Heading into the Big Ten Tournament, Michigan’s (22-10, 11-7 Big Ten) resume looked solid. The Wolverines have a few ranked wins, including then-No. 23 Minnesota and then-20 Michigan State. But on Friday, Michigan had its biggest game of the season, upsetting fourth-seeded No. 15 Maryland and winning by 27 points.
Here are the highlights from the Wolverines’ Big Ten Tournament campaign:
THE PAST WEEK
Michigan had a great tournament, reaching the semifinal for the second year in a row. It scored the most total points of any team with 234 — more than the two teams in the final — and the 98 points it scored against the Terrapins were the most of any team over the weekend, setting a program record in the tournament.
Starting with an eight-point win over 11th-seeded Washington, the Wolverines looked solid, but not extraordinary. The game crept closer than they wanted in the fourth quarter, but in single-elimination play, the win is all that matters. Freshman guard Olivia Olson led the way with 21 points and six rebounds on 9-for-15 shooting, and freshman guard Syla Swords and senior guard Jordan Hobbs followed with 15 and 11 points, respectively.
On Thursday, Michigan played its best game of the season against Maryland. The Terps are historically excellent in conference tournaments. Since joining the Big Ten in the 2014-15 season, Maryland has played in 27 Big Ten Tournament games, only losing five. It won five championships and reached the final six straight years from 2015-21.
None of that mattered to the Wolverines, who came out of the gate shot out of a cannon. They went on a 21-0 run in the first quarter and held the Terps to their lowest quarter total of the season with just six points. Michigan shot 11-for-16 from the field and a stellar 5-for-8 from three.
But Maryland didn’t go away quickly, outscoring the Wolverines 31-14 in the second quarter, turning a 27-6 game into a 41-37 contest at the half.
“My message probably wasn’t the best that it could have been. I was freaking out a little bit myself,” Hobbs said postgame Friday. “Going into halftime, though, they were like, ‘all right, Jordan. We’re good, chill.’ They honestly helped me, which was really special. We came out in the third quarter, and I was just like, you know what, you’re right. It’s an even ballgame now at this point. We know how good we are. We know how we can beat them. We showed it in the first quarter. And they responded really well to the craziness of that second quarter.”
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