Michigan Basketball: 3 keys to success in rematch with Northwestern

By Adam Childs | Jan 12, 2019

EVANSTON, IL - DECEMBER 04: Vic Law #4 of the Northwestern Wildcats takes a shot in the final minute in the game against the Michigan Wolverines in the second half at Welsh-Ryan Arena on December 4, 2018 in Evanston, Illinois. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /

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CHAMPAIGN, IL – JANUARY 10: Isaiah Livers #4 of the Michigan Wolverines brings the ball up court as Ayo Dosunmu #11 of the Illinois Fighting Illini defends during the first half at State Farm Center on January 10, 2019 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

Limit turnovers

In Thursday night’s game, the Wolverines looked completely out of sorts of the offensive side of the ball in the first half. They had 11 turnovers and did not shoot the ball very well either. They would go into the half with a five-point lead but that was more thanks to their defense than their offense.

Illinois pressured them into uncharacteristic mistakes that hurt them. For a team that has been pretty good about not turning the ball over it was an unwelcome site.

Northwestern thrives on making teams make mistakes and playing a sloppy game. They were able to do that to Michigan in the second half of their first game and were able to make a run during that time. The Wolverines would only end up with nine turnovers in that game, but many of them, along with bad shots helped the Wildcats make a run that almost led to an upset.

Zavier Simpson has been great handling the ball, but the team can sometimes get a little lazy with the ball and that can hurt them. If they can get back to how they normally play and keep control of the ball they should be able to neutralize how the Wildcats want to play the game.

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