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UM vs. Michigan NCAA Game Thread

First Round. The opening slate is unsurprisingly the most predictable. At seeds 1-4 we can advance teams in our bracket without much worry of an upset. The only real surprise is that 12 seeds perform as well against 5 seeds as 11s do against 6 seeds. #1 seeds have yet to suffer a loss in the first round, but you certainly get the idea that the day is coming sooner or later.
SEED WINS LOSSES WIN %
1 132 0 100%
2 124 8 94%
3 111 21 84%
4 106 26 80%
5 85 47 64%
6 83 49 63%
7 81 51 61%
8 67 65 51%
9 65 67 49%
10 51 81 39%
11 49 83 37%
12 47 85 36%
13 26 106 20%
14 21 111 16%
15 8 124 6%
16 0 132 0%
 
Bored Michigan fan who enjoys reading opponent message boards. So here's a breakdown for you guys:

As a whole, we run a perimeter oriented offense with lots of cuts, off ball action and pick and roll/pop. We take a lot of threes and emphasize threes and paint shots. Never turn the ball over. Don't crash the boards on offense in order to prevent transition opportunities. Elite defensive team. Great at defensive rebounding. Solid at forcing turnovers. Elite transition D. Have a major emphasis on preventing three point attempts. Very versatile on defense and run lots of varied pick and roll coverages. Also, in general, Michigan is a poor free throw shooting team.

Starters:

PG - Zavier Simpson: Tiny 5'9"-5'10" point guard who is an elite defender. Shuts down opposing guards. We even had him guard Miles Bridges for about 8 minutes or so and he shut him down. Elite quickness and good ball handler. Great at getting to the rim and finishing. Often has to use unorthodox floaters/bank shots but he makes them at a high rate. Okay enough spot-up three point shooter and he will take them. He will not take up pull up jumpers. Takes care of the ball. Pretty good passer. Poor free throw shooter.

SG - Muhammad Ali Abdur Rahkman: 6'4" guard. Good defender. Very good spot-up shooter. Up and down as a pull-up guy but has been up lately. Doesn't have enormous usage due to our offensive style but he is great at working his way to the basket and making tough finishes at the rim. He is the guy most often tasked with taking tough end of shot clock attempts. Takes care of the ball. Has been playing very very well lately. Solid passer

SF - Charles Matthews: 6'6" forward. Great defender. Okay spot-up shooter. Great athlete but very shaky handle. Used to have a major role in the offense earlier in the year but his role as dialed back as he struggled. Has thrived in a lower usage roll. Will run some pick and roll against favorable matchups. Good passer in the pick and roll. Prone to turnovers due to traveling from a triple threat position. Good rebounder for his size and position. Will run the floor. Poor free throw shooter.

PF - Isaiah Livers: 6'8" forward. Solid defender and spot-up three point shooter. Will run the floor. Very minor role in the offense and now plays backup minutes in leiu of Duncan Robinson.

C - Mo Wagner: 6'11" center. Passable defender when he doesn't have to guard a really big guy in the post. Fairly light for his height so he can be out-strengthed in the post. Michigan will do stuff to help and out and hide him if he needs it, but that has become more rare. Is fine in pick and roll defense. Will gamble for steals on post-up/post-entries. High-level three point shooter. Michigan uses pick and pop with him as a foundation part of their offense. He can shoot and drive off a closeout. A behind the back dribble is a bit of signature for him. Has very smooth moves in the post, but we don't give it to him down there often. Can kill a team with his pick and pop game. He is a guy you people will hate. Very fiery guy who trash talks and goes all out for loose balls/etc.

Bench:

PG - Jaaron Simmons: 6'0" point guard. Basically just a replacement level guy.

SG - Jordan Poole: 6'4" shooting guard who backs up Muhammad and Charles. Is an irrational confidence guy who has a lot of talent. Prone to turnovers/defensive mistakes but can also make 4/5 pull up threes in a row. Has the handle to drive to the basket and run some pick and roll but prefers threes. Played poorly recently in the BTT because his three point shot was off.

PF - Duncan Robinson: 6'8" forward who backs up Livers but plays starter minutes. Is a knockdown spot-up shooter. Played very poorly for the first couple of months but has rebounded recently and is back into form. Runs the offense well. Good cutter, can drive off a close out occasionally. Doesn't run pick and roll. Michigan will run off ball screen plays for him. Deadly in transition. Very poor perimeter defender but an above average defender down low. So, Michigan runs schemes where he will switch if his man cuts up high. This keeps him down low and prevents him from being exposed defensively.

C - Jon Teske: 7'0" center. Elite defender and solid rebounder. Phenomenal lateral agility for his size so he can shut down pick and roll. However he has no vertical and thus gets very few blocks. His sheer size effects plenty of shots at the rim though. Adequate finisher and has some ability to hit a mid-range jumper.
 
Will be happy to give you a take on us and would appreciate it if you can give a take on yoir squad as i know little about it:

1) it is a typical John Beilein team in that we are disciplined, dont turn the ball over and don't foul much.

2) it is an atypical JB team as our defense is better than our O. Usually a JB team tries to outrun and out gun you. This one will beat you up a bit. With that said, we arent exactly a shot blocking team. What we do is keep teams from getting inside in the first place both by cuttimg off passimg lanes and the dribble drive. Not sure of the post conference tourney rankings but as of our last game we were number 5 or 6 in the country in defensive efficiency.

3) This is a very deep team who can get (lots) of points from many different guys on any given night...including guys coming off the bench (we have the Big Ten 6th Man of the year award winner in Dumcan Robinson). With that said, we dont have that one take over the game guy who on a nightly basis just beats you by himself. The two closest are Mo Wagner and and Abdur-Rahkman. Mo is a big man who is athletic and scores inside and out. The comparison the media makes is to Drik Nowitzski...partly because they are both German but also because his game is actually quite similar (a "poor man's version"). MAAR is a slasher (sg) who can get to the rim and hit timely outside shots. He led the nation in assist to turnover ratio - when he is hitting his shots it opens up the floor and thats when we go on rums because everyone starts scorimg since he will happily give up the ball to open guys.

4) Other players of note: Charles Mathews is our enigma. He is a lottery pick talent and body. However, sometimes he plays like he has never picked up a basketball in his e
life. Our pg is a true frosh named Zavier Simpson. Not a great shooter but a fantastic defender, a pretty good passer and has a knack for making plays. Livers (a true frosh) is the 5th starter and a future star but not yet. Off the bench is Ribinson who is our best shooter and can hjt from anywhere on the court. Poole is a spark plug who can take over a game (be our best player) when he is one but is a true freshman who oftern plays like one. When Teske comes in it changes the way we play (he tends to come in for Wagner who we run our O though...when Teske is in we play more on the perimeter). He is a big...well actually our biggest man who isnt quite a threat to score (besides cleaning up) but gives us a defensive presence in the middle. Simmons was a two year starter in the MAC who transfered in, expecting to start, and has accepted his role of giving us valuable minutes at the point with little letdown.

5) Weaknesses: we are a pretty bad FT team. Sometimes makes it hard to close out games amd allows teams back into games. We are long and athletic but not exactly a big team...size cam challenge us. While having a lot of guys who can put up points is a good thing...so is having that one guy who consistently takes over games. We don't have that. You will hear the media talk about how we are 3pt shooting team. That is based on legacy. This team can hit 3s but not like past teams.

Looking forward to hearimg about your team
 
https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/2018-march-madness-picks-four-cinderellas-you-should-strongly-consider/

Here’s a link that picks a possible Cinderella team out of each region. Montana is their choice for the west.

No. 14 Montana Grizzlies

First up: No. 3 Michigan. Then possibly: No. 6 Houston.

A true Cinderella is a 14 or 15 that basically know one you know in real life actually picks. Total shock factor. Montana is the team with that potential. Everyone is hot on Michigan. The Wolverines are a true 3 seed. They've earned it. They also don't play until about 9:50 ET on Thursday night. Long layoff for John Beilein's team. Montana has only dropped two games since Christmas, and it's a pretty stingy team in the paint. Plus, Michigan is a bad free throw shooting team (65.7 percent). The chance is there.
A win over Michigan and then a potential game against Houston? The Cougars are a solid No. 6, but that's a good opportunity for the Grizzlies to get a close game. This is the true dark horse Cinderella team in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. Ahmaad Rorie is the name to know.
 
alabamagrizzly said:
https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/2018-march-madness-picks-four-cinderellas-you-should-strongly-consider/

Here’s a link that picks a possible Cinderella team out of each region. Montana is their choice for the west.

No. 14 Montana Grizzlies

First up: No. 3 Michigan. Then possibly: No. 6 Houston.

A true Cinderella is a 14 or 15 that basically know one you know in real life actually picks. Total shock factor. Montana is the team with that potential. Everyone is hot on Michigan. The Wolverines are a true 3 seed. They've earned it. They also don't play until about 9:50 ET on Thursday night. Long layoff for John Beilein's team. Montana has only dropped two games since Christmas, and it's a pretty stingy team in the paint. Plus, Michigan is a bad free throw shooting team (65.7 percent). The chance is there.
A win over Michigan and then a potential game against Houston? The Cougars are a solid No. 6, but that's a good opportunity for the Grizzlies to get a close game. This is the true dark horse Cinderella team in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. Ahmaad Rorie is the name to know.

Michael Oguine is a name to know too!!! I honestly don't understand how Oguine cannot be mentioned with Rorie. Rorie gets all the pub from the outside .
 
Thanks for the Michigan reports.

I can't imagine the Griz could beat you. But, the Griz are talented, athletic, and a great defensive team. Their goal was not to make the tourney, but to compete.

Don't think our guys will back down or be overly intimated. But who knows. I will be there.
 
PlayerRep said:
Thanks for the Michigan reports.

I can't imagine the Griz could beat you. But, the Griz are talented, athletic, and a great defensive team. Their goal was not to make the tourney, but to compete.

Don't think our guys will back down or be overly intimated. But who knows. I will be there.

I hope a good crowd shows up. I’m sure we’ll have a big cheering section regardless cus the underdogs are usually fan favorite, especially versus Michigan in Kansas country. I was secretly hoping for a Nashville draw so I could make the 100 mile drive north to cheer them on in person but I’ll definitely be watching my tv screen.
 
...yo..mighty u. of michigan...
...remember little appy state football...
...hit you in the teeth with the pressure defense...
...let the chips fall..don't be asleep like that fatefull football day...

... :cool: ...
 
Yo, Michigan fans! Great to have you here. An opposing school always reveals its character when their fans come on our board. We've had bozos, trash-talkers and self-styled comedians, but your posts have been respectful and informative, while revealing a deep love for your team. Good for you.

What struck dread into me yesterday was not the name "Michigan," but rather "Coach John Beilein." We've run afoul of him before, and it wasn't pleasant. In fact, lacerating

It was the Fall of 2006, and we played West Virginia in the first game of a pre-season tournament in Orlando. This may have been Beilein's last season there before he moved on to Michigan.

Earlier that Spring, we'd gone to the Big Dance, where we defeated Nevada in the first round, before taking on Boston College for a shot at the Sweet 16. At the half, the game was tied, but in the second half, one of their guards, a terrible three-point shooter, suddenly got hot, while out guys went stone cold. That shattered our dreams of a Tournament run, but not of becoming a mid-major power the next year. In Orlando, many expected us to beat West Virginia.

But Mr. Beilein quickly brought us back to where we belonged--Mother Earth. Kerplop! His team played suffocating defense, didn't turn the ball over, and executed precision cuts to the basket that lead to way too many layups. I came away with nothing but respect for the way the "big guys" played the game, and the way Beilein coached.

We're athletic and play solid defense, but it's my fervent hope that our fan base and our coaches know full well what we're up against when facing any team coached by John Beilein.
 
Big Blue, too big, too deep and too much.

We’d do very well in a mid major NC but going to sea in PT boats versus battleship not in our favor

Love our team and school but this one is a bridge too far!

Huge upset possible but not likely
 
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