Ann Arbor — The Wolverines crossed one of their season-long goals off the list, at least partially.
Thanks to game-separating run in the second half and a huge bench boost, No. 3 Michigan clinched at least a share of the Big Ten regular-season title with Tuesday’s 77-67 win over shorthanded Minnesota at Crisler Center.
It’s the 16th regular-season title in program history and Michigan’s first since the 2020-21 campaign, when the Wolverines captured it via win percentage during the COVID-19-shortened season.
Yet, it was hard to tell given there wasn’t much of a postgame celebration on the court or in the locker room.
“We’re happy about it, but we want more,” said L.J. Cason, who finished with 14 points.
“We’re proud of ourselves bringing in a lot of new players. I think for us to play this well with all the transfers that we have means a lot and we just really bought into the team. Just got to keep moving forward and try to win it (outright).”
Michigan (26-2, 16-1 Big Ten) can do that with one more win over its final three games: at Illinois on Friday, at Iowa on March 5 and at home against rival Michigan State on March 8.
BOX SCORE: Michigan 73, Minnesota 67
But first things first and that was taking care of business against Minnesota, a team that’s been decimated by injuries and has continuously put up a fight before running out of gas in many of its Big Ten losses. Tuesday was no different.
The Golden Gophers (13-15, 6-11) hung around during a first half that featured 10 lead changes, trailed by four at the break and made it a one-possession game early in the second half when Cade Tyson converted a four-point play. Tyson drilled a 3-pointer while being fouled by Yaxel Lendeborg to cut the deficit to 39-37 with 17:17 to go.
The Wolverines gained some breathing room during a strong sequence from Cason. After rattling in a 3-pointer, Cason connected with Aday Mara on an alley-oop dunk. On the next possession, Cason turned a steal into a fast-break layup for a 51-42 lead at the 12:54 mark.
But just when it seemed like Michigan was starting to separate, Minnesota countered. A turnover by Roddy Gayle Jr. preceded a momentum-killing 3-pointer by Isaac Asuma. Then after tying up Mara to force a jump ball and gain possession, a layup by Grayson Grove made it a four-point game.
Michigan finally shook free from Minnesota with a flurry of 3-pointers. Elliot Cadeau hit a deep ball. Trey McKenney followed with another. Cason canned two more in the span of 36 seconds to put Michigan up, 63-49.
That kick-started a 19-5 surge that gave the Wolverines their largest lead. By the time Cadeau finished it off with a nifty finish in transition, Michigan led, 70-52, with 5:21 to play.
The Wolverines never let Minnesota get closer than 10 the rest of the way as they secured a Big Ten banner for the second straight season after winning the conference tournament in coach Dusty May’s first year at the helm.
“We want to feel good about the way we competed, the way we performed, the way we executed the processes of leading up to the game, and we didn’t at our best tonight, so it’s a learning lesson. But we have such big and lofty goals in front of us, so it’s tough to really celebrate this moment,” May said.
“All glory is fleeting. As soon as we start to feel good about what we’ve done, we’re going to get knocked down. Every game, every possession is incredibly important going forward, so we’re trying to stay locked in on improving while also feeling good about doing something that’s really difficult.”
Tyson scored 20, Langston Reynolds 15 and Asuma 12 for Minnesota, which played just six guys and had all five starters log at least 37 minutes. The Golden Gophers shot 45.5% from the field and scored 14 points off Michigan’s 14 turnovers but were outrebounded by a 39-18 margin.
Cadeau finished with 15 points, McKenney scored 12 and Mara 10 for Michigan, which shot 50% from the field, made 14 3-pointers and had a 35-0 advantage in bench points. In addition to the title, Wolverines tied the program’s single-season record with 16 conference wins, matching the total achieved by the 1976-77 and 1984-85 Big Ten title teams.
“This is what we’ve worked toward the whole Big Ten season,” McKenney said. “To be able to do that and accomplish that, the Big Ten season is a long season and there’s a lot of teams. Our preparation for every game has been championship level.
“It was a sluggish game because they bogged us down a little bit. We’re definitely happy to win a championship.”
Michigan got off to a sleepy start as it was feeling its way out against Minnesota’s 2-3 zone and offense that relies on a lot of cutting. The Golden Gophers, meanwhile, slowed the game down and bombed away from 3-point range. Tyson made two deep balls in the first four minutes as Minnesota grabbed a 13-9 lead with 13:33 left in the first half.
Michigan’s bench provided a lift as the two sides went back and forth. Cason buried a second-chance 3-pointer and forced a turnover on the next possession. Mara flung an underhand pass to a cutting Gayle for a dunk. Gayle added an and-1 putback and scored on a short shot to put Michigan up, 19-18.
Still, the Wolverines struggled to get comfortable against Minnesota’s zone. They couldn’t knock down enough open jump shots. They turned it over when they tried to force it inside. And they couldn’t get out and run in transition.
“I thought Minnesota did a really nice job of controlling tempo,” May said. “We have to be equipped to win in any way, shape or form. This helps us long term, with us being the best team we can be on any given night. … The connectivity that they play with, they challenge you in a number of areas. I thought their zone was incredibly effective. They get to the ball quickly. Their anticipation skills are second to none.”
Eventually, Michigan put together an 11-0 run and pulled in front for good during a stretch where both teams kept hoisting one 3-pointer after another. Nimari Burnett connected on one from well beyond the arc. McKenney knocked down two deep balls within a 75-second span.
Morez Johnson Jr. bullied his way to the rim for a two-handed dunk to cap the run and make it a 10-point game at the 2:56 mark before the Wolverines settled for a 32-28 advantage at the break.
After finishing the job against Minnesota, Michigan turns the page and its attention to finishing the Big Ten race all alone in first place.
“Proud of our guys that we’ve been able to weather the storms, to go through this marathon that we’re on to get to this point,” May said. “But if you get to the last five miles of a marathon and collapse and you don’t stay dehydrated, then it’s all for naught. We’ve got to keep pushing forward and keep growing and getting better.”
jhawkins@detroitnews.com
@jamesbhawkins
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Michigan downs Minnesota to clinch share of Big Ten title: ‘We want more’
Reporting by James Hawkins, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
