It’s not every day a defense forces more turnovers than the number of shots its opponents made.
It’s an incredibly rare feat, but the No. 2 Michigan men’s basketball team accomplished it Sunday, forcing 19 turnovers while surrendering just 17 made baskets to La Salle. From just minutes after the opening tip through the final buzzer, the Wolverines overwhelmed the Explorers in a defensive clinic, shutting La Salle down along all 94 feet of the court.
“When we’re playing defense at the level that we know we can, I think that our defense is ridiculously elite,” graduate forward Will Tschetter said. That’s going to be what carries us where we want to go this season.”
Michigan’s defense played from baseline to baseline Sunday. Starting at the inbound off made shots, the Wolverines attacked ball handlers from the jump with the full-court press they’ve introduced over the past few games. On numerous instances, it gave the Explorers fits by forcing them to the sideline where the occasional poke forced the ball out of their hands.
“They were getting it over half (court), they were getting organized, burning five or eight seconds before they initiated offense, and then we weren’t doing a good job of rebounding the long caroms,” Michigan coach Dusty May said. “And so it was kind of a perfect storm. And by us getting them sped up a little bit, they weren’t able to control the tempo like they were the first five minutes.”
When the Wolverines didn’t go to the press, they were having equally—if not greater— success in their half-court defense. Led by arguably the best frontcourt defense in the country, Michigan turned away shot after shot throughout the game. Anchored by junior center Aday Mara, Michigan was not surrendering any good looks to La Salle down low.
With the paint restricted, La Salle looked outside the perimeter to maintain any semblance of an offensive threat. However, by making strong rotations and switches, the Wolverines continued to keep the Explorers on their heels. Michigan’s on-ball pressure led to numerous poor shots from La Salle, allowing it to easily turn around and start its own offense.
And as the Wolverines have done all season, this strong defense quickly turned into offense in transition. With 28 points off turnovers — which could’ve been more if not for a few smoked layups — Michigan punished La Salle’s offensive mistakes, turning them into easy baskets on the other end.
The effects of the Wolverines’ smothering defense is evident in the results. Besides turning the ball over more times than it made a shot, La Salle recorded a putrid 27.9% from the field and made just two 3-pointers all contest. In the second half, the Explorers dropped in just five buckets, scoring a measly 17 points. This helped Michigan stretch their already massive lead to a 52-point win, their largest margin of victory since the 2015-16 season.
Forcing more turnovers than baskets allowed won’t be the norm for the Wolverines, but it once again showed that suffocating defense all over the court can and will be a weapon to punish opponents with.
