MATTHEWS SHUTS DOWN ROMEO LANGFORD. AGAIN.
BLOOMINGTON — John
Beilein didn’t want his team
switching.
For a team with an
elite defense — one often
predicated on doing just
that — it seemed like a bold
strategy. But, as is often the
case, the Michigan men’s
basketball coach knew what
he was doing.
Beilein wanted redshirt
junior wing Charles
Matthews on Indiana’s
Romeo Langford in every
way possible. On Jan. 6
in Ann Arbor, Matthews
locked down Langford, and
against a Hoosiers team
lacking in depth, it was
imperative that Langford
was once again kept in
check. Matthews, a guy
who takes every matchup
personally, had no qualms
with the plan.
“We wanted Charles on
(Langford),” Beilein said.
“Charles? He likes that.”
If the game in Ann Arbor
was part one of Matthews
vs. Langford, Friday was
part two — and Matthews
won this round even more
handily than the first.
A shot clock issue caused
the PA announcer to
verbally count down the
time remaining on every
Hoosier offensive possession
in the first half. For the first
seven minutes, the action
at that end was a surreal
sequence of numbers and
bricked shots and boos — so
many boos — as Michigan
jumped out to a 17-0 lead.
And there in the middle
of all of it was
Matthews,
who had four
rebounds
before Indiana
had a single
point and
generated
chances for
his team
even through
periods
of sloppy
offensive play.
Langford,
meanwhile,
had three fouls in the first
nine minutes of the game
and sat the rest of the half.
“(Matthews is) just a
fierce competitor and he
knows his angles really
well,” said freshman
forward Ignas Brazdeikis.
“He’s also got
that reach and
athleticism
but it’s also
the way he
defends, you
know, he cuts
off what you
like to do best
and he’s quick
to knowing
what the player
does best.”
Back on
the court in
the second
half, Langford started a
mini-Indiana run with a
layup and the Hoosiers cut
the Wolverines’ lead to as
little as nine at one point.
With Langford on the floor,
Indiana’s offense seemed to
have the kind of flow it was
previously missing.
Then, Matthews was
accidentally kicked in the
head and lay, reeling, down
on all fours before leaving
the court briefly as both
teams went to timeout.
Instead of leaving injured,
Matthews got back up and
taunted the Hoosiers even
more. He sunk both free
throws, then hit a three and
then a jump shot just within
the arc. By then, Michigan
was up 16 and the game was
back out of reach for the
Hoosiers.
“Anytime we see Charles
doing that, it kinda rubs
off on myself,” said junior
guard Zavier Simpson.
“Rubs off on Iggy, rubs off
on the rest of the players on
the court, we see that, we
feel, then just keep it going.”
During their first
matchup, Langford still
managed to get a little. He
still finished with 17 points
— low by his standards,
maybe, but not by anyone
else’s — and found a groove
in the second half. On
Friday, he scored just nine
on 3-for-12 shooting. Thanks
primarily to Matthews, one
of the top freshmen in the
country looked like just
another pedestrian.
Langford may have been
on his home court, but
Matthews looked like the
one who had been there
before.
Aria Gerson
Assistant Sports Editor
SPORTSMONDAY
The Michigan Daily | michigandaily.com | January 28, 2019
IN STUDENT SECTION AT ASSEMBLY HALL, FRUSTRATION BOILS OVER
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INSIDE SPORTSMONDAY
See Page 4B
ROMEO?
wherefore art thou
46 IU
MICHIGAN SHUTS DOWN LIFELESS INDIANA. AGAIN.
“We wanted
Charles on
(Langford),”
Beilein said.
“Charles? He
likes that.”
U-M 69