In the aftermath of the 49-46 win at Nebraska, Dusty May described how Michigan can continue to win even when shots aren’t falling. Despite scoring a season-low 49 points, the Wolverines won by doing the little things:
In the aftermath of the 49-46 win over Nebraska on Monday night, Michigan head coach Dusty May described how the Wolverines can continue to win close games even when shots aren’t falling.
Despite shooting just 29.5 percent from the field and scoring a season-low 49 points, the Wolverines were able to pull off a road win in a hard-fought, defensive battle.
“I’m very pleased to leave Lincoln with a hard-fought win,” May said . “Fortunately, we were able to hold our own on the glass and we had some odd lineups that found a way to function and score enough. We have to keep generating great shots. The shots that we’ve anticipated we would get from day one, we’re going to keep shooting. We believe in our guys.”
May mentioned how the team has to neutralize poor shooting performances by doing whatever it takes to win, whether that’s through getting to the basket, knocking down free throws or rebounding. The Wolverines out-rebounded Nebraska 50-43 and owned a 22-18 advantage in points in the paint, both of which were pivotal to win the game.
Michigan:
• 49 pts
• 18-61 FG (29.5%)
• 5-27 3PT (18.5%)Nebraska:
• 46 pts
• 16-62 FG (25.8%)
• 6-28 3PT (21.4%)In the shot clock era (1985-86), it’s the ONLY Big Ten game where BOTH teams had < 50 pts, shot worse than 30% FG & 25% 3PT.
Historically cold night.
— Ben Stevens (@BenScottStevens) February 25, 2025
May also explained he has been in defensive-minded games like this one before, reflecting on matchups against North Texas during his time at Florida Atlantic. His previous experiences and understanding of what it takes to win on off-shooting nights should continue to instill confidence in the team moving forward.
“I want to shoutout my friends at North Texas that we battled with for six years. We played a lot of games like this, where you just have to figure out a way,” May said. “It’s hard-fought, it’s tooth and nail. Both teams had good looks down the stretch but you’ve exerted so much energy. It’s not easy to knock them down in this type of defensive slugfest.”
The victory marked Michigan’s lowest-scoring win since 2008 and was only the third time in 11 years a Big Ten team won while scoring less than 50 points. It’s always nice to earn a road win over a quality opponent, but it’s worrisome the Wolverines have scored their lowest point totals in consecutive games this late in the season.
Even though May acknowledged it’s possible his coaching staff could have placed too much emphasis on chasing the conference championship recently instead of sticking with their normal process, he believes this game could serve as a much-needed wake-up call.
“We want to work with great intent, but we just try to preach a fearless approach and that our best is good enough,” May said. “Wherever the chips fall, they fall. It’s not life and death every day. We’ve probably stressed too much of the end goal because we’ve been in contention and talked too much about the championship instead of sticking with our process.”
With just four games remaining in the regular season, Michigan is currently tied for first place in the Big Ten with a 13-3 conference record. In order to take home a regular season title, the Wolverines must continue to do all of the little things it takes to win.