Michigan knows it's now or never for a run, starting with OSU

Michigan took a step closer to the NCAA Tournament bubble with a key win at Northwestern Thursday. The Wolverines know, though, that it means nothing if they can’t string a few wins together.

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But if they’re going to, now is the time. Michigan faces a struggling Ohio State team today in Ann Arbor in what should be a raucous environment. Nebraska visits Wednesday — the Cornhuskers are one of the Big Ten’s worst teams — so if U-M wins these next two, it sets up a showdown next weekend with surging Indiana in a third home game in a row.

They won’t take anything for granted, Michigan assistant Saddi Washington insisted.

“We have to have consistent output, consistent effort, consistent focus,” he said. “That shows the sign of maturity in a team that understands how to win tough games in a tough league, because no night is easy. You can’t look at the schedule and say, ‘Oh, there is a [win] there.’

“No, every night is going to have a different storyline, with a different sense of urgency, and our focus has to be locked in for our opponent that day. And sometimes that opponent is us, right?”

Too often this year, in fact. This team has had a way of playing to the competition and taking nights off, especially defensively. Michigan is near the bottom of the league in points allowed, and they’ve dropped games they shouldn’t have as a result … none bigger than an embarrassing loss to Central Michigan that put the Wolverines behind the 8 ball in chasing a tourney berth.

But there are several key games coming up, and they finally got their first Quad 1 win Thursday. If they can string some more together, they could make an improbable run.

That’s not on their mind heading into Sunday’s matchup with the Buckeyes, according to Washington..

“We have nine games ahead of us, but you can’t look too far ahead,” the Michigan assistant said. “When we get to Sunday, it will be focused on beating the Buckeyes and nothing else. We don’t have the advantage of being able to map this thing out. We’ve got to stay focused on today, win it, and trust that our preparation in that moment is good enough to keep us moving forward.”

Buckeyes never go quietly against Michigan

It starts with today’s game against OSU, which always brings the juice against its hated rival. Michigan pulled off an improbable upset in Columbus last year minus Hunter Dickinson to sneak into the tournament, where they won a pair of games to get to the Sweet 16.

As rough as it’s been for the Buckeyes recently — they’ve lost 8 of their last 9 — they have talent and ability.

“People forget they were ranked early in the year. Five of their Big Ten losses have been 5 points or less,” Washington noted. “They’ve had some quality wins. They’ve got guys that can score the ball. They’ve got size in the paint.

“They have every everything you need to be a successful team. For whatever reason, they’re going through the patch that they’re going through.”

And they have freshman forward Brice Sensabaugh, a 47.5 percent shooter from 3-point range. He’s won Big Ten freshman of the week honor 4 times and is 5th in the league in scoring at 18.8 points per game.

“His ability to score and score at crazy angles … he’s a patient player, has great size, great strength. He’s a three-level scorer,” Washington continued. “He’s a hard kid to get sped up because of the way he handles the ball, gets to his spots, and elevates over defenders.

“He’s a tough cover. When their offense breaks down and they need a bucket, he’s certainly one of those guys that can be that for them.I think he’s not only one of the best freshmen in the Big Ten, but one of the best freshmen in the country.”

They have other players, too, capable of putting it together for a win in Ann Arbor. Michigan can’t let that happen if it wants to continue its run toward the tourney.

We’ll know soon enough how serious they are about keeping that streak alive.