Know Thy IUBB Enemy: The Michigan Wolverines

The Indiana University men’s basketball team travels to Ann Arbor, Michigan to face the Michigan Wolverines on Saturday.  The tipoff is at 12:30 and the game will be broadcast on CBS.  This is a rare Big Ten game being played in December to accommodate the Big Ten tournament in March, which is being played a week earlier than normal in New York City at Madison Square Garden.  Michigan is 6-2 on the season while Indiana stands at 4-3.  Michigan is currently ranked 44th in the KenPom rankings while Indiana is 80th.

THE SERIES

The Hoosiers own a decisive 107-59 lead in the series which began in 1918.  Michigan has a three-game winning streak in the series.  Last year the Wolverines won both games, 90-60 at Michigan, and 75-63 in Bloomington.

THE HEAD COACH

Michigan is led by head coach John Beilein who is in his 11th year as the Wolverines head coach.  He has a career record of 697-412, and is 221-137 at Michigan.

NOTEWORTHY WINS AND LOSSES

The Wolverines have played three teams thus far in the KenPom top 150:

  • A 77-75 LOSS vs. LSU at Maui
  • A 68-60 WIN vs. VCU at Maui
  • A 86-71 LOSS @ North Carolina

KEY PLAYER DEPARTURES FROM 2016-17

  • Zak Irvin
  • Derrick Walton
  • D.J. Wilson
  • Mark Donnal

STATISTICAL LEADERS

  • Leading Scorers
    • Charles Matthews (6-6 junior guard) – 16.1 ppg (transfer from Kentucky)
    • Moritz Wagner (6-11 junior forward) – 15.9 ppg
    • Duncan Robinson (6-8 senior guard) – 11.8 ppg
    • Muhammed-Ali Abdur-Rahkman (6-4 senior guard) – 9.9 ppg
  • Leading Rebounders
    • Wagner – 8.6 rpg
    • Matthews – 4.9 rpg
  • Assist Leaders
    • Matthews – 4.0 apg
    • Abdur-Rahkman – 3.8 apg

TEAM STATISTICS (RANKINGS) – OUTLIERS IN BOLD

  • Scoring offense 77.8 (146)
  • Scoring defense 63.4 (43)
  • Scoring margin 14.4 (63)
  • Rebounding margin 1.1 (189)
  • Assists per game 16.5 (65)
  • Blocked shots per game 4 (104)
  • Steals per game 7.6 (82)
  • Turnover margin 4.8 (30)
  • Assist turnover ratio 1.78 (5)
  • Field goal percentage 49.1 (51)
  • Field goal percentage defense 43.9 (202)
  • Three point field goals per game 9.5 (57)
  • Three point field goal percentage 35.3 (170)
  • Free throw percentage 66.7 (261)

Photo credit – AFP