Wolverine TV: Juwan Howard, Michigan players react to Ohio State loss
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan Wolverines head basketball coach Juwan Howard and fifth-year senior guards DeVante’ Jones and Eli Brooks met with the media following the team’s 68-57 loss to Ohio State Saturday night at Crisler Center.
With the loss, Michigan fell to 13-10 overall and 7-6 in Big Ten play. With seven games remaining, the Maize and Blue are firmly on the bubble, and actually didn’t even appear in ESPN analyst Joe Lunardi’s bracket that was released Friday, after the team’s 82-58 win over No. 3 Purdue Thursday night. Brooks insisted that, despite the setback, Michigan is trending in the right direction. Quietly, the Wolverines have won six of their last nine games following their shorthanded loss at Illinois (without sophomore center Hunter Dickinson).
Michigan also played four games in the last eight days and three contests in the last five days, including a road trip at Penn State in which the Wolverines got back to Ann Arbor at 3 a.m. ET. Brooks didn’t make any excuse, even with a 41-percent shooting night for the squad.
“We did recovery,” Brooks revealed. “We did all the steps that were necessary to come out here and perform with our whole capabilities. Sometimes, the ball doesn’t fall for you, and it didn’t tonight. We just didn’t make shots.”
Ohio State mixed up its defense in the second half, and it worked to an extent, with Michigan shooting only 34.4 percent from the field after halftime.
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“In past years, they switched a lot of ball screens, especially when things aren’t going well in their conventional defense, so we expected it,” Brooks said. “We rolled Hunter down and made him the priority.”
Michigan has four days off before a road tilt at Iowa Thursday night and a game at Wisconsin Sunday afternoon. While losing to an arch rival isn’t ideal, the Wolverines remain optimistic that they can find several more big wins down the stretch to ensure they make their fifth-straight NCAA Tournament.
Michigan Basketball Head Coach Juwan Howard
Michigan Basketball Guard DeVante’ Jones
Michigan Basketball Guard Eli Brooks
RELATED
• Michigan basketball fades in the second half, falls to Ohio State, 68-57
• Wolverine TV podcast: Breaking down Michigan’s win over Purdue, road ahead with Ant Wright
• Hunter Dickinson embraced court storm following signature victory over Purdue
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