Prior to Sunday’s contest, the No. 6 Michigan women’s basketball team hadn’t played a game in eight days — its longest break of the season.
Despite showing some signs of rust after the pause, the Wolverines (10-1 overall) looked dominant against Oakland (3-9), leading by double digits after the first quarter and cruising to a victory, 97-54.
“The nonconference is a really good opportunity to get our feet wet with trial and error,” junior guard Macy Brown said. “There’s a lot of things to work on so just emphasizing that.”
All season, Michigan has dominated mid-major nonconference opponents. Its stifling press and advantage in athleticism oftentimes run teams out of the gym before the first quarter ends. Against the Golden Grizzlies, that pattern continued — to an extent.
As the box score reads, the Wolverines led 30-16 after the first quarter. Sophomore guard and leading scorer Olivia Olson was off to a fast start with 13 points, and the Wolverines forced nine turnovers. But still, they didn’t look their best.
Playing against her former team, senior guard Brooke Quarles Daniels picked up two personal fouls early and was subbed out of the game.
“(Quarles Daniels) picked up her first and second fouls really close together and that’s why she came out,” Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico said. “And she really dictates our defense so it was an adjustment with her coming out.”
Even one of the game’s early possessions, sophomore guard Mila Holloway fired a pass out of bounds with no receiver anywhere close. It was the result of miscommunication, but it demonstrated the Wolverines’ lack of synchronicity.
Still, the Wolverines went into halftime up big, leading 54-27. In the first half, Michigan shot over 50% from the field and forced 15 turnovers. Despite not playing an error-free half, Michigan’s comfortable halftime lead points to its ability to win games even when it isn’t playing its best.
Coming out of the break, the Wolverines still had some lapses. After Olson opened the half with two buckets, the Grizzlies went on an 11-2 run. Michigan turned the ball over three teams in the first five minutes of the quarter and collectively shot just 3-9 from the field. With three minutes left in the quarter, though, the Wolverines put their foot back on the gas.
Quarles Daniels catalyzed the offense with a second-chance layup, and from there, sophomore guard Syla Swords drained a three and Olson denied a would-be layup with a thunderous block. The defense tightened up as well, forcing three turnovers and an offensive foul in the last few minutes of the third as Michigan finished the quarter strong, 71-42.
“We just went back to what was working,” senior forward Alyssa Crockett said. “We went back to wheel and a couple of actions we were used to and just allowed ourselves to get comfortable with the pace.”
Carrying on from the momentum gained late in the third, the Wolverines had a dominant fourth quarter. Even going deep into its bench, Michigan outscored Oakland by 14 in the fourth and didn’t give up any points inside the arc. It was the endcap of the Wolverines’ performance that only got better as the game wore on.
Throughout the game, Michigan looked dominant, if imperfect. It has things to work on — fouls and turnovers — but a 40-point win will always be a positive. So for the Wolverines, even with some lapses, they walked out with a 97-54 win.
