Michigan
15-12,9-7Big Ten
Michigan State
16-10,8-7Big Ten
Emotional Evening Sees Michigan Rally for Maize Out Victory over Michigan State
2/18/2023 11:42:00 PM | Men's Basketball
• Postgame Press Conference: Coach Juwan Howard
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- On an emotional evening that symbolized much more than the game of basketball following Monday night's tragedy in East Lansing, the University of Michigan men's basketball team got the win over Michigan State, 84-72, on Saturday night (Feb. 18) at Crisler Center.
Leaders and Best
Dug McDaniel led the Wolverines (15-12, 9-7 B1G) with a career-high 18 points and four assists. Kobe Bufkin scored 17 points, while Hunter Dickinson added 14 points and seven rebounds. Tarris Reed Jr. collected a career- and team-best 10 rebounds.
The Turning Point
After MSU's Tyson Walker made a three to tie the game at 72 with 2:29 left in regulation, Bufkin and Dickinson made back-to-back three-pointers which kicked off a 12-0 scoring run for the Wolverines to close out the game. The consecutive triples by U-M forced Michigan State (17-9, 9-6 B1G) to foul down the stretch, and Michigan converted six free throws while holding the Spartans scoreless in the final two minutes and seal the 84-72 win.
Second Half
Throughout the opening minutes of the second half, Michigan continued to answer when MSU tried to build a lead, tying the game four times in the first nine minutes. Eventually, the Spartans established control after making five straight field goals, claiming a 63-57 lead with just over eight minutes remaining in the game, but Joey Baker drained a three-pointer out of the timeout to cut U-M's deficit in half. At the seven-minute mark, Reed Jr. grabbed an offensive rebound and scored an and-one layup, tying the game at 63.
After another putback by Reed Jr., Dickinson made two free throws and gave Michigan its first lead since the 11:17 mark in the first half. MSU tied the game once again with a layup, but Dickinson dropped in a spinning layup on the next possession to keep Wolverines on top, 69-67, with 3:13 before the final buzzer.
When Michigan State made a pair of free throws to force another tie, Reed Jr. converted another and-one opportunity on the other end, giving the Wolverines a three-point lead. Walker tied the game again for Michigan State with a step-back triple, but Bufkin answered with a step-back three of his own to keep U-M in front. Reed Jr. blocked a shot on the Spartans' next possession, and Dickinson drained a triple to stretch Michigan's lead to six. MSU was held scoreless the rest of the way, and the Maize and Blue sealed the game with late free throws to win, 84-72.
First Half
After the Spartans got on the board with an early jumper, Dug McDaniel single-handedly took Michigan on a 7-0 scoring run and gave the Wolverines a five-point lead. MSU answered by making its next six field goals to reclaim a 15-14 advantage at the 14-minute mark.
Each team struggled to get an edge throughout the early portion of the first half, with eight lead changes coming in the first 10 minutes. A 7-0 Michigan State run left U-M trailing by as many as six points, but a triple from Baker followed by a floater from McDaniel pulled the Wolverines back within one. However, MSU outscored Michigan 9-2 over the next four minutes, and U-M trailed 33-25 with 3:42 before the break.
The Maize and Blue outscored Michigan State 8-3 to end the half behind a three-pointer from Bufkin as well as an and-one layup from Dickinson. The Wolverines trailed at halftime, 36-33.
What's Next
Michigan will travel to Piscataway, N.J., to take on Rutgers on Thursday night (Feb. 23). Tipoff is slated for 8:30 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on FS1.
Notes
• On his way to a career-high of 18 points, Dug McDaniel made his first five shots from the field to score 11 points in the first half.
• In addition to setting a new career-high with 10 rebounds, Tarris Reed Jr. tied his career-high in scoring with eight points.
• Kobe Bufkin reached double figures for his sixth-straight game. During this stretch, he is averaging 15.5 points, six rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.
• The Wolverines had five scorers in double figures: McDaniel (18), Bufkin (17), Hunter Dickinson (14), Joey Baker (10), and Jett Howard (10).
• Michigan ended the game on a 12-0 run, holding MSU scoreless for the final 2:29.
