Examining five key stats for Michigan basketball

Michigan Wolverines basketball is 7-6 and saw its last two games get postponed due to COVID-19 protocols. The team’s next scheduled game is Friday at Illinois.

There’s a lot of season left, but the Wolverines are fighting for their NCAA Tournament lives. Here, we dig into five key statistics that explain some of the struggles and will have a factor in any improvement the team makes going forward.

RELATED

• Michigan basketball’s Tuesday game against Purdue postponed

Turnovers

Head coach Juwan Howard has said 11 or less is what he’s looking for, and Michigan has had four straight games of 11 turnovers or fewer, including a season-low eight giveaways in two of the last four contests. The Wolverines are trending in the right direction, after turnovers plagued the group earlier in the season. They rank `144th nationally with turnovers on 18.3 percent of their possessions.

On the other end of the floor, a lack of turnovers is concerning. The Wolverines are notching takeaways on just 14.5 percent of their opponents’ trips (34`1st nationally) with a 6.5 steal percentage (337th).

Three-Pointers

Michigan is yielding 6.8 made three-pointers per game and allowing opponents to shoot 29 percent from beyond the arc as a whole, but has given up 12 and 11 in its last two games, losses to UCF and Rutgers, respectively. In fact, UCF made its last eight triples of the game, which fueled a 14-point win after trailing by 12 in the second half.

Defensive lapses have been all too frequent for the Maize and Blue this season, and just when it looks like they’ve taken a step forward, we see performances like the last two outings.

On the other end of the floor, the Wolverines are connecting on just 34 percent of their triple tries, which ranks 144th in the country.

Michigan runs ball-screen offense on 31.9 percent of its possessions and cashes in to the tune of 0.965 points per possession (third in Big Ten and 43rd nationally). Just imagine how much more efficient the offense would be if the Wolverines were consistently hitting from deep.

Hunter Dickinson

The sophomore center attempts a whopping 26.7 percent of Michigan’s shots while he’s on the floor, and leads the team with 16.1 points per game on 59.1 percent shooting from the floor.

Michigan’s offense has been predicated on feeding Dickinson in the post, with the team slotting 46th nationally in post feeds per possession (11.5 percent of the time). And while the overall offensive numbers aren’t great, going inside has worked for the Wolverines. They also rank 46th in the country with 0.983 points per possession via post-ups, according to Synergy.

Dickinson has had some ups and downs, but he’s been everything the Wolverines expected him to be this season — and then some, if we factor in that he hasn’t had much spacing since the Wolverines are shooting a dismal mark from long range.

Third Scoring Option

Another reason why Dickinson’s play has been nothing to complain about is that he’s had virtually no help on the offensive end, with just one other player — fifth-year senior guard Eli Brooks — averaging in double figures at 12.9 points per game.

Other than that, the Wolverines have seen others step up and have big games, but there hasn’t been a consistent third option.

Freshman wing Caleb Houstan was expected to be the second option, but he’s been that distant third behind Brooks, averaging 9.5 points per game on 36.4 percent shooting from the field and just 31.5 percent on three-pointers despite being known as an elite shooter out of high school.

Houstan, who just turned 19 years old, skipped his senior prep year and reclassified, so it’s fair to cut the former five-star some slack. Still, though, it doesn’t take away from the fact that Michigan, at least right now, doesn’t have the offensive firepower it needs.

The obvious candidate to become the third or fourth guy would be fifth-year senior point guard DeVante’ Jones, who’s improved throughout the season after transferring in from Coastal Carolina but has still been inconsistent as well. He’s averaging 7.5 points per game, but was held scoreless against Rutgers.

Lack Of Bench Production

Michigan’s bench plays just 25.3 percent of its minutes, according to Kenpom, which ranks 301st in the sport. The Wolverines were shorthanded in their last game at Rutgers due to a COVID-19 outbreak, but the production from the backups hasn’t been up to par all season long.

In fact, only two bench players are averaging over five points per game, with sophomore forward Terrance Williams II leading the way with 5.7. Senior forward Brandon Johns Jr. began the season in the starting lineup but has struggled mightily, now serving as a bench player and posting just 5.2 points per outing.

The guard rotation behind Jones and Brooks remains unsettled, especially since freshman point Frankie Collins missed last game due to protocols and sophomore Zeb Jackson is not with the team with a personal issue.