Wolverines to Host No. 16 Ohio State for Blue Out at Crisler

» Michigan will host No. 16-ranked Ohio State in a Blue Out game at Crisler Center on Saturday.
» The Wolverines close a three-game in five-day span against the Buckeyes -- their second straight ranked opponent.
» U-M Legend Rudy Tomjanovich will be honored at halftime following his induction in the Basketball Hall of Fame (Class of 2020).
» Eli Brooks needs 11 points to become the 56th Wolverine to reach 1,000 career points.

• Complete Game Notes (PDF)

• Social Media: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Note: Effective Jan. 1, 2022, the University of Michigan has instituted a proof of COVID-19 vaccination or negative-test protocol for indoor athletic events. Face masks continue to be required and must be worn during all home indoor athletic events. [ U-M Vaccination Policy ]

The University of Michigan men's basketball team will close its three-games-in-five-days swing on Saturday (Feb. 12) when the Wolverines host No. 16-ranked Ohio State at Crisler Center in a Blue Out game. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. on ESPN with Jason Benetti (play-by-play) and Robbie Hummel (analyst) on the call.

The Scene Setter

• U-M will finish its three-games-in-five-days swing with a home game against No. 16 Ohio State. The stretch opened with a win at Penn State (Feb. 8) followed by the 82-58 upset of No. 3 Purdue (Feb. 10). Technically, U-M is in a four-games-in-seven-days swing which started with a road game at No. 4 Purdue (Feb. 5).

• Saturday's game against OSU is a "Blue Out." Fans are encouraged to dress in blue/navy to show support for the Wolverines. Blue Out rally towels will be handed out pregame to the first 10,000 fans in attendance.

• U-M will honor Michigan Basketball Legend Rudy Tomjanovich in a halftime ceremony on Saturday to celebrate his induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2020. "Rudy T" is the first Wolverine to be enshrined; the following year, Fab Five member and fellow U-M legend Chris Webber was a part of the class of 2021 inductees.

• In U-M's final eight Big Ten games, it is set to face five nationally-ranked foes. Additionally, five of those final eight will be home games at Crisler Center.

• Hunter Dickinson leads U-M with 18.3 points and 8.3 rebounds. He has seven 20-plus point games in his last nine. In his last three games, he tied a career-best with 28 points at No. 4 Purdue (Feb. 5), tied a career-best with 15 rebounds at Penn State (Feb. 8) and then sank a career-best four three-pointers against No. 3 Purdue (Feb. 10).

• In his last game, Eli Brooks set the program record for career games (146) and already holds a program mark with 118 career wins. He now needs 11 points (989) to become the 56th Wolverine to reach 1,000 career points.

Last Time Out: Michigan's Victory over No. 3 Purdue

• The victory over No. 3 Purdue marked U-M's first over a ranked opponent this season. The Wolverines are 1-3 against ranked opponents.

• The victory marked Michigan's highest-ranked victory since it knocked off No. 2 Michigan State in the 2018 Big Ten Tournament (March 3, 2018). Following that win, the Wolverines went on to win their second straight conference tournament and advanced to the national title game against Villanova.

• The victory was the highest-ranked opponent U-M has defeated under head coach Juwan Howard, topping Michigan's win over No. 4 Ohio State last season in Columbus (Feb. 21, 2021).

• Thursday's victory over the No. 3-ranked Boilermakers matched the highest ranking for a Purdue team that Michigan has defeated. Michigan also upended a No. 3-ranked Purdue squad by a 104-68 score in Ann Arbor on March 7, 1987.

• U-M's 24-point victory (82-58) marked the eighth 20-plus point win and tied for the fourth largest in the 165-game history. It was also the largest win margin over Purdue since a +24 win (89-65) on Jan. 16, 1997 -- just over 25 years ago in Ann Arbor.

• Michigan held Purdue to season lows for points (58), rebounds (25), three-pointers (4) and assists (5).

• Michigan had 21 assists on 32 field goals and shot over 50% percent (51.6%) for the second straight game against the Boilermakers.

New Milestone for the Professor

• With his start against No. 3 Purdue, Eli Brooks became U-M's career games leader with 147 games. He passed his former teammate Zavier Simpson (146; 2017-20).

• Brooks already holds the program record with 118 career wins -- currently the most of any Big Ten player.

• Brooks (989) needs 11 points to become the 56th Wolverine to reach 1,000 career points.

• With four three-pointers (4-for-4) against Purdue, Brooks became the 15th Wolverine to reach 150 long-range buckets. He would need 38 to crack U-M's all-time top 10.

The No. 16 Ohio State Buckeyes

• No. 16 Ohio State comes to Ann Arbor sporting a 14-6 record with a 7-4 mark in Big Ten play. The Buckeyes lost their last game at Rutgers (Feb. 9) when the Scarlet Knights used a closing 10-0 run for a dramatic comeback win, 66-64. OSU has lost four of its last five Big Ten road games and stands 3-4 on the season in conference road games.

• Saturday's game is the first of two regular season meetings. U-M and OSU will close out the regular season with a game in Columbus, Ohio on Sunday, March 6 at Value City Arena.

• The Buckeyes had three games canceled due to COVID-19 protocols in late December, and have had two games postponed in Big Ten play -- Nebraska (due to COVID-19 protocols) and Iowa (due to weather).

• Three Buckeyes have missed several games due to injuries. Seth Towns will miss the rest of the season due to a back injury, while Justice Sueing remains doubtful with an abdominal injury and Gene Brown III is questionable while he battles a toe injury.

• OSU averages 75.1 points, 35.6 rebounds and 15.0 assists per game. Nearly 42 percent of the Buckeye offense comes via the long-range bucket (463-of-1112 shots).

• Ohio State is led by Big Ten and National Player of the Year candidate E.J. Liddell. With 20 consecutive double-figure games, he leads the Buckeyes with 19.7 points per game, which ranks 22nd nationally. He has nine games of 20-plus points including a season-best 34 against Northwestern (Jan. 9). He adds a team-best 7.6 rebounds per game and 50 blocks (2.5 bpg) to go with five double-doubles. He is shooting 51.9% from the floor and is second on the team with 30 three-pointers (40.5 percent) and 61 assists (3.1 apg). He also has 132 trips to the free throw line, nearly triple that of the next closest Buckeye.

• Freshman and Columbus native Malaki Branham, who has started 19 of 20 games, has burst onto the scene and is averaging 10.9 points per contest. He has eight double-digit games including a career-best 35 at Nebraska (Jan. 2) in which he knocked down six of his 24 three-pointers. He adds 3.7 rebounds per game and 1.9 assists per game.

• Down low for the Buckeyes, Zed Key has averaged 9.4 points per game and 5.9 rebounds per game while shooting 58.8 percent from the field. Taking advantage of the NCAA's extra season, Kyle Young returned to the Buckeyes and has averaged 8.3 points per game and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 51.0 percent.

• In their 27 NCAA Tournament appearances, the Buckeyes have made 10 trips to the Final Four and won the national title in 1960.

Up Next

Thursday, Feb. 17 -- at Iowa (Carver-Hawkeye Arena), 6 p.m. CT (TV: ESPN/2)