At the Buzzer: Michigan 91, Purdue 80

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Rapid reactions to Michigan’s 91-80 win over Purdue.

THE MOMENT

For a three-minute period in the first half, the No. 1 Michigan men’s basketball team didn’t look like it was playing in a top-10 matchup at one of the most hostile environments in the country. From just under the 13-minute mark to under the 10-minute mark in the first half, No. 7 Purdue was utterly dominated on all fronts en route to a 15-0 run for the Wolverines, where they never led by less than 10 until the last two minutes of the game.

During that run, Michigan nailed two 3-pointers as it went on to hit 8 of the last 11 shots from beyond the arc in the first half. The pure offensive dominance in that stretch, also having 14 assists on the last 14 shots of the half, set the line for the remainder of the game.

No matter how much the Boilermakers tried to fight their way back, the 15-0 run was too much a hurdle to overcome.

THE TAKEAWAY

Entering the matchup, the battle of the front courts was already one of note. With the trio of graduate forward Yaxel Lendeborg, sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr. and junior center Aday Mara clashing against forward Trey Kaufman-Renn and center Oscar Cluff, the battle down low didn’t disappoint.

Michigan clearly won the first half with a 21-14 rebounding differential while also hauling in eight offensive boards for 14 second-chance points. Mara had a double-double early in the second half but was forced to the bench with foul trouble. Johnson dominated the boards and finished with another double-double as he had 12 points and 11 rebounds and Lendeborg finished with 13 points of his own, 10 of which in the first half.

Then in the second half, Kaufman-Renn took over. He ended with 27 points and 11 rebounds and was a major reason Mara was in foul trouble and Johnson’s early struggles in the scoring column.

When all was said and done though, the combined efforts of Lendeborg, Johnson and Mara were simply too much for Kaufman-Renn to overcome on his own. The Wolverines didn’t have the best front court player on the night, but they won the overall front court battle — thus winning the game.

THE STAR

Ending with a team leading 17 points while also picking up seven assists, junior guard Elliot Cadeau was a major contributor all over the floor on offense for Michigan. Despite a three-point first half, Cadeau still made an impact through his passing and drawing attention with his drives — many of which started falling in the second half.

As Cadeau’s teammates collected numerous offensive rebounds for second-chance shots, his ability to dictate the offense through driving and either finishing off the glass against much taller opponents or dishing out to teammates on the perimeter led to the Wolverines scoring on all levels.   

THE STAT

Although the front court battle was on full display, what separated the Wolverines was their ability to nail shots from downtown. Michigan often found the lane congested and after driving or securing an offensive rebound on a miss, the Wolverines would kick it out for wide-open 3-pointers.

On the night, Michigan shot 13-for-23 from range at a 56.5% clip — much higher than its 35.4% going into the game. Although Purdue made things interesting in the end, the barrage from deep was too much a burden for the Boilermakers to have to overcome.

FOUR FACTORS