Nr. 3 Michigan has strengthened its argument as a team worthy of teaming up with no. 1 Gonzaga and no. 2 Baylor, when it was in the second half against no. 9 Iowa pulled away for a 79-57 victory.
Any doubts about how the Wolverines, who are now 17-1 on the season, can react to their long COVID-19 break have been wiped out by a four-game winning streak, which saw victories against no. 21 Wisconsin and no. 4 in the state of Ohio. ahead of Thursday’s 22-point victory over another top-10 enemy. Michigan’s victory deepens the potential of No. 1 in the NCAA Tournament just further, bringing the Wolverines closer to winning the Big Ten title in the regular season and contributing to the argument for Juwan Howard as a conference and national Coach of the Year Candidate.
The match was created for the meeting of senior National Player of the Year frontrunner Luka Garza, who is going head-to-head with Hunter Dickinson, the first-year in Michigan, especially after the 7-foot-1 center led the Wolverines with 16 of his 22 team highlights. in the second half of the win in the state of Ohio. But early fouls for Dickinson limited his time on the floor, and while Garza finished with a team high of 16 points, he never got a rhythm and settled on his 6-out-19 shooting. Some of it is an honor to Dickinson, who did an excellent job defending Garza in the second half without picking up a fourth offense, but it was a total team effort to improve the Iowa star’s ability to taking over the way he had the last two. times he faced the Wolverines.
What got Michigan in place of Dickinson’s offensive production was a star-studded game from Franz Wagner, which ended on a very effective 9-for-12 shooting night with a team high of 21 points, and a strong performance from senior Isaiah Livers, who added 16. points with four 3-points.