The Michigan men’s basketball team is nearing the midway point of Big Ten play and, like many of the teams in the conference, is still establishing a consistent defensive scheme and identity. The Big Ten brings a multitude of unique lineups that create scouting nightmares for coaches — the Wolverines’ lineup of two 7-foot starters among them.
But amid a bit of a mid-season rut, Michigan is using the physicality, limited practice time and frequent game experience that Big Ten play brings to test out different defensive approaches, looking to play better through aggression on that side of the ball.
“This week we focused on just being more aggressive on defense,” graduate guard Rubin Jones said Monday after taking down Penn State. “Actually guarding the ball, moving our feet, talking more, it showed in the game. So that’s what practice leads to.”
In a blowout loss to then-No.11 Purdue, the Wolverines were abysmal on the defensive end. Michigan gave up 91 points and allowed the Boilermakers to shoot over 50% from the floor — the first time it allowed an opponent to reach marks that high all season. Only one week earlier, the Wolverines also had defensive deficiencies against Minnesota in their upset loss.
Safe to say, the Wolverines needed a reset after two deplorable defensive showings. And they got that against the Nittany Lions — kind of.
Against Penn State, Michigan created more disruption than it had the past few games. After the pitiful performances against Purdue and the Golden Gophers, the Wolverines emphasized being more disruptive and forcing more turnovers.
“Part of the defensive focus was we weren’t being disruptive enough,” Michigan coach Dusty May said Monday. “Teams were doing what they wanted to do. That’s what happened to us, the scout got out that if you let them move the ball and be comfortable, they could pick us apart. … But if we can knock them off their spots, we can challenge everything.”
When Michigan played aggressively against the Nittany Lions, it forced more turnovers that translated on the offensive end. Given that the Wolverines love playing quickly and pushing in transition, Michigan used its intensity of defense to cause 18 turnovers and score 19 points off of them against Penn State.
But if the Wolverines force turnovers, they need to capitalize on them. Although Northwestern coughed the ball up 14 times, Michigan only had nine points off of those turnovers.
“We forced some turnovers, got out of transition, and we weren’t able to capitalize,” May said Jan. 19 after the Wolverines’ overtime win against the Wildcats. “If we would have made those plays, it would have fueled our defense even more. It would have caused us to get even more energy and more aggression.”
As May said, converting more on the offensive end from turnovers leads to even more energy and aggression on defense, so Michigan will stay active in passing lanes to force those turnovers. Inversely, minimizing its own turnovers can help Michigan defensively, as the Wolverines much prefer to set up a defensive set instead of scrambling to get a stop in transition. When they set up their defense, they can be active in the lanes and cause more turnovers.
“We’re letting these teams be too comfortable against us,” May said Monday. “And, are we willing to live with some of the mistakes, some of the downhill drives because we are closer to them? And we’re trying to be a little more disruptive? We decided that we are.”
For all the talk about adjusting offensively, Michigan is still adjusting defensively. As Big Ten play unfolds and after the wake-up calls against Minnesota and Purdue, the Wolverines are looking to bring out a new wave of aggressiveness on defense.
The post Michigan figuring out defensive intensity amid Big Ten play appeared first on The Michigan Daily.
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