Michigan basketball punched in mouth in second half as Illinois rolls to 93-73 win

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Michigan basketball’s quest for the Big Ten regular-season title is just about out of room for error, as the No. 11 Wolverines fell to Illinois, 93-73, at Crisler Center on Sunday afternoon. It’s U-M’s ninth straight loss to Illinois, a streak that dates back to January 2019.

Likely All-Big Ten center Vlad Goldin, on the weekend he was reunited with his parents, led the Wolverines with 22 points on 11-for-15 shooting and added a team-high seven rebounds, but fellow 7-footer Danny Wolf was held to just nine points and five rebounds and had a team-high five turnovers. The Wolverines again struggled from beyond the arc, making less than a quarter of their 3-point tries for the fourth straight game.

Michigan Wolverines center Vladislav Goldin shoots the ball over Illinois Fighting Illini forward Ben Humrichous in the first half at Crisler Center, Sunday, March 2, 2025.

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U-M also struggled on the boards, especially in the first half; Illinois pulled down 10 offensive rebounds over the first 20 minutes (compared to 15 defensive rebounds by U-M) en route to 10 second-chance points. That allowed the Illini to go into the half with a one-point lead despite shooting just 32.4% from the field. The Wolverines shot better over the opening 20 minutes, hitting just 13 of 29 from the floor (44.8%) but hit just two of seven 3-point tries.

The loss drops the Wolverines a game behind No. 8 Michigan State, but the Wolverines still control their Big Ten title hopes, barely. U-M wraps up its home slate with a visit from No. 15 Maryland at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday (Big Ten Network). Win that and it sets up a winner-take-all matchup with the Spartans on Sunday in East Lansing (noon, CBS). Michigan State, meanwhile, can clinch at least a share of the Big Ten title with a win on the road against Iowa on Thursday night.

This story will be updated shortly.

Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/michigan-basketball-punched-mouth-second-225346047.html

Author : Detroit Free Press

Publish date : 2025-03-02 22:53:00

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