BUFFALO, N.Y. — Throughout the game, No. 1 seed Michigan felt like it was looking in the mirror. No. 9 seed Saint Louis gets out in transition, cuts quickly into the lane and possesses a skilled big man to play through.
“They definitely play the same type of way we do,” freshman guard Trey McKenney said. “It was really difficult because they play a lot like us with a lot of the same concepts. They don’t really run into sets in the half-court, so it’s definitely hard to trace what they’re doing on defense.”
But even when looking in the mirror, there was nothing in its reflection that looked like junior center Aday Mara. Much of the Billikens’ offense runs through center Robbie Avila, a de facto point guard who can shoot, pass, and work in the post. But when the Billikens could only find limited success on offense, it made the lack of an answer for Mara on defense even more painful.
“That’s the best center in college basketball,” senior guard Roddy Gayle Jr. said. “His gravity is just so massive, especially when he gets it going inside, that kind of opens up where he’s able to pass. I feel like our guys do a terrific job all season being able to play off of him, especially his ability to pass the ball. Me, personally, I feel like if I just cut at any sort of speed, he’s gonna be able to find me. And even if I’m not open, I created enough space for somebody else to take an open shot.”
In the first half alone, Mara had 10 points and three assists while also forcing Avila to sit on the bench for an extended period of time after picking up his second foul less than five minutes into the game. By scoring so effectively early on, it allowed the Wolverines to open up their entire offensive playbook.
When Mara was guarded one-on-one in the post, it usually turned into two points. When the defense collapsed, he kicked it out to an open teammate cutting and got the assist. It was a recipe the Billikens had no answer for.
“We played through the post for the majority of the game and then we got open looks off of that and tried to create advantages off of that,” McKenney said. “We did a really good job of trying to find advantages and play through them.”
The most notable of which came in the thick of the first half, with the game within a possession. Mara caught the ball down low before faking a weak-side pass that caused Avila to turn around. Mara took advantage, spinning and floating it in for an easy bucket.
“I used to do that when I was younger,” Mara said. “… it’s a thing that I’ve been doing since I started playing, but he didn’t know, so I got him.”
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