8 — Friday, December 9, 2016
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Wolverines head west to visit high-scoring UCLA

The
Michigan
men’s

basketball team’s defense had
to dig deep to come away with
a win against Texas on Tuesday
because the offense scored just
53 points.

While
the
Wolverines

struggled
to
find
anything

consistent
on
offense,
the

Longhorns were just as poor
attacking, and Michigan was
able to fall back on its defense to
find a way in the end.

The Wolverines (7-2) won’t

want to stick to that same
strategy when they travel to
Pauley Pavilion on Saturday
to take on No. 2 UCLA (9-0).
The Bruins have the nation’s
second-highest scoring offense,
averaging 97 points per game.

They run one of the most high-
tempo offenses as well, ranking
in the top 10 in possessions per
40 minutes.

Michigan has already played

teams that like to score in
transition such as Virginia Tech
and the Longhorns, and the
Wolverines handled both teams
well. Michigan ranks 10th in the
country in scoring defense.

“I
thought
we
handled

the tempo pretty well,” said
Michigan coach John Beilein on
the Virginia Tech game. “The
tempo was at a pace that got us
a few times, but not as many
times as they’ve been getting
other people. (UCLA) is a team
that will really run. Some of the
teams they’ve played have gotten
in that running game with them.
We’re still only going to run
when we can, but at the same

time we have to make sure we
take good shots and we make
them take hard shots.”

But
no
opponent
the

Wolverines have faced to date
had as many offensive weapons
as the Bruins. All five of UCLA’s
starters are putting up double-
digit scoring averages, and each
can score in a variety of different
ways.

UCLA’s offense stems from

the point and its star freshman
guard Lonzo Ball. The 6-foot-6
guard poses the threat of posting
a triple-double every game he
takes the floor. Against then-No.
1 Kentucky, Ball put up a stat line
of 14 points, six rebounds and
seven assists.

But Ball is still prone to

making freshman mistakes. He
committed five turnovers while
shooting 1-for-5 in the first half of
the Kentucky game. Even while
making those errors, he was

showing off the most impressive
facet of his game. The freshman
currently leads the nation in
assists per game (9.3) to go with
his 15 point scoring average.

Complimenting Ball at the

post is freshman TJ Leaf, who is
also almost averaging a double-
double with 17 points and nine
rebounds per game. At 6-foot-
11, Leaf isn’t just a threat in the
paint, he’s an outside shooting
threat as well. The freshman,
who Beilein once recruited, is
currently shooting 67 percent
from the field and 50 percent
from three. His versatility will
be a handful for any Michigan
defender tasked with guarding
him, likely redshirt sophomore
forward DJ Wilson.

“(Leaf) really is not just a

6-(foot)-10
forward,”
Beilein

said. “He shoots, he passes.
Look at his stats right now. For
a freshman with a 225-pound

body, the way he’s rebounding
right now is really impressive in
the game.”

Besides Ball and Leaf, UCLA

has three other players shooting
over 40 percent from behind the
arc in guards Bryce Alford, Isaac
Hamilton and Aaron Holiday.

The Bruins can score from just

about anywhere on the offensive
end, and Beilein realizes no
other team will be a better test to
see if Michigan’s top-10 scoring
defense can hold up.

“(This game is) the ultimate

gauge of who we are against a
high-level team,” Beilein said.
“We got some incredible talent.
I think what’s really compelling
right now is what Ball and Leaf
have done to that team. That was
a team that was sub-.500 last
year and only lost one player. But
those two are just exceptional. “

UCLA’s fast pace will also

challenge
the
Wolverines’

offense. Michigan hasn’t been
efficient scoring points on fast
breaks or in transition, choosing
too often to hold the ball up and
go into half-court sets.

While running a half-court

offense could slow the Bruins’
attack down, the Wolverines will
still need to find a fair share of
points on breaks to have a shot at
the upset.

“We’re playing too much half-

court basketball,” Beilein said.
“We have to get up the court.
Whether it’s who’s pushing it,
right now (senior guard Derrick
Walton) has been the only push
guy, and he’s even got to do more
there. “

Saturday will be Michigan’s

last opportunity to measure up
against
marquee
competition

before
Big
Ten
play
opens,

especially defensively. And it will
be the best opportunity yet for the
Wolverines to make a statement.

RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily

Senior guard Derrick Walton Jr. will be counted on to help the Michigan men’s basketball team counter UCLA’s bristling pace when the teams meet Saturday.

BRANDON CARNEY

Daily Sports Writer