For the second game in a row, Michigan found itself in prime position to secure a desperately-needed marquee victory. And, just like it did on Thursday against Illinois, the Wolverines fumbled away a late advantage, leading to a crushing loss.
Now, Michigan heads to the Big Ten Tournament with significant work to do in order to make the NCAA Tournament.
Here are five takeaways from the overtime loss to Indiana:
Revisiting the end of regulation
Juwan Howard has come under the microscope for his late-game execution this season, and Michigan fell to 4-11 in games decided by two possessions or overtime this season. The Wolverines have struggled to convert in these crucial scenarios, an ineptitude that was magnified on Thursday and reared its head again on Sunday.
After Indiana’s Race Thompson missed a chaotic lay-up attempt off a Michigan turnover, the Wolverines had the ball with the shot clock turned off and the game tied at 69. With 13 seconds to go, Howard called a timeout to draw up a play.
“We were kind of trying to throw it into Dug I believe, and then Kobe was supposed to get the handoff and then I think it was supposed to be a post entry pass,” Hunter Dickinson recounted later. “But I just saw the way his defender was playing him, so I went to set a screen and we got a decent look at it.”
Jett Howard was the one who wound up handling the ball on the left wing, and Howard could not thread the needle to Dickinson inside. So, Dickinson came out to set a screen and Howard proceeded to find him on the wing. His 3-pointer missed long, sending the game to overtime.
“We got a good shot,” Howard said. “We got a good shot.”
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