What We Learned: Michigan Wolverines vs Maryland Terrapins

The Maryland Terrapins hosted the Michigan Wolverines on Senior Day on Saturday afternoon. Both teams were looking to keep their momentum going from big wins in their previous games.

The game was back and forth in the beginning stages and it wasn't until the last 5 minutes of the half where Maryland made their move. They held Michigan scoreless for the last 4 plus minutes of the half. The Terrapins ended the frame on a 12-0 run and took a 30-21 lead into the half. Maryland never let go of the lead and cruised to a 66-56 win over Michigan on Senior Day.

What We Learned

This was a fitting way to send off the senior Dez Wells

Wells has been a big part of this team for the past 3 seasons. The senior has given it all for his teammates since coming on campus. Wells played great in his final two games at College Park. He had 26 points in the win over Wisconsin and a solid 13 points in Saturday afternoon against Michigan. It's nice to see Wells close out his career at Maryland like this. The fans recognized what he's meant to the program and sent him off with a standing ovation.

Michigan shouldn't stick with the zone against a good 3 point shooting team

Michigan elected to stick with the zone for much of the game. The zone did help them create turnovers, but it came back to haunt them when the Terrapins started hitting their 3's. Maryland hit 11 of their 22 shots from behind the arc. Michigan doesn't have the size to matchup against most teams man to man, but when you're getting killed like that from behind the arc you have to make a change.

Michigan continues to stay in the game against good teams

The Wolverines have shown that they can hang in games against good teams, but they struggle to close them out. Michigan was in the game throughout most of the 2nd half, but they could never take a lead. Michigan has played good teams tough all year. They've taken Michigan State, Wisconsin, and Illinois into overtime but ultimately lost. They also knocked off Ohio State last Sunday. Don't be surprised if they find a way to knock off a higher ranked team in the Big Ten Tournament.

Melo Trimble is peaking at just the right time

The freshman has been phenomenal all season, but he's playing his best basketball right now. He finished with 19 points on 4 of 9 shooting. He did an excellent job of driving to the basket and forcing Michigan to send him to the line throughout the game and converted on 8 of his 9 free throws. He closed the game out against Wisconsin on Tuesday, and he did the same thing on Saturday afternoon against Maryland. He's proven that he can lead his team to victory. I can't wait to see what the freshman does in March.

Overall

Michigan's tough year continues. Few people expected them to go into Maryland and pull out a win. They've now lost 6 of their last 7 games. The Wolverines finish up the regular season against Northwestern and Rutgers.

Maryland has proven to be one of the best Big Ten teams all year. They did what they had to do to take care of an inferior Michigan team. They will close the season out at Rutgers and Nebraska. Those are 2 games they should easily win. The Terrapins are playing their best basketball right now. Don't be surprised if they make a big run in March.