5:09 remaining mark and the 2:36 remaining mark. Frankie Collins' defensive presence on the perimeter, combined with the big men Diabate and Dickinson inside, helped muzzle the Colorado State attack. When the threes weren't going down, the Rams had few answers offensively. Michigan tacked on six points during the dry spell for Colorado State and led by 10 with under three minutes left. A quick CSU layup finally broke the drought, but an Eli Brooks jump shot with 1:44 to go was the dagger. Michigan led by 10 at that point and it was a free throw fest the rest of the way. Michigan had survived.  

The Wolverines won the game for a few reasons. For those interested in the softer side of sports, or those swayed by the  narratives, it was the determination, grit, and heart. I tweeted when Michigan trailed 28-13 in the first half that the next five minutes before halftime would decide the game. I was right, but that's because the Wolverines felt their backs against the wall and dug deep, chipping the lead down to a manageable margin by halftime, and then soundly winning it once the shots started falling in the second half. Juwan Howard's coaching and leadership deserves praise, as does the steady presence of veterans like Eli Brooks, in addition to the fight of one Frankie Collins. 

From a strategic or dry data standpoint, Michigan won this game because of their advantage on the interior. Michigan shot 22/34 from two, and were even better on dunks and layups (hovering in the 70-80% FG% range for most of the game on those shots). Meanwhile Colorado State was under 50% on dunks and layups all game long. CSU made more threes than twos, which sounds good until you realize they only shot 40% from distance. The pick and pop makes were distressing at times, but it was CSU's *only* source of offense. Meanwhile Michigan always had Dickinson available down low (8/10 from the field) as an effective option. Once they made a couple threes and cleaned up the turnover bug, the offense was humming and that's how Michigan ended up with a 46 point second half. 

The threes started to fall in the second half [Fuller]

Dickinson led the way with 21 points, followed by Eli Brooks, who deserves more praise. His 5/13 from the field isn't the prettiest line in the world, but Brooks made some massive jumpers, especially from the "long two" range. He also snagged seven boards and dished out six assists. Brooks is a veteran who's been in more NCAA Tournament games than almost anyone in college basketball, and he showed why that experience matters today. Collins had 14, and Houstan added 13, mostly from his stretch of three pointers in the second half. Michigan got only four points from their bench, but today it didn't matter. 

Michigan now awaits the winner of (3) Tennessee and (14) Longwood. Many predicted Michigan would win today because they have oscillated between good and bad performances this year and were coming off a bad one in the B1G Tournament. Yet the crazy thing is that it doesn't feel like Michigan played all that well, despite beating a #6 seed in the NCAA Tournament by 12 points. They only shot 28.6% from three, turned it over too much, and looked discombobulated for large stretches. If Michigan is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, today felt like Mr. Jyde or Dr. Hekyll. Somewhere in between. 

Michigan will be an underdog against Tennessee, if that's who they face, but if Dr. Jekyll shows up for real and Michigan shoots, say, >40% from three, they could go to the Sweet 16. Not likely, but possible. There is no time announced yet for that game, as game times normally are released at the end of the day. It will be a busy Saturday for Michigan sports fans, as Michigan men's and women's basketball are slated to play tournament games that day, in addition to hockey playing in the B1G Championship Game against Minnesota in the evening. Here's hoping the men's game doesn't overlap with either of the other two. There is no content after the jump.