Recap: Michigan grinds out victory at Penn State

Michigan basketball came into Tuesday night’s game against Penn State in what KenPom considered a coin-flip game. This was one it needed to win to keep its postseason hopes alive.

Mission accomplished.

The Wolverines moved to 12-9 (6-5 B1G) with a 58-57 win over the Nittany Lions on Tuesday. The game continued a stretch where Michigan plays five games over a 10-day period.

Sophomore center Hunter Dickinson led the way with 19 points, 15 rebounds and four blocks. Senior guard Eli Brooks had 16 points of his own in the effort.

First half

Dickinson got the scoring going for Michigan with a three-pointer on his first attempt of the game. However, the Nittany Lions responded with a 7-0 run to take a quick 7-3 lead less than three minutes into the game. Brooks scored the Wolverines’ next four points, narrowing Penn State’s lead to 9-7 at the under-16 media timeout. Senior point guard DeVante’ Jones gave Michigan a 10-9 lead with a three-pointer at the 15:38 mark.

The two teams would continue to trade blows over the next six minutes of play. Dickinson and Brooks would score Michigan’s next nine points, but it was Penn State that held a 20-19 lead at the second media timeout of the first half with 9:42 remaining. Seth Lundy of the Nittany Lions made a three-pointer and Jalen Pickett hit a jumper to extend the lead to 25-19 at the under-8 media timeout.

Michigan went over five minutes without scoring, which allowed Penn State’s lead to get as high as 34-23 in the first half. Water would find its level for the Wolverines, who finished the half on an 11-0 run thanks to a pair of Dickinson baskets, a Moussa Diabate free throw, a three from freshman wing Caleb Houstan and five-straight points to close out the first 20 minutes from senior forward Brandon Johns. Houstan’s basket was originally ruled a two before being reviewed at the half, tying the score at 34-34 heading into the final 20 minutes. Dickinson led all scorers with 13 points and six rebounds in the first half.

Second half

The offense for both teams was tough to come by in the early stages of the second half. Michigan and Penn State held each other scoreless for the first three minutes before Jones made a layup assisted by Houstan. That gave the Wolverines a 36-34 lead with 16:51 to play. That was the only bucket of the first four-plus minutes of the half with the under-16 media timeout coming at the 15:57 mark. Jones added two more points at the free-throw line coming out of the timeout to extend the lead to 38-34.

Penn State’s first basket came with 13:51 remaining on a Myles Dread three-pointer. Michigan responded on the other end with a pair of free throws from Dickinson to push the lead to up 40-37 with 13:11 left in the game. The Wolverines would go into the under-12 media timeout with a 44-39 lead after a layup from sophomore forward Terrance Williams.

Penn State continued to hang around, narrowing the deficit to 46-44 in favor of Michigan at the under-8 media timeout. From there, both teams continued to set offensive basketball back decades. The two combined for four total points over the next four-plus minutes with Michigan holding a 48-46 lead at the final media timeout.

Penn State tied the game on a pair of John Farrar free throws. Dickinson made a pair of his own and assisted a Brooks jumper to stretch the lead back to 52-48 with 2:34 left in the game.

The stretch run of the game came down to if Michigan could make its free throws or not. Houstan and Brooks went 6-for-6 down the stretch and it was enough to hold off the Nittany Lions. Penn State hit a three at the buzzer, but Michigan escaped with a 58-57 victory.

Michigan 58, Penn State 57: Full box score

Next up for Michigan is a quick turnaround home game against Purdue on Thursday night at Crisler Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.