POSTGAME: Michigan 58, IU 55 Well, the Hoosiers kept it close in the final minutes of the game. But it was Michigan that hit the big shots when it counted. Mike White came through down the stretch for IU and tallied 11 points in the contest. Also, credit senior guard Errek Suhr for a solid start in place of the injured Earl Calloway.
Today's loss marks two in a row now for the Hoosiers, who now stand at 17-8 overall and 7-5 in conference play. They'll be back at home Wednesday night for a matchup against the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
We'll see you then.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The story of the game so far? Two words: Mike White. The junior forward has now scored 9 points so far today and knocked down a couple of free throws a few moments ago to give the Hoosiers their first lead of the day. This one's gonna go down to the wire. 51-51, 3:30 remaining.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike White just leapt up above a crowd of defenders and grabbed an offensive rebound. He was rewarded with an easy layup that cut the Michigan lead to 1. Just 7 minutes remaining.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Michigan's Reed Baker just got the Wolverine crowd on its feet with a 3-pointer. However, AJ Ratliff responded with one of his own. The Hoosiers are keeping things close, but DJ White has 4 fouls. Michigan still up 38-35 with 11:11 remaining. Stay with us for the rest of this game.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Apparently Ben Allen is making his presence known in Ann Arbor and has perhaps sprouted an afro. The announcer just referred to him as "Ben Wallace." Anyway, Michigan's up 35-32 with 14:40 left in the game.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
HALFTIME: Michigan 25, IU 18 It was a pretty ugly half of basketball for the Hoosiers, to say the least. IU racked up 10 team fouls and struggled mightily on the offensive end. The Hoosiers finished the half 7-for-26 from the field (27%), including a 3-for-12 tab from the 3-point line. They're also being outrebounded right now 19-14.
It also seems as though Coach Sampson may be sending a message to some of his starters - DJ White, AJ Ratliff and Armon Bassett all sat late in the half. We'll see if they get that message in the second half of play.
Stay with us, folks.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So Ben Allen's seeing some "significant" playing time - what do we think? Interesting lineup choices for coach Sampson so far this game, but the Hoosiers keep clawing away at that Michigan lead. Also, IU moved into a 2-3 zone defense just a couple of minutes ago. We'll see if it helps them out. 16-14 Wolverines, 6:55 in the half.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Hoosiers finally cut into the Wolverine's large lead with some key plays from Rod Wilmont and DJ White. Also, Errek Suhr knocked down a 3-pointer with a Michigan defender in his face. Solid little run, but still a ways to go. 13-11 Michigan, 11:34 left in the first half.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Hoosiers are being manhandled right now. They can't seem to get things together on the offensive end and Brent Petway is taking advantage, racking up a pair of highlight-reel blocks. It's 8-2 Michigan, 15:26 left in the first half.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Crisler Arena is nearly empty right now as both teams are taking their shootarounds.
Interesting update for all of you though - Errek Suhr and Mike White will be in the starting lineup today. Earl Calloway and Lance Stemler are still sidelined with injuries, so we'll see how this plays out. Here's the starters in their entirety (Note: Michigan regulars Ron Coleman and Courtney Sims are NOT starting today) -
IU
DJ White Mike White Armon Bassett Rod Wilmont Errek Suhr
Michigan
Brent Petway Lester Abram Ekpe Udoh Dion Harris Jerret Smith
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well we finally made it to Ann Arbor after hours of fighting through snow flurries and slippery roads.
There is still plenty of time before tip-off, so right now Eamonn and I are just kicking back and watching Michigan take part in a mini-dunk contest (starring Brent Petway, of course) while IU stretches out and does some actual drills.
We'll be back around tip-off, so stay tuned - we'll see you in a bit.
