Michigan holds on to upset Wisconsin, hand Badgers 3rd straight loss

Wednesday night marked the 16th time Michigan took a lead at halftime this year. Over the previous 15 times, the Wolverines had a 7-8 record in those games, and they looked to flip the script against No. 11 Wisconsin.

It got dicey down the stretch, but Michigan did just that, holding on for the 72-68 victory over the Badgers at the Crisler Center.

Michigan took a 37-33 lead into halftime, but Wisconsin jumped back out in front and held a 48-44 lead with 13:47 left. The Wolverines didn’t back down, though, leading by as many as nine points with 5:45 to play. It turned into a back-and-forth affair in the final minutes, but Michigan held on to get the victory and improve to 3-9 in Big Ten play.

It was a resilient effort from Juwan Howard’s group, and he noted that in his postgame interview with Big Ten Network’s Andy Katz.

“Basically, we stayed the course,” Howard said when asked how Michigan held on. “We knew they were gonna make their runs. We talked about trying to keep them out of the paint, more importantly, also contesting any shot without fouling. In the first half, we just gave up too many of those where we were sending them to the line. Overall, just really impressed with how our guys kept their stability.”

Four Wolverines finished in double-figures, led by 15 points from Dug McDaniel, who played on despite banging knees with a Wisconsin player in the first half. It wasn’t an easy go for Michigan after halftime, shooting just 36% after the break, including 33% from three-point territory, but the defense held Wisconsin long enough to come away with its eighth win of the year and third in league play.

While McDaniel headed to the bench, others stepped up – which forced Howard to keep the current lineup in the game even though he was ready to come back.

“That group, we had Jaelin [Llewellyn] in, Nimari [Burnett], Tray [Jackson] as well as Will [Tschetter] and the big fella [Tarris Reed]. Those guys really just kept it anchored in,” Howard said. “They got off to a good run, there were some really good possessions when we got stops when needed. At the same time, they made hustle plays. It was just tough to break that group up.

“And I know Dug, being the competitor that he is, was just waiting on the sideline and probably got a little upset because he’s a strong competitor, he’s always been that guy that’s been driving the bus for us. But overall, I had to stick with what was working for us, and I think it was a good job. I love how they were able to do their job. But I’m impressed with how our team was overall together and rallied and got the dub.”

The Badgers entered the game with back-to-back losses to Nebraska and Purdue, and they were looking to avoid a third consecutive loss against a Michigan team that has struggled mightily through the Big Ten portion of the schedule. Despite 20 points from AJ Storr and 17 from Chucky Hepburn, Wisconsin couldn’t end the streak and is now 16-7 overall on the year, including 8-4 in conference play.