Michigan Basketball (25-5, 12-5) pulled out a hard fought 80-75 victory at Purdue (14-16, 7-10) on Wednesday night. The Wolverines were able to overcome a career day by Terone Johnson, who scored 32 points, and kept their Big Ten title hopes alive.
How the game was won
Trey Burke
Michigan opened up an early 12 point lead, but Purdue stormed back behind 13 first half points from Terone Johnson to take a 34-30 lead into halftime. The Boilers closed the half on a 24-9 run.
The Wolverines scored the first 4 points of the second half to tie the game at 34. Then Purdue went on another run and stretched out another 12 point lead at 52-40. At this point in the game Trey Burke said enough is enough and took over the game. He scored 22 points and dished out 5 assists in the second half.
Tim Hardaway Jr and Nik Stauskas each hit a three-pointer in the closing minutes to help the Wolverines take control of the contest. The game ended when Burke notched yet another clutch steal in the closing seconds of a must win game.
Michigan shot 42.4% from the field and they knocked down 23 of 29 free throws. The Wolverines turned the ball over just 5 times and notched 9 steals.
3 Stars
1. Trey Burke – he only had 4 points and 2 assists at the half. Yet he was simply sensational in the second half and if he’s not the national player of the year, I don’t know who is. Burke finished with 26 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds and 3 steals. He turned the ball over just one time and was 11-14 from the charity stripe.
2. Nik Stauskas - playing with a black eye and a large band aid above his left eyebrow, Stauskas rose to the occasion for Michigan and hit some big shots in the closing minutes. He hit a late triple to push Michigan’s lead to 69-64 and also knocked down 4 straight free throws in the closing minutes. Stauskas finished with 17 points and was 7-8 from the free throw line in a coming of age game for the freshman.
3. Tim Hardaway Jr – he provided all the early offense with 11 first half points and then battled foul trouble in the second half. It was Hardaway who hit a key triple to give the Wolverines a 64-62 lead with 3:45 left to play. Michigan would not trail again. Despite the foul trouble, Hardaway scored 16 points and pulled down 5 rebounds.
News and Notes
Trey Burke remains the only Big Ten player to score at least 15 points in every conference game this season.
Burke now ranks 10th in school history with 364 career assists.
Glenn Robinson III grabbed a team-high 7 rebounds.
Michigan finishes the season with a 5-5 record on the road.
This is the first time Michigan has swept Purdue since the 1992-93 season.
Tim Hardaway Jr passed Terry Mills and moved into 23rd place on Michigan’s all-time scoring list.
Next: Michigan will host Indiana on Sunday in their regular season finale. With a win the Wolverines will claim a share of the Big Ten Championship for the second consecutive season. Tip is scheduled for 4pm on Sunday.
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About Rob White
WHEEEEW! The team keeps your heart pounding! A much needed victory.
Was nip and tuck, but T Burke is the man.