Michigan basketball: 'We weren't good enough' - and time is running short
For nearly three quarters of Illinois 93-85 win at Michigan Sunday afternoon, the Illini were a step ahead of the Wolverines. Some of it was on U-M’s defense. There were some breakdowns, as there have been for much of the year.
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Mostly, though, it was because Illinois played out of its mind offensively … Alfonso Plummer, in particular.
The Illinois guard hit stepback triples that NBA teams would envy on his way to 23 points in the first 20 minutes. Center Kofi Cockburn was somewhat quiet until the second half, but he commanded attention in the middle and made room for his teammates. And when Michigan made its furious, late comeback from 13 down to cut it to 82-80 with two-minutes remaining, the Illini had answers then, too.
The win kept Illinois’ Big Ten title hopes alive and put U-M squarely back on the bubble. Still, there was no faulting the effort.
“… When you get into a competition of this level, play to the point of exhaustion,” associate head coach Phil Martelli said. “And I don’t have a second thought saying, ‘Well, you know what? We didn’t really exhaust ourselves.’
“So, we have been saying that since last Sunday — it’s ‘together.’ We walked in here together. We walk out of here tonight, and we weren’t good enough, right? We just weren’t good enough and trailed for 40 minutes. And defensively, we seem to be chasing for a lot [of the game]. Maybe the last eight minutes, we stopped chasing, and we were able to dig our feet in and play.”
But now, they’ll have to dig those tired feet in even harder in only two short days. Adding to the challenge, it’s against a team every bit as determined to beat Michigan on its home floor.
The Wolverines certainly have a roster worthy of an NCAA Tournament appearance. In fact, they’ve played like it most of the last several weeks. The reality, though, is that they’re trying to make up for their early-season struggles, and they’re running out of time.
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Michigan State, right with U-M in the NET, has a better overall record, is next. The Spartans could provide a key blow to U-M’s chances with a win Tuesday in Ann Arbor.
The emotional game with the Illini had Michigan’s players, led by DeVante’ Jones and his 25 points, playing to physical exhaustion.
“They did. Everybody,” Martelli said. “And that’s just not players, but staff, as well.
“My first thought is that everybody here, including the fans … I think everybody’s tired. And that’s okay. It’s okay to be that way, because that’s what competition is about. [Michigan State] is the next game, so it’s the biggest game of the year, right? And then, when we catch our breath, then Thursday [against Iowa] will be the biggest game of the year.”
But Tuesday feels like the season, and the Spartans are more than beatable. They rallied for a home win against Purdue in a physical affair Saturday, but they’ve been in free fall for a while. Head coach Tom Izzo will undoubtedly pull out all the stops in two days and borrow football coach Mel Tucker’s playbook to muck it up.
Michigan will have to be just a bit better Tuesday night, and Martelli knows it.
“I don’t think it’s a separation of haves and have-nots or middle of the pack or the top,” he said. “It’s what we desire to be, and we desire to be a championship team. Championship teams take every advantage, and we didn’t do that tonight.”
