The Wolverines' unbeaten streak is over.
Wisconsin (11-5 overall, 3-2 Big Ten) shocked No. 2 Michigan (14-1, 4-1) in Crisler Center on Saturday afternoon, handing the Wolverines their first loss of the season. Both teams had electrifying offensive second halves, but the Badgers were able to edge out the Wolverines by a score of 91-88.
Michigan made a point to pound the paint early, despite Wisconsin's size on the interior. On the first two possessions of the game, junior center Aday Mara finished off a lob and scored on a face-up floater — the tone was set.
Graduate guard Nimari Burnett knocked in a second-chance left-wing 3-pointer, but that was the anomaly in the opening minutes, and the Wolverines went right back to forcing the ball inside. Sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr. was the leader of the charge in the first half, asserting his superior size consistently for easy buckets.
It wasn't just on the offensive end either, he came flying from behind to send a transition layup try from Wisconsin flying into the stands.
Wisconsin started to take early shots, playing right into the Wolverines pace, and as a result, the Badgers went cold. Michigan took advantage, taking the opportunity to slowly open up a sizable lead, leading 31-17 by the under-eight minute timeout.
From that point onward, the Wolverines began to unravel. Johnson still remained consistent, but a flurry of turnovers, missed shots, and defensive breakdowns allowed Wisconsin to end the half on a 20-7 run.
On the back of John Blackwell's 16-point first half performance, the Badgers only entered the break down one point, 38-37.
Wisconsin kept the momentum going out of halftime, making all nine of their first nine shots, including four 3-pointers from froward Aleksas Bieliauskas. The Badgers just kept piling on, but the Wolverines stayed attached. They made seven of their first eight shots themselves, with junior guard Elliot Cadeau carrying the load. As the clock ticked under 15 minutes to play, Wisconsin had opened up a slim 62-59 lead
Wisconsin had figured out Michigan's switch-heavy defense, and it was getting constant wide open threes as a result.
Cadeau continued to put the Wolverines on his back, scoring 17 points in the first seven minutes of the second half. He got to the rim at will, drew fouls, and knocked in his free throws. Single handedly, he willed his squad back into the game, knotting the score at 65-65 with 13:00 to play in the game.
The back-and-forth effort continued: Wisconsin was still blazing hot from behind the arc, and Cadeau was getting buckets wherever he wanted. At the under-12 minute timeout, the Badgers were shooting 12-for-14 from the field in the second half, and Michigan wasn't far behind them, shooting 10-for-12.
Both teams started to cool off — if only just a bit — and neither squad was able to make a push for a lead more than five points. Both teams were unwilling to let the game slip out of reach. Out of the under-eight minute timeout, the score remained tied at 75-75.
With the squads trading tough buckets, a nail-biting finish was conspicuously foreshadowed. It was possession after possession, neither team giving any headway.
With 1:27 remaining, the Wolverines trailed by four points, 88-84. Blackwell missed the front end of his 1-and-1, Michigan grabbed the board, and senior guard Roddy Gayle Jr. put in a tough layup to bring the score to 88-86. On the next possession, a basket interference call negated Mara's potential game-tying layup, and Wisconsin got the ball back up two points with 33 seconds left.
Cadeau fouled on a baseball-pass inbound, and the Badgers hit both free throws to extend their lead to 90-86. With 20 seconds left, Michigan had to make up a four-point deficit.
The Wolverines got the deficit down to three with nine seconds left, and Michigan chose not to call a timeout. Wisconsin smothered the 3-point line, and Gayle had to force up an off-balance, heavily-contested triple. It hit off the back of the rim, and time expired before Michigan could get off another shot.
The Wolverines are undefeated no longer.
