2024-01-19 04:45:03
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Despite a career-high 20 points from Tarris Reed Jr.the University of Michigan men’s basketball team fell 88-73 to No. 14-ranked Illinois on Thursday night (Jan. 18) at Crisler Center.
Leaders and Best
Reed led the Wolverines with while shooting 8-for-10 from the field and going 4-for-4 from the free-throw line. Olivier Nkamhoua added 16 points and Dug McDaniel dropped 14 points with six assists.
The Turning Point
Michigan trailed 48-47 following a 7-0 run brought the Wolverines back into the game, but Illinois responded with a 17-2 run and remained in control until the final buzzer.
Second Half
U-M (7-11, 2-5 Big Ten) took advantage of an Illinois turnover to tie the game at 38 off a McDaniel layup at the 18:37 mark, but over the next 2:05 Illinois went on a 7-0 run to lead 45-38 with 16:25 remaining. Michigan gained new life going on a 7-0 run to cut the Fighting Illini lead to one point (48-47) with 14:10 remaining in the contest.
Beginning with a layup at the 12:48 point, Illinois (13-5, 4-3 Big Ten) immediately responded to the Michigan run with a 10-0 run over 1:15. Illinois made four straight field goals while the Wolverines missed four straight and trailed 58-47 with 11:33 left in the game. Nimari Burnett made two free throws with 10:29 to go but Illinois responded with a 7-0 run as part of a 17-2 run that began at the 12:48 mark as Michigan trailed 65-49 with eight minutes to go.
With 3:37 left in the game, Reed converted on a three-point play to pull Michigan within single digits (73-64) for the first time since the 10:29 mark. Despite once once more cutting the deficit to nine points off another Reed three-point play with 1:49 left, Michigan did not come any closer for the remainder of the game.
First Half
Reed scored the first bucket of the game, but that turned out to be the only points U-M had over the next four minutes. After the Reed field goal, Illinois capitalized on the Michigan scoring drought with an 11-0 run to grab an 11-2 advantage with 15:23 remaining in the first.
After trailing 18-10 at the 11:45 mark, the Wolverines settled in and made four of its next five field goals to pull within one point of Illinois, 20-19, with 9:20 remaining. Starting with a putback layup from Reed with a little over eight minutes remaining, U-M made five out of its next seven field goals to cut the deficit. Illinois matched it by converting on four straight field goals to lead 35-31 with 2:38 left in the half.
In the closing seconds of the half, Jaelin Llewellyn nailed a three-pointer through contact at the top of the key but might not convert on a four-point play, missing his free-throw attempt. His shot was crucial in giving U-M a spark heading into the locker room as Michigan trailed Illinois 37-36 following 20 minutes.
What’s Next
The Wolverines will travel to West Lafayette, Ind., to face No. 2-ranked Purdue on Tuesday night (Jan. 23) at Mackey Arena. Tipoff is set for 9 p.m., and the game will be streamed live on Peacock.
Notes
• In addition to achieving his career-high point total, Reed made a career-best eight field goals.
• Reed has not missed a free throw in four straight games. His last miss came versus Minnesota (Jan. 4) and he is shooting 78 percent (25-for-32) over his last eight games.
• McDaniel has scored in double-figures in 16 of the 17 games he has played.
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