Michigan-Northwestern Matchup Will Represent a First in 175-Game Series

» After two Big Ten road games, No. 16 Michigan begins 2021 by hosting No. 19 Northwestern.
» Sunday's game will be the first time in the 175-game series between the Wolverines and Wildcats that both teams are ranked among the nation's top 25.
» Fresh off his third double-double (26P, 11R), Hunter Dickinson leads U-M in scoring (16.6), rebounding (8.8), blocks (1.2) and field goal percentage (.726).
» Michigan is averaging 82.2 points per game after posting 80+ points in seven of its eight games this season.
» U-M is shooting 52.3 percent from the field -- ninth nationally (second in Big Ten). As for shooting defense, the Wolverines lead the Big Ten (37.7 percent).

Up Next

After two holiday Big Ten Conference road games, the 16th-ranked University of Michigan men's basketball team (8-0, 3-0 B1G) will open 2021 by hosting 19th-ranked Northwestern on Sunday (Jan. 3) at Crisler Center. The game is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff on Big Ten Network with Dave Revsine (play-by-play) and Robbie Hummel (analyst) as the broadcast crew.

Hail From Home

Game days may look different this season, but the tradition of cheering on Michigan men's basketball continues. Hail From Home is our way to virtually bring the excitement of game day to fans. Throughout the season, fans can look forward to a variety of digital engagements including a game day check-in with monthly prizes, fan cutouts at Crisler Center, game day playlists, Crisler scoreboard messages, special theme games, and more. » Hail from Home

Who are the Northwestern Wildcats?

• Northwestern (6-2, 3-1 B1G) heads to Michigan after a red-hot start in Big Ten play. With an upset of No. 4 Michigan State (79-65), a road with at Indiana (74-67) and a dramatic one-point win over No. 23 Ohio State (71-70), the Wildcats started the conference slate 3-0. However, a No. 10 Iowa win (87-72) halted Northwestern's streak.
• Before the loss at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Northwestern's only other loss on the season was a one-point thriller (71-70) against Pittsburgh in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
• The Wildcats, who do not have a senior on their roster, feature four double-digit scorers led by junior forward Miller Kopp's 14.6 points per game. Redshirt sophomore guard Chase Audige is second at 13.0, while sophomore guard Boo Buie is at 12.0 and junior forward Pete Nance is at 11.9 with a team-best 6.5 rebounds.
• As a team, Northwestern is shooting 42.4 percent from long range (second in the Big Ten) as nearly 40 percent of its offense comes via the three-pointer. Kopp leads the Wildcats from long range, shooting 57.6 percent (19-for-33), while Buie is at 44.7 percent (17-for-28). Freshman guard Ty Berry comes off the bench and is draining 46.4 percent (13-for-28) of his long-range shots.
• Northwestern is holding its opponents to just 29.4 percent shooting from long range, which is tops in the conference. With 83.6 points per game, the Wildcats are second in the league with a +18.3 scoring margin over their opponents (65.4).

The Series with Northwestern

• Sunday's game will be the 175th all-time meeting between Michigan and Northwestern. Michigan leads the all-time series, 115-59. U-M holds a 66-20 record in Ann Arbor, with the Wolverines winning the last eight at Crisler Center. On the road, U-M has a 47-36 record in Evanston, winning four of the last six games, and carries a 2-3 record in neutral-site games with three of those games coming at the Big Ten Tournament.
• Michigan has seven games (6-1) vacated due to NCAA sanctions -- giving U-M an adjusted 109-58 all-time record.
• Sunday's game will be the first when both teams were ranked among the nation's top 25.
• There have been 39 games decided by three or fewer points as U-M leads, 24-15. The last time was on Dec. 4, 2018 as U-M escaped with a two-point victory (62-60) at Northwestern's newly renovated Welsh-Ryan Arena.
• There have been nine overtime games as U-M leads, 5-4. The last overtime contest was on March 10, 2016 -- a 72-70 U-M victory at the Big Ten Tournament. The overtime breakdown has seven overtime games, one double overtime (March 3, 2015; 82-78 Northwestern win) and one triple overtime (Jan. 26, 1980; 85-50 Northwestern win).
• Longest U-M win streak: 17 games (Jan. 31, 1985 to March 13, 1993)
• Longest U-M losing streak: eight games (Jan. 11, 1958 to Feb. 10, 1962)
• Largest U-M Victory: +38 (105-67) at Michigan on March 2, 1988
• Largest U-M Loss: -27 (84-57) at Northwestern on Jan. 10, 1953
• U-M Victories by 10+ points: 63 | U-M Losses by 10+ points: 25
• U-M's average margin in wins: +12.6 | U-M's average margin in losses: -9.0
• U-M's most points: 110 (Feb. 17, 1973) | Northwestern's most points: 105 (Feb. 11, 1967)
• U-M's Total Points: 10,976 (62.7) | Northwestern's Total Points: 10,060 (57.5)

Perfect Material for the Broadcast

• Northwestern is the first ranked opponent U-M has faced this season. In fact, it marks the first time in the 175 meetings between Michigan (No. 16 AP, No. 15 coaches) and Northwestern (No. 19 AP, No. 22 coaches) that both teams will square off ranked among the nation's top 25.
• Michigan's eight-game winning streak has topped coach Juwan Howard's prior best of seven set at the start of last season. The Wolverines rattled off seven victories and won the Battle 4 Atlantis to vault to No. 4 in the nation before falling at No. 1 Louisville (ACC/B1G Challenge).
• After a career-best 26 points at Maryland (Dec. 31) -- the second 20+ point game in his last three games -- Hunter Dickinson reclaimed the Wolverine scoring lead at 16.6 per game. Did we mention he has scored in double figures in all eight games this year? He has.
• In addition to his scoring, Dickinson leads U-M with 8.8 rebounds per game. He collected his team-best third double-double at Maryland (26 points, 11 rebounds).
• Dickinson is shooting 72.6 percent from the field, which leads the Big Ten and is sixth nationally. He has seven games of 5+ buckets, including a career-best 10 (on 11 attempts) at Maryland.
• In his last two games, Franz Wagner averaged 19.5 points after 20 at Nebraska and 19 at Maryland. He shot 56.6 percent from the field (17-for-30) and drained five three-pointers, which nearly doubled his season total of three in the previous six games.
• Mike Smith has gone 7-for-11 (63.6 percent) from the three-point line over his last four games. Prior to that, he was just 1-for-9 from long range (four games).
• Smith has had 3+ assists in all eight games and leads U-M with 5.1 assists per game. Smith (41; 5.1 apg) and Eli Brooks (30; 3.7 apg) have combined for 71 of U-M's 141 total assists. Overall, five Wolverines have 10+ assists and three have 20+.
• The Wolverines are shooting 78.9 percent from the free throw line -- 12th nationally and leading the Big Ten. In total, U-M has five players shooting better than 82 percent.
• Over the last two seasons Isaiah Livers has missed three free throws, going 66-for-69 (95.6 percent). This season, he is at 95.7 percent (22-for-23), second in Big Ten and 10th nationally.
• U-M has scored 80+ points in seven games and is averaging 82.2 per game -- 44th nationally.

A Blistering Pace

• As a team U-M is shooting 52.3 percent from the field, which is ninth nationally and second in the Big Ten.
• Michigan has five games shooting above 50 percent from the field, including a season-best 58.8 percent at Maryland (Dec. 31).
• The Wolverines are led by big man Hunter Dickinson's 72.6 percent shooting (53-for-93), which is sixth nationally and leads the Big Ten. Franz Wagner is shooting 52.9 percent.
• The Wolverines have had 30+ field goals in six games this season, including a season-high 34 against Toledo (Dec. 9).
• Michigan has finished a season shooting above 50 percent eight times (105 seasons). The school record? The 1988-89 Wolverines shot an amazing 56.6 percent during their national championship season.
• In fact, U-M had a run of six straight seasons shooting above 50 percent for the season -- 1984-85 to 1989-90.