Minnesota Basketball: Three Keys to Gophers beating Michigan

Where

Ann Arbor

When

7:30 PM

How

BTN

Who

Michigan

And now the Gophers get another chance at their first road win of the season, can they take down the undefeated and #10 Michigan Wolverines? Here’s what it will take to get it done.

KEYS TO A GOPHER WIN

Great interior defense - This Michigan squad is 6th in the nation in % of points that come from 2. Giving them a highly efficient offense and a great eFG%. But their 7’1” freshman center Hunter Dickinson, and Franz Wagner & Isaiah Livers at the forward spots are very effective in the paint. Robbins needs to protect the rim without fouling. Then we have to get to their shooters, but first and foremost we need to protect the rim.

Force some turnovers - Michigan has had a few games with high turnovers and those games were closer than they should have been. By most (all) metrics, we are the best team they’ve faced all year. If we can generate some turnovers, we might be able to pull off the road upset.

Unexpected offensive contribution - It was Brandon Johnson in the Iowa win, Liam Robbins really showed some offense in the last week. But maybe getting more offense from another unexpected source tonight would be enough. If Carr and Robbins are scoring plus one other steps up, this team will be really hard to stop. Both Gach or Gabe Kalscheur are the most likely names, but anybody is welcome.

PREDICTION

I’m not picking the Gophers to win on the road against a good team. We really have looked like a different team on the road. This might be the next growth step for this 2020-21 team.

But I like Michigan tonight.

Minnesota - 70
Michigan - 75