Five takeaways from Michigan’s 77-67 win over Minnesota

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The No. 3 Michigan men’s basketball team played into Minnesota’s hand for the majority of Tuesday night’s game, before pulling away late behind a string of threes.

The Wolverines are the deeper, more talented team, but it took a while for that difference to become obvious. The Gophers’ pace of play confounded Michigan, and the Wolverines’ defense was below the standard they’ve set this season. But in the end, Michigan walked off the court at Crisler Center having claimed a share of the Big Ten Championship, a feat the Wolverines haven’t achieved in five years.

Here are five takeaways from Michigan’s grind-it-out win over Minnesota:

LJ CASON TURNS UP LATE

The Wolverines needed something — someone — to drag them out of the slog they found themselves in against Minnesota. Over a six-minute span in the second half, sophomore guard LJ Cason drained three 3-pointers and broke free for a fast-break bucket, turning Michigan’s tenuous lead into one of double-digits.

The Wolverines had struggled to put together a cohesive stretch of offense for much of Tuesday’s game. For a good chunk of the second half, Cason essentially provided that spurt all by himself.

“It means a lot,” Cason said. “It just shows the work that I put in. … I mean, every game is a different game. Tomorrow I might go 0-for-3, and the next day I might go 6-for-6. So it doesn’t really matter, it’s just about how I play outside of the shots.”

Yet this was one of those games where making shots might have been more important than anything else. Cason was 4-for-6 from deep and was as confident with his shot as he’s been all season. Cason attributes some of that to sharing the floor with junior guard Elliot Cadeau.

“Just able to just take my mind off of just trying to be a point guard,” Cason said. “I think just playing by myself, scoring the ball, trying to get inside the lane more often, and just run up and down the court knowing he’s on the court. I don’t have to look out for transition outlets and stuff. Just run the court and just push the pace.”

In Dusty May’s eyes, Cason and Cadeau on the floor together were a key part of the win.

“I think that’s what ultimately allowed us to spread Minnesota out,” May said. “Elliot, his penetration caused them to collapse a little bit, and then we got them condensed, and we were able to hit fan out threes and whatnot. … They’re both really good players, and they’re dynamic, and their speed and quickness and then obviously their shooting ability.”

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