This one’s for the trophy: Michigan vs. Duke LIVE Blog

By Jason Kohler, written on Nov. 21, 2008

NEW YORK — Last night I gave Michigan a 40 percent chance of pulling off the upset of No. 4 UCLA. Some people before the game said I was a little optimistic, but we saw what happened as the Wolverines stunned the Bruins 55-52.

Michigan is now in the championship game of the 2K Sports Classic against Duke. The Blue Devils beat Southern Illinois to advance to the finals. 83-58. The score’s a little deceiving because the Salukis stuck around until Duke blew open the lead with about 10 minutes left in the game. In the first half, both teams looked sluggish. But in the second half, the Blue Devils scored 54 points led by Gerald Henderson who scored 20 points and electrified the crowd on multiple dunks.

Michigan faced Duke last season at Camron Indoor and it wasn’t pretty. The Blue Devils rolled over the Wolverines 95-67. They held with Duke for the first few minutes, but it wasn’t much of a game. Both teams return most of their lineups, so this will be a true test of how improved Michigan really is.

If the Wolverines have any chance of winning they need to do what they did yesterday in the second half. They will have to spread the floor offensively and get the Blue Devils out of position, which will free Sims and Gibson up for big plays. Yesterday while watching the game, Duke’s assistant coaches were very impressed with Sims, calling him a “beast.” Duke is a very good shooting team, and the 1-3-1 will open up shots from the perimeter, so Michigan will have to be quick with the motion of the zone and will need to get hands in Blue Devil faces. The biggest thing that Michigan can do to help win this game is simple: make shots. Stu Douglass and Manny Harris both made key shots in last night’s contest.

There’s quite a bit more people here tonight, and while the crowd is definitely split, the Duke fans are more boisterous. I think Duke is a better team than UCLA, so I will give the Wolverines a 35 percent chance of winning.

Staring Lineups

Duke

G Nolan Smith
G Jon Scheyer
G/F Kyle Singler
F Brian Zoubek
F Gerald Henderson

Michigan

G David Merritt
G Stu Douglass
F Manny Harris
F Anthony Wright
F Zach Gibson

15:38
Duke leads 9-4
The Blue Devils look strong early on. They’re spreading the floor, extending Michigan’s zone defense, giving them open 3-pointers. Scheyer hit the only three for Duke, but they’ve had a couple open looks. Zoubek is overpowering the Wolverines in the post and he just scored back-to-back buckets. Michigan needs to put Sims in the game.

11:02
Duke leads 17-15
Duke continues to tear apart Michigan’s zone, but is not connecting its shots. Grady and Sims came off the bench and have provided an instant spark, scoring Michigan’s last nine points. Grady hit a 3-pointer and then hit a runner off a nice pass from Harris. Sims then hit back-to-back shots. Singler and Zoubek are playing well in the post for the Blue Devils, and have scored on put backs on their last few possessions.

8:54
Duke leads 25-15
The Blue Devils have dominated the last two minutes. They’re slashing to the hoop, and then hitting the open man for easy buckets. They’re nailing pull-up jumper. The offensive surge has pushed them on an 8-0 run.

7:42
Duke leads 25-17
Michigan followed the last time out with an inbounds pass to Harris that he laid in. Sims has forced multiple looks from outside, which Duke is letting him take. Sims would be more effective faking the shot and pushing the ball down low.

3:56
Duke leads 31-24
Douglass is turning into the Wolverines’ go-to-guy when they need a big shot. Douglass hit a three with a man on him that pulled the game withing seven. But Duke’s offense has been too potent for Michigan to pull any closer. Duke started slow against Southern Illinois yesterday, and although they didn’t initially shoot the ball, the Blue Devils already have more points than in the first half than yesterday.

2:39
Duke leads 35-29
Michigan just scored a quick five points with a 3-pointer by Wright and then a Gibson dunk. Wright’s three was especially impressive because he had two men right in his face.

Half
Duke leads 39-31
Considering how well the Blue Devils have played, Michigan is lucky to be down by just eight. Yesterday the Wolverines were down by six at the half, so if they can hang around, they might have a shot.

Coach K is doing a great job at breaking down Michigan’s defense. The Blue Devils are moving the ball quickly to find the open man or driving to the paint and then dishing out to an open shooter. Duke is just 3/13 from beyond the arc, but its overall field goal percentage of .500 isn’t too shabby. If the Blue Devils start hitting the deep ball, it could get ugly.

The Wolverines are shooting .387 from the floor and have missed some easy layups and open buckets. Yet, they played better than their first half yesterday. Harris is playing well with eight points and four assists, and Sims and Grady are providing a spark from the bench.

15:04
Duke leads 47-38
Sims and Grady both started the half for Michigan, in for Gibson and Merritt. This is the first time Beileing has changed starting lineup at the half this year. Duke came out of the half blazing. Henderson scored on an alley opp and made it a 3-point play when Gibson fouled him. The Blue Devils took a 14 point lead, but Harris just got hot. He hit a three and then and then finished a fast break with a huge jam.

13:36
Duke leads 53-38
Scheyer was fouled on a 3-pointer by Zack Novak, and made three free throws at the line. Singler then swished a three, giving the Blue Devils their biggest lead of the night. On the other end of the floor, Michigan is struggling to get the ball down low and is forcing tough shots.

11:33
Duke leads 55-41
There have been a lot of fouls and sloppy play in the last two minutes. Merritt just took a charge from Elliot Williams which caused the Duke fans to yell and boo the referees. Harris and Shepherd also both went to the stripe to score Michigan’s last three points.

8:17
Duke leads 59-42
On the last possession, Duke seemed like it was trying everything it could not to score, and yet Singler picked up a loose ball and laid the ball in. I don’t like the current lineup of Lee, Novak, Grady, Sims and Gibson. They just don’t matchup well with Duke’s five men on the floor. Sims is taking it upon himself to score, which is ineffective because Duke is forcing him to take awkward shots.

6:51
Duke leads 61-44
Sims came out of the timeout with a dunk. But Michigan was outmuscled on the other end and Henderson laid home an easy bucket. The same five men for Michigan are on the court and their offense looks stagnant.

3:36
Duke leads 65-50
The Blue Devils are going to win this game. Harris has been on fire over the last few minutes. He’s been slashing effectively to the hoop and drawing fouls or making buckets, but every time Michigan makes a run, Duke responds offensively.

2:16
Duke leads 67-53
Like I said, Harris has been on fire. He nailed a 3-pointer to pull Michigan within 12, but then was called for a charge while driving to the basket. The charge seemed to deflate the Wolverines, and Duke is now sending in the third string.

Final
Duke 71, Michigan 56

Duke was just too strong for Michigan tonight. A 15 point loss is an improvement from last year, but Michigan never had a lead in the game. The Blue Devils will travel to Ann Arbor on Dec. 6 where the Wolverines will get a chance to redeem themselves in front of a home crowd.