No. 23 Michigan basketball holds off Iowa, 85-83, for 7th straight victory

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There’s bad news for point guard Tre Donaldson: Michigan basketball is no longer under the radar.

While that doesn’t sound like a problem, U-M’s primary facilitator joked on Friday afternoon that he enjoyed the Wolverines’ slow climb in the polls this season, and that he didn’t care about seeing a number next to the Block M logo — Michigan entered the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll at No. 23 this week, though it’s still unranked in the Associated Press poll — until March when it “really matters.”

Like it or not, there will be a number next to U-M’s name again Monday, as U-M held on in the second half for an 85-83 win on Saturday afternoon at Crisler Center, and Donaldson was a big part of that.

Michigan guard Tre Donaldson (3) makes a layup against Iowa during the first half at Crisler Center in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024.

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His highlight reel crossover in the first half sent the Crisler Center crowd into a frenzy as part of an early 17-2 run. Though the Hawkeyes later evened the score, a Donaldson three-point play with 2:34 left in the first and a floater 3 seconds before halftime kept U-M rolling.

Michigan led by 11 with 6:30 to play, when the Hawkeyes went on a 17-7 run, capped by a pair of Payton Sandfort 3-pointers sandwiched around a Pryce Sandfort mid-range jumper, to tie the game at 83 with 20 seconds to play.

But after Dusty May called a timeout with 16.1 seconds left and set up a play for Roddy Gayle Jr., who got a straight-line drive. The ball didn’t fall, but Iowa was called for goaltending. The Hawkeyes got the ball with 4.3 seconds left and one last chance — they beat Northwestern in their Big Ten opener on a 35-foot 3-pointer by Josh Dix as time expired earlier in the week — and then called timeout with 1.1 seconds left.

A late Payton Sandfort heave from the corner fell short and U-M (8-1, 2-0 Big Ten) escaped with its seventh straight win, its…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/no-23-michigan-basketball-holds-214544428.html

Author : Detroit Free Press

Publish date : 2024-12-07 21:45:00

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