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Breaking down Thursday’s NCAA tournament South region first-round game between No. 5 Michigan and No. 12 UC San Diego. The Wolverines had a busy day Sunday, beating Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament title game and then immediately turning their attention to Selection Sunday. Now, Michigan turns its attention to UC San Diego.
Here's what you need to know about the Tritons:
Records: No. 5 Michigan (25-9, 14-6 Big Ten); No. 12 UC San Diego (30-4, 18-2 Big West).
Fast facts: 10 p.m., Thursday; Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado
TV: TBS.
At stake: Winner faces winner of No. 4 Texas A&M vs. No. 13 Yale on Saturday for spot in Sweet 16.
Location: Ann Arbor
Coach: Dusty May (1 season at U-M, 150-78 career).
NCAA tournament record: 66-30 in 31 appearances.
Final 10 regular-season games: 6-4.
Scoring leaders: Vladislav Goldin, 16.7; Danny Wolf, 13.1; Tre Donaldson, 11.6; Nimari Burnett, 9.7.
Rebounding leaders: Wolf, 9.8; Goldin, 6.8; Roddy Gayle Jr., 3.5.
Assist leaders: Donaldson, 4.2; Wolf, 3.7.
3-point leaders: Burnett, 40.6%; Donaldson, 38.1%; Goldin, 36.7%.
Buy tickets to Michigan's March Madness game vs. UC San Diego
The buzz: After dropping its final three games of the regular season to lose out on a Big Ten championship, Michigan got revenge of sorts in the league tournament. U-M dominated Purdue, then topped Maryland on a buzzer-beater before outlasting Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament title game. As a result, the Wolverines have their swagger back and take a good deal of momentum into the tournament. It won’t be easy, especially playing in Denver where the altitude is a factor, but one year after Michigan bowed out of the Big Ten tournament on Night 1 and finished its worst season of all time, it's back in the big dance. Now, it's about resetting once again.
“We control what we can control, so we’re really excited to go to an amazing city,” Dusty May said. “Very grateful this team can continue playing and we have another opportunity in postseason play.”
Location: San Diego.
Coach: Eric Olen (240-118 in 12 seasons at UC San Diego)
NCAA tournament record: First D-I appearance.
Past 10 regular-season games: 10-0
Scoring leaders: Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, 19.5; Tyler McGhie, 16.4; Hayden Gray, 11.2; Nordin Kapic, 10.6
Rebounding leaders: Tait-Jones, 5.5; Kapic, 5.2; Milos Vicentic, 5.0.
Assist leaders: Tait-Jones, 3.7; Gray, 3.3; Chris Howell, 3.1
3-point leaders: Gray, 42.8%; Aidan Burke, 39.2%; McGhie, 38.6%
The buzz: Don’t look at the fact that the Tritons have never been in this position — this is one of the hottest teams in America. Eric Olen’s team was 15-4 in mid-January and has since ripped off 15 consecutive victories, all but two of which came by double-digit points. Tait-Jones is their do-it-all player at 6 feet 6, leading the team in points, boards and assists. UC San Diego is balanced, with four different players who average double figures and is well-respected by computers, checking it at No. 36 in the NET rankings (Michigan is just 11 spots higher at 25). Perhaps the most concerning part of this matchup is the Tritons force a ton of turnovers — try 23.2% of opponents possessions, the second highest rate of 365 Division I teams, while only turning it over on 13.4% of its own offensive possessions, the seventh best rate nationally. They also are great inside the arc, currently No. 31 in the nation in 2-point shooting (56.1%) though they haven’t seen any teams that pose two seven-footers like U-M. They’re also fantastic on defense stopping buckets inside, ranked No. 20 nationally, allowing opponents to make just 46.2% of their twos. This one could be determined from the outside, as UCSD takes 49.6% of its tries from long range.
Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Who does Michigan play in March Madness? UC San Diego scouting report
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Here's what you need to know about the Tritons:
Fast facts
Records: No. 5 Michigan (25-9, 14-6 Big Ten); No. 12 UC San Diego (30-4, 18-2 Big West).
Fast facts: 10 p.m., Thursday; Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado
TV: TBS.
At stake: Winner faces winner of No. 4 Texas A&M vs. No. 13 Yale on Saturday for spot in Sweet 16.
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About Michigan
Location: Ann Arbor
Coach: Dusty May (1 season at U-M, 150-78 career).
NCAA tournament record: 66-30 in 31 appearances.
Final 10 regular-season games: 6-4.
Scoring leaders: Vladislav Goldin, 16.7; Danny Wolf, 13.1; Tre Donaldson, 11.6; Nimari Burnett, 9.7.
Rebounding leaders: Wolf, 9.8; Goldin, 6.8; Roddy Gayle Jr., 3.5.
Assist leaders: Donaldson, 4.2; Wolf, 3.7.
3-point leaders: Burnett, 40.6%; Donaldson, 38.1%; Goldin, 36.7%.
Buy tickets to Michigan's March Madness game vs. UC San Diego
The buzz: After dropping its final three games of the regular season to lose out on a Big Ten championship, Michigan got revenge of sorts in the league tournament. U-M dominated Purdue, then topped Maryland on a buzzer-beater before outlasting Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament title game. As a result, the Wolverines have their swagger back and take a good deal of momentum into the tournament. It won’t be easy, especially playing in Denver where the altitude is a factor, but one year after Michigan bowed out of the Big Ten tournament on Night 1 and finished its worst season of all time, it's back in the big dance. Now, it's about resetting once again.
“We control what we can control, so we’re really excited to go to an amazing city,” Dusty May said. “Very grateful this team can continue playing and we have another opportunity in postseason play.”
About UC San Diego
Location: San Diego.
Coach: Eric Olen (240-118 in 12 seasons at UC San Diego)
NCAA tournament record: First D-I appearance.
Past 10 regular-season games: 10-0
Scoring leaders: Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, 19.5; Tyler McGhie, 16.4; Hayden Gray, 11.2; Nordin Kapic, 10.6
Rebounding leaders: Tait-Jones, 5.5; Kapic, 5.2; Milos Vicentic, 5.0.
Assist leaders: Tait-Jones, 3.7; Gray, 3.3; Chris Howell, 3.1
3-point leaders: Gray, 42.8%; Aidan Burke, 39.2%; McGhie, 38.6%
The buzz: Don’t look at the fact that the Tritons have never been in this position — this is one of the hottest teams in America. Eric Olen’s team was 15-4 in mid-January and has since ripped off 15 consecutive victories, all but two of which came by double-digit points. Tait-Jones is their do-it-all player at 6 feet 6, leading the team in points, boards and assists. UC San Diego is balanced, with four different players who average double figures and is well-respected by computers, checking it at No. 36 in the NET rankings (Michigan is just 11 spots higher at 25). Perhaps the most concerning part of this matchup is the Tritons force a ton of turnovers — try 23.2% of opponents possessions, the second highest rate of 365 Division I teams, while only turning it over on 13.4% of its own offensive possessions, the seventh best rate nationally. They also are great inside the arc, currently No. 31 in the nation in 2-point shooting (56.1%) though they haven’t seen any teams that pose two seven-footers like U-M. They’re also fantastic on defense stopping buckets inside, ranked No. 20 nationally, allowing opponents to make just 46.2% of their twos. This one could be determined from the outside, as UCSD takes 49.6% of its tries from long range.
Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Who does Michigan play in March Madness? UC San Diego scouting report
Continue reading...
