Michigan basketball blows big first-half lead but finishes strong in 70-67 win at Indiana

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Michigan Wolverines basketball went with a different starting lineup Saturday at Indiana, replacing junior guard Roddy Gayle Jr. with graduate guard Rubin Jones along with the rest of the regular lineup.

The Maize and Blue led by 18 points late in the first half and never trailed, but Indiana made it an exciting game in the second, outscoring the Wolverines 40-27 in the final 20 minutes. Michigan hung on with some great play by its stars down the stretch.

Here’s a recap of how the game unfolded.

First half

Junior guard Tre Donaldson got Michigan going with an early layup and three-pointer, while Indiana had trouble finishing at the rim in the early going, with Oumar Ballo and Myles Rice each missing layups.

Michigan went on a 9-0 run after the two teams were squared up at 5-5. Donaldson was cooking with 2 made threes, and he found graduate guard Nimari Burnett for a transition triple. Junior forward/center Danny Wolf also hit a sweet turnaround jumper on a post-up possession over Indiana forward Malik Reneau.

Indiana called timeout down 14-5 at the 15:07 mark. At that point, Michigan was shooting 5-of-6 from the field, compared to Indiana’s 2-of-9 mark.

Reneau scored two-straight buckets for Indiana, then found forward Luke Goode for an open left-corner three-pointer due to the attention he drew from Michigan defenders. Those plays sparked a 9-0 Indiana run while Wolverine subs were on the floor, and Indiana only trailed 16-14 at the 11:44 media timeout. Michigan missed its last 3 field goal attempts and turned the ball over in that span.

Indiana ripped off an 11-0 run, and the crowd got into the game. Michigan put the majority of its starting lineup back on the floor and responded, though, after having only a one-point lead. The Wolverines surged to get back up 29-19 at the under-eight media timeout, before graduate center Vladislav Goldin went to the line and made a pair to make it 31-19.

Michigan’s offense just continued to play at a high level, going on an extended 18-3 run to build its largest lead yet, 35-19, with under six minutes remaining in the frame.

Indiana got some momentum back with back-to-back buckets by Reneau. It was 37-25 at the under-four media timeout. At that point, the Wolverines were shooting 12-of-22 (55 percent) from the field and 5-of-10 from three-point distance. Indiana was 11-of-28 (39 percent) with only 2 made triples. Michigan was bringing help on the post, but Indiana couldn’t make them pay by hitting spot-up jumpers.

Michigan finished the half on a strong note, employing some zone that appeared to confuse Indiana, whose offensive struggles continued.

The Wolverines led, 43-27, at halftime, shooting 52 percent from the field. Indiana was at 35 percent, and only one player had more than five points — Reneau with 8.

Michigan was led by 14 first-half points from Donaldson, who also had 3 assists to 1 turnover. Wolf poured in 9, and Goldin had 8 to join Donaldson in having good scoring halves.

Second half

Indiana guard Trey Galloway finally made the Wolverines pay with a three-pointer while the defense had collapsed on the post, starting the half’s scoring. Michigan started out with a pair of bad turnovers in the first minute and a half, but Donaldson steadied them with a nice take to the rim for two.

Michigan led 49-35 at the 15:44 media timeout. The Wolverines weren’t as crisp as the first half, starting out with a couple turnovers, a couple fouls and some missed threes.

Indiana picked up some steam and got the building back on its side with a nice run, outscoring Michigan 20-10 in the first eight and a half minutes of the second half.

Guard Mackenzie Mgbako made a jumper and got to the line for 4 free throws, pulling Indiana within seven points. Goldin and sophomore forward Sam Walters each had a nice take to the rim during the Hoosiers’ 14-4 run, but Michigan’s offense was stalled during that stretch.

Reneau had an and-one and made free throw that pulled Indiana within six points, 53-47, with 11:30 to play. Donaldson missed a three on the other end, and Indiana got out and ran in transition, with Mgbako hitting a right-wing three. Michigan called timeout up only three points, 53-50. The quick 6-0 run took only 31 seconds for the Hoosiers.

The Indiana run ended at 8-0 and with Michigan breaking a 3:29, scoring drought, with Goldin getting an offensive rebound, going up and getting fouled. He made both free throws to make it 55-52. The Maize and Blue had still missed 5-consecutive looks from the field at that juncture.

Indiana was in the bonus beginning at the 6:13 mark, at which point guard Anthony Leal made 1 free throw on a one-and-one situation, making Michigan’s lead 59-53. Prior to that, the Wolverine big men came alive, with Wolf making a layup and Goldin also finishing at the rim.

Indiana’s zone defense gave Michigan some trouble, and the Hoosiers found a way to get to the paint to score on back-to-back possessions. Leal made a reverse layup with Goldin on him, and Galloway drilled a floater. Michigan called timeout with a 59-57 advantage at the 4:53 mark.

Donaldson missed rim on a three late in the shot clock, a 30-second violation, before Goode was fouled on the floor and made 2 free throws in a one-and-one to tie the game at 59-59, which was the score at the under-four media timeout. The Wolverines were 1 for their last 12 field goal attempts.

Michigan guts out win late in game

Michigan pushed the ball after getting a stop, and Wolf found Goldin for a slam in transition to put the Wolverines up 61-59. After another stop, Donaldson took Ballo on a switch and made a lauyup to give the Wolverines a four-point edge with two minutes to play.

Mgbako made a baseline floater to pull the Hoosiers within two, but Wolf answered with an and-one and made free throw that put the Maize and Blue back up six, 66-61, with 1:25 remaining.

Reneau made a layup to make it 66-63 with a minute to play. Michigan isolated Wolf on the ensuing possession, who missed a contested mid-range jumper, and the Hoosiers called timeout at the 26.4-second mark to draw something up down three points.

Indiana went with Mgbako, who took an off-balance three that was a relatively clean look right out of the inbounds. It went around and out, and Michigan fought for the loose ball rebound. It was Wolverine possession on the tie up.

Michigan was tasked with getting the ball in bounds against Indiana’s full-court pressure defense. The Hoosiers started fouling. Donaldson went to the line to shoot one-and-one, missing the front end to open the door for the Hoosiers.

The Maize and Blue fouled up three points with 12.5 seconds left. Galloway made the first but missed the second, on which Wolf gathered the rebound. He was fouled with 11.3 on the clock, and he drilled both free throws to hold a 68-64 advantage.

Reneau missed a three with 3.2 seconds remaining after Wolf’s make. Wolf further iced the game with another pair of made free throws. Leal made a three-quarter-court three at the buzzer, but it didn’t make a difference. Michigan won 70-67.

Michigan vs. Indiana box score