Michigan moved to 9-0 with blowout wins over Rutgers and Villanova since our last podcast. The Wolverines keep rolling teams in the same way, with an elite defense and 2-point dominance on both ends of the court. Dylan and Eric break down the recent results and what makes this team so effective.
The UM Hoops Podcast · Episode 228 · 1:04:57
Show notes
Michigan beat Rutgers by 40 and Villanova by 28, with both games effectively decided by halftime. Dylan Burkhardt and Eric Shapiro point to a defense that leads the country, 2-point dominance on both ends, and turnovers that are no longer a problem.
They single out Elliot Cadeau's play against Villanova's drop coverage, Morez Johnson's defense and draft stock, Yaxel Lendeborg's low usage and shot mix, and the freshman Trey McKenney. They close with a look at Saturday's trip to Maryland, the backloaded schedule, and which guards could test the Wolverines.
- defense
- kenpom
- depth
- draft stock
- three-point shooting
- maryland preview
- schedule
Worth hearing
Prediction58:21 · How long can the run last?
“I think I’m getting to the point where I think it would be kind of a pretty big disappointment if they lost before that Michigan State game.”
Dylan Burkhardt
43:12 · L.J. Cason and the guards' defense
“They’re taking way more chances defensively in a way that they never did last year and that they didn’t at the beginning of the season because they trust that their teammates will cover for them.”
Eric Shapiro
Prediction44:09 · L.J. Cason and the guards' defense
“I would bet a lot of money that their turnover rate defensively, like the number of turnovers they’re forcing, will rise pretty considerably as the season goes on.”
Eric Shapiro
47:14 · Trey McKenney's role on a deep team
“I think Roddy and Trey would probably start for every Big Ten team, 14 over-under 14.5 Big Ten team, something like that.”
Dylan Burkhardt
34:22 · Lendeborg's three-point shot selection
“Just throw a ball to a 7-foot-3 guy. He just throws an alley-oop over the top of the zone. Like, what do you do?”
Dylan Burkhardt
12:00 · Cadeau against Villanova's coverage
“Elliot Cadeau just— he hit a 3 on the opening possession and then he just kind of sliced and diced them up into pieces for that entire first half.”
Dylan Burkhardt
25:25 · Morez Johnson's defense and draft stock
“Aday and Morez were the reason we thought this would be one of the best defenses in the country, I would say.”
Dylan Burkhardt
58:08 · How long can the run last?
“Michigan has played like this in more than just like those 3 or 4 games or whatever you want to say.”
Dylan Burkhardt
19:50 · Depth, usage and Lendeborg's POY case
“Like, he’s his stats could be much higher if he, I mean, he’s extremely efficient, but like, if he was playing more minutes, like his counting stats.”
Eric Shapiro
Chapters
- Michigan at 9-0 and the Villanova blowout
- Defense, freedom and the turnover fix
- Cadeau against Villanova's coverage
- Depth, usage and Lendeborg's POY case
- Morez Johnson's defense and draft stock
- Lendeborg's three-point shot selection
- L.J. Cason and the guards' defense
- Trey McKenney's role on a deep team
- Maryland preview and first road test
- How long can the run last?
Games discussed
- Villanova at Michigan W 89-61
- Rutgers at Michigan W 101-60
- Michigan at Maryland W 101-83
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Join the conversation · 31 replies on the forum
The conversation
31 repliesJoin the discussionkturnup
I had the same thought Eric did re: turnovers. That I haven’t thought about them in a long time. We’ve pretty much eliminated the really bad half court stuff and pick 6s for easy two points
umhoops
Yeah, turnovers trending toward a preseason and TCU thing, and TCU looks like one of the most aggressive turnover forcing teams in the country.
Dcleary_12
You mentioned on the pod that the shot quality was the highest its ever been in Rutgers and Gonzaga, and that against Villanova it wont be as high. Is that just as simple as having a lower amount of mid to long range 2pt attempts? I’m curious how that becomes a quantifiable stat.
umhoops
The Synergy stat I referenced (and reference in the Report Card stories) is based on shot type, distance, guarded/not guarded, play type, etc.
So it basically calculates the average EV for a shot based on those attributes and uses that as “shot quality”.
Dmassaro27
Thanks for the pod guys, always appreciate it and love it. Its like a ritual for me, when I have to drive somewhere, to get in the car and just listen to the pod front to back. I know you just answered a bunch of questions and I am absolutely ecstatic with what we’ve all seen from Elliot, but I seem to have this fear that this 3 pt shooting is a mirage and won’t last all season. At what point do we just have to trust that he has gotten to a point where he is reliable from range, or has everyone else already gotten there?