Michigan blows big lead but survives UC-San Diego, 68-65

Michigan was its own worst enemy at times in the first half of a 68-65 win over UC-San Diego, unforced turnovers a problem once again. But the Wolverines shot well enough in the early going in building a 10-0 lead, played aggressive defense, and rode a 41-27 halftime edge to an NCAA Tournament first round win … but as usual, it didn’t come easy.

It was clear early that good looks were going to be tough to come by for the Tritons in the first half. The Wolverines switched just about everything on defense and made the UCSD guards work for everything they got. They did miss some triples, but they had to work so hard to get shots that they were often gassed at the end of a possession. 

On the other end, graduate wing Nimari Burnett hit a couple early triples to create some distance, and guards L.J. Cason and Roddy Gayle Jr. were able to get to the rim with ease. Junior big man Danny Wolf could have had a huge half, but he struggled to finish at the rim and turned it over twice. He also missed two free throws, including the front end of a one-and-one. 

Still, it was clear the Wolverines were the better team from the outset, controlling play from the tip. They were up 13-4 before two terrible turnovers turned into Tritons buckets to cut it to 13-8, but Burnett hit a big triple to push the lead back to 10. With U-M up 34-22, graduate center Vlad Goldin went to work. He scored Michigan’s next six points, and when UCSD cut it to 11 just before the half, his three-point play on an offensive rebound made it 41-27 at the break. 

Goldin led all Michigan scorers in the half with 11 points, going 5-for-7 from the floor. Wolf added 7 while Burnett and Gayle Jr. added six each in a 53 percent shooting half for the Wolverines. UCSD shot only 34 percent from the floor and 13 percent from three-point range.

SECOND HALF — UCSD takes the fight to Michigan, but U-M survives

Michigan came out slow, allowing a more aggressive UCSD to get to the free throw line and cut the lead to 8 in the first 2:30 of the second half. They made it 6 at 17:11 when Hayden Gray drove and finished around Wolf. The Wolverines were settling for bad shots, and UCSD’s defense was giving them fits. 

The Tritons made their run with their star, Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, on the bench with four fouls. They cut it to 45-44 at 14:27 on another driving layup and finish by Gray. Michigan, meanwhile, missed free throws and continued to take shots from the perimeter. They made only one of their first 5 triples. 

U-M started to attack more, going back up 49-44 on free throws from Will Tschetter and Cason at 13:19, and Wolf inside pushed the lead back to 7 at the under 12 timeout. They finally pushed it back to 10 on a drive and finish by Gayle and a triple from Rubin Jones in transition, his first in three tries. 

USCD cut it back to 7, but a huge Tschetter three at the 9-minute mark pushed it back to double digits. Goldin, though, picked up his fourth foul at 8:25 to give the Tritons a boost. They were in the bonus at 7:57 and cut it to 5 points after another Gray three. Tait-Jones fouled out on the next Michigan possession, but U-M continued to settle for three-pointers and continued to miss.

Gayle Jr. was one player who remained aggressive. He gave the Wolverines a 6-point lead with a free throw at 4:52, but it was a 4-point game at 4:30 after a UCSD score. U-M continued to struggle at the line, only 7-for-12 from the stripe in the half and 9 of 17 for the game after point guard Tre Donaldson made one of two, and the Wolverines continued to struggle finishing.

The Wolverines called a great play out of a timeout, but Burnett missed at the rim. Tyler McGhie tied it with a triple at 3:00, and it was headed down to the wire. Wolf then missed the front end of a one-and-one, and Ball Arena was loud for the Tritons when McGhie hit a short jumper to give them their first lead.

Donaldson, though, hit a clutch triple from the top at 2:14 to reclaim the lead for the Wolverines. The officials then swallowed their whistles on the next few possessions and the teams both missed point blank shots at the rim, though it appeared Goldin was fouled on a dunk attempt.

The Wolverines missed several attempts to take a three-point lead, but Goldin went to the line with 19.3 seconds remaining with another chance following an offensive rebound. He made both to make it 68-65, and McGhie’s contested three was just long, corralled by Jones for the Michigan win.

Goldin led U-M with 14 points, Donaldson added 12, and Gayle Jr. 11 in victory. U-M will take on Texas A&M Saturday in Denver in a round of 32 contest.