8A — Wednesday, January 23, 2019 Sports The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com At the buzzer Charles Matthews nails floater as time expires to stave off late upset bid from Minnesota MINNESOTA MICHIGAN 57 59 Michigan stood on the cusp of disaster, and Ignas Brazdeikis started a drive. When he finished it, things hadn’t gotten much better — a layup attempt falling short, the game still tied, a double-digit lead still blown, overtime still waiting with two seconds to go. Amid the ensuing scramble, the ball found its way to Charles Matthews. The redshirt junior hung in the air, releasing a desperate floater. As the buzzer sounded, it somehow found nylon, and after a lengthy review, it somehow stood. “I know Iggy. That’s my little brother,” a subdued Matthews said after the game. “He’s like a bull in the china shop when he’s going to the rim. So he ain’t looking to kick out. So I just said, ‘You know what, he might miss this one, let me try to just go get the rebound.’ And thank god I was in the right position for it. “Gotta know your teammates. Know your personnel.” This was as close to a catastrophe as you could have gotten. But thanks to Matthews’ buzzer-beater, No. 5 Michigan (18-1 overall, 7-1 Big Ten) left Crisler Center with a 59-57 win over Minnesota (14-5, 4-4) on Tuesday, narrowly avoiding a second-straight loss. Thirty seconds before Matthews ended the game, the Gophers’ Gabe Kalscheur tied it with a 3-pointer. Minutes earlier, the Wolverines held a double-digit lead. And, even after Minnesota cut a 10-point lead to six with 2:22 to go, it sent sophomore guard Jordan Poole to the free-throw line with a chance to put any worry to rest. He proceeded to miss two free throws, setting the stage for a near-collapse. “Usually, we all have a saying,” Matthews said. “We usually come out to the game looking, we be like, ‘Alright, let’s run ‘em out the gym.’ And we usually put our foot on their neck and touch it to the floor. But this game, they made some big shots.” After a poor offensive showing on Saturday, things weren’t much better on Tuesday, as the Wolverines shot just 3-of- 22 from deep and 33.9 percent from the field. Brazdeikis and junior center Jon Teske, who finished with 18 and 15 points, respectively, were relied upon to carry the load, as no other player had more than seven. And still, earlier on in the second half, the game seemed all but over. After Minnesota took a three-point lead into halftime, Brazdeikis broke out of his slump, keying a run that saw him score eight of his 18 points on the day. The Wolverines proceeded to take their first lead of the game, 39-37, on a running sky-hook from sophomore guard Zavier Simpson. That lead would grow as high as 13 points with under 10 minutes to go — and Michigan seemed on its way to a relaxing home win. Far from it. “We’ve got to grow a lot,” said Michigan coach John Beilein. “13-point lead late, and how many times do you see that happen at Michigan where we let it go like that? Continue to teach these guys what it takes to win games like that because that could’ve went the other way. “I mean, that wouldn’t have been a devastating loss, but you’re up by that amount and we don’t make foul shots and we also don’t execute on offense, we don’t share the ball the way we need to share it, you can get beat. Defensive transition, everybody watching, those are tough things for us.” A few minutes later, Beilein was asked if he expected more growth after the Wolverines suffered their first loss. “I was,” he said. “I’d be lying if I said I’m not disappointed.” ETHAN SEARS Managing Sports Editor Despite inefficiency, Brazdeikis provides spark with aggression Ignas Brazdeikis stood in front of reporters last Friday with Michigan’s showdown against Wisconsin looming. Holding an undefeated, 17-0 record and a No. 2 national ranking, the Wolverines were riding high, and so was Brazdeikis. Nothing out of the ordinary, though — if one thing defines the freshman forward besides scoring in bunches, it’s an exuberant self-confidence and air of swagger. A win over the Badgers had the potential to push Michigan to No. 1 overall, its first such ranking in five years. So it’s understandable that Friday’s conversation eventually turned to then-No. 1 Duke and its own star freshman forward, Zion Williamson. How would the Wolverines fare against the Blue Devils? Would Brazdeikis guard Williamson? What do you think he said? “I would love to play Duke. … They’ve got that No. 1 team, that No. 1 hype, and we feel like we’re definitely better than them. We’re just looking forward to playing every single team, and we’re not scared of no competition. … I would love to guard Zion. I’ll guard anyone.” Less than 24 hours later, Brazdeikis and his teammates quietly slumped away while Wisconsin fans stormed the floor of Kohl Center, fresh off a 64-54 upset that knocked Michigan from the ranks of the unbeaten. The loss was a gut- punch, and probably even more so for Brazdeikis, who was averaging 15.6 points per game coming in — for the first time in his college career, he was held scoreless. Then Brazdeikis missed his first seven shots on Tuesday against Minnesota. The narrative looked to be in full force — the Wolverines and their swaggering youngster humbled at last; the freshman finally figured out. Maybe Brazdeikis was an ordinary rookie after all. Not to his teammates. “I told him to stay aggressive,” said redshirt junior guard Charles Matthews. “I told him, I kinda went through the same thing last year, where you might not be as productive as you once was. I just told him stay aggressive at all costs, I believe in you, keep going.” Added junior center Jon Teske: “He’s a great player. Shooters gonna shoot, and he’s going to do that. He’s going to get to the paint, he’s going to attack.” With 1:45 before halftime, Brazdeikis spun past a defender and banked home his first basket since Jan. 13. He added a left-handed layup a minute later, giving him momentum into intermission. “I was just like, thank goodness I got something to go for me,” Brazdeikis said. “I’m obviously not going to lose confidence in myself, that’s definitely something that’s not going to happen with me. But my teammates just trusting me and the coaches trusting me to keep going, keep playing — that’s the only reason why I could do this.” “This” was Brazdeikis nearly single-handedly putting the Wolverines in control of the game with eight points in the span of three minutes. Two minutes into the second, he knocked down a 3-pointer to cut a seven-point deficit to four. After a defensive stop on the next possession, he grabbed the rebound, rushed up the court and turned a head of steam into an and-one layup. Brazdeikis yelled and flexed his arms as Teske gave him an enthusiastic chest-bump. Back was his signature celebration. Back was the intensity and the fire that defines his game. Back when Michigan needed it most. “He’s not a guy that carries a lot of baggage around with him,” said Wolverines coach John Beilein. “ … He’s pretty good at moving on to the next play. He was the only one that was making plays at times this game.” It was that kind of night for Michigan. It shot just 34 percent from the field and 3-of- 22 from outside. Brazdeikis put up an 18-point and 11-rebound double-double, but on an ugly 4-of-18 line. Still, he never stopped attacking, resulting in a 9-for-11 showing from the foul line. And so it was Brazdeikis who the Wolverines put their trust in to ice the game. On their last possession, he caught the ball at the top of the key. Off a Jordan Poole screen, Golden Gopher defenders Gabe Kalscheur and Jordan Murphy both hedged on Brazdeikis as he powered to the hoop. “It shows that Coach (Beilein) has confidence in him and so do we,” Teske said. “You know he’s going to make the right play. He drove and he had a good look at the basket.” Brazdeikis’ layup was blocked, but that’s beside the point. “We were trying to get Iggy isolated and get something in the lane so we had enough time to get an offensive rebound, don’t rush a 3,” Beilein said. “(Brazdeikis is a) great foul shooter and guy that could finish at the rim, you don’t want to settle in that situation.” Added Brazdeikis: “It means the world to me. I’m not going to shy away from moments like that, that’s just not who I am.” None of this is to sugarcoat a 4-for-18 shooting night. After the loss to Wisconsin, Beilein noted that the Badgers were able to slow Brazdeikis by putting 6-foot-10 Ethan Happ on him and flustering him with length. It’s clear that after 19 games, teams are beginning to develop adequate scouting reports on Brazdeikis, and Michigan will need him to adapt to them to continue his same level of success. But even though Tuesday was far, far from Ignas Brazdeikis’ finest performance, it was one of his most defining. Any player can have an off- night, and Brazdeikis is hardly immune. But the confidence that sets apart the most elite scorers; the confidence that Brazdeikis has in droves? It’s not going anywhere. JACOB SHAMES Daily Sports Editor Minnesota was one second away from taking the No. 5 team in the country to overtime on its home court. Then, a shot. A buzzer. Pandemonium. And a wait. A long, excruciating wait for the Golden Gophers as the officials looked at every frame of redshirt junior wing Charles Matthews’ midrange jumper as time expired. For four minutes, Minnesota’s fate hung in the balance. “We thought we was going to overtime,” said Minnesota forward Eric Curry. “ … Everybody thought we was going to overtime.” The decision came, and the referee originally signaled no basket. Boos rained down on the floor as the Golden Gophers had, briefly, a gasp of life. Until the officials corrected themselves. Call stands. Michigan wins. Before that, the Wolverines had gone four minutes and 51 seconds without scoring as Minnesota whittled away at a 10-point deficit. As Michigan had empty possession after empty possession, the Golden Gophers found their guys, chipping at what had seemed like a safe lead until suddenly, the game was tied. “I think it was more of just catching them off guard,” said Minnesota forward Jordan Murphy. “And making sure that we were getting baskets and buckets when we could and making sure we stayed composed down the stretch.” It wasn’t as tough a task as it may have seemed — the Golden Gophers, after all, led for the first 25 minutes of the game. Shots weren’t falling for the Wolverines, and Minnesota disrupted them enough inside to keep them from getting too comfortable. When the shooting once again went cold, the Golden Gophers took advantage. With 31 seconds left in the game, Minnesota passed the ball around the perimeter, desperate for a good look for three. Finally, it was guard Gabe Kalscheur — a freshman who had never been in a situation this big — who took it. The Golden Gophers had all the momentum. The shot seemed destined to go in, and it did. The game was tied. “Gabe obviously is a very professional type of guy,” Murphy said. “Keeps his composure, keeps very poised, so definitely a really good shooter.” Michigan’s first attempt at the win was from freshman forward Ignas Brazdeikis, who tried a layup under the basket. Curry got the block. This wasn’t the first time Curry was in a similar situation. Two years ago, Minnesota was facing Indiana, down one with just three seconds left. Curry, as a freshman, tipped a rebound right to a teammate, who hit a jumper for the win. Curry knew what the Golden Gophers had to do — get the rebound, finish the possession. Instead, Matthews got the ball, and the rest was history. “We’re not gonna put anything on the refs,” Curry said. “ … We should’ve got the rebound, finished the possession, we always preached it all year long. Finish the possession.” As those four excruciating minutes passed, with the refs reviewing every angle of a slowed- down Matthews releasing the ball, all Minnesota could do was stand and wait and hope. A few milliseconds made the difference between what could have been one of the Golden Gophers’ biggest performances in years and just another game that ended in heartbreak. When Minnesota coach Richard Pitino was asked if he thought the call was correct, he couldn’t bear to deal with the what-ifs. Instead, he offered up eight words. “Doesn’t matter. It was close. It doesn’t matter.” ARIA GERSON Daily Sports Writer NATALIE STEPHENS/Daily Sophomores Jordan Poole and Isaiah Livers combined for just 10 points on 3-for-13 shooting in Tuesday’s win. NATALIE STEPHENS/Daily Freshman forward Ignas Brazdeikis fought through shooting struggles on Tuesday night, compiling 18 points and 11 rebounds in the 59-57 win over Minnesota. “I’m not going to shy away from moments like that...” “Shooters gonna shoot, and he’s going to do that.”