Michigan
Eastern Michigan
Asselin, Young Help U-M Soar Over Eastern Michigan
12/30/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan men's basketball team utilized sharp shooting and solid defense in defeating visiting Eastern Michigan 90-73 on Saturday (Dec. 30) in front of a crowd of 11,627 at Crisler Arena.
Senior forward/center Josh Asselin (Caro, Mich./Caro HS) dominated in the paint for Michigan, shooting a blistering 11-of-12 from the field on way to a career-high 26 points. He connected on his first 10 field goal attempts and added seven rebounds and three blocks. Center Chris Young (Plymouth, Mich./Catholic Central HS) also played exceptionally well, scoring a career-high 19 points to go with seven boards and three blocks. Michigan shot 59 percent from the field for the game, led by Asselin and Young combining to make 19-of-22 field goal attempts.
The game began on a high-scoring pace as both teams utilized sharp shooting and aggressive offense to put points on the board quickly. Asselin contributed Michigan's first eight points of the game, beginning with a conventional three-point play. He hit a short hook shot off a nice pass from Bernard Robinson Jr. (Washington D.C./New Hampton Prep [N.H.]), then connected on a layup and a free-throw to give Michigan the early 8-5 advantage.
Michigan continued its aggressive offensive philosophy by working inside to Asselin, who scored 11 points in the game's first three minutes. A spectacular, acrobatic reverse layup by Robinson Jr. gave Michigan a 15-7 advantage with 16:57 remaining. After an Eastern Michigan basket, Robinson Jr. nailed a three-pointer as Michigan doubled up EMU, 18-9.
U-M was ahead 26-18 before embarking on an 8-0 run, widening its lead to 34-18. Asselin contributed four points during the run. EMU found itself trailing 41-21 at the seven-minute mark before answering with an 8-2 run. A baseline jumper by Rod Wells with just over four minutes remaining cut Michigan's lead to 43-29.
Michigan answered with a tip-in by Leon Jones (Battle Creek, Mich./Winchendon Prep [Conn.]) and a pair of free throws by Gavin Groninger (Plainfield, Ind./Plainfield HS). Robinson Jr. rebounded a missed Young shot and scored to make it 49-30 with just under three minutes remaining. Michigan continued to build its lead as Groninger put home a two-handed slam on the break after receiving a nice pass from half-court by guard Mike Gotfredson (Grosse Pointe, Mich./South HS).
Michigan led 55-35 at the half on the strength of sharp shooting from the trio of Asselin, Young, and Robinson Jr. Asselin was perfect on all seven first-half field goal attempts, Robinson Jr. connected on 5-of-5, and Young was 5-of-6 in leading Michigan to a scorching 68.8 percent first-half shooting mark. Asselin had 17 points to go with four rebounds, while Young added 13 points and three boards.
In the second half, the Wolverines continued to maintain their lead, holding a double-digit advantage the rest of the game. Michigan continued to pound the ball inside to Asselin and Young. A dunk by Asselin at the 15-minute mark gave the Wolverines a 65-45 lead. Eastern answered with a 9-3 run, culminating in a tip-dunk by forward Tyson Radney, to narrow the lead to 68-54 with 11 minutes remaining. The 14-point margin was as close as EMU could get, however, as Michigan continued to work and score points.
Michigan went on a quick 5-0 run as Young put home a short jumper and Groninger buried a three-pointer off a drive-and-dish pass from Gotfredson. U-M led 73-54 with nine minutes left in the game. A three-pointer by Blanchard widened U-M's lead to 25 points at 87-62, virtually putting the game out of reach for EMU with three minutes remaining.
The Michigan "Soul Patrol" entered the game at the two-minute mark. Forward Herb Gibson (Taylor, Mich./Truman HS), forward Rotolu Adebiyi (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron HS), forward Colin Dill (Saginaw, Mich./Birmingham Country Day) and forward Ron Garber (Golden Valley, Minn./Hopkins HS) stepped in to contribute for the Maize and Blue. An emphatic dunk by Gibson brought the crowd to its feet and capped off the final scoring as Michigan finished victorious in its final game before the start of the Big Ten Conference season.
In addition to the strong performances by Asselin and Young, U-M received 11 points each from Groninger and Robinson Jr. Groninger was 2-of-2 from three-point land and Robinson shot 5-of-7 from the field. Eastern Michigan was led by guard Ricky Cottrill with 20 points, including four three-pointers. Ryan Prillman added 13 points off the bench.
The Wolverines begin their Big Ten schedule on Wednesday (Jan. 3) at Purdue. Tip-off is at 8 p.m.
N O T E S
-- The Wolverines finished the game against Eastern Michigan with four new team season bests -- 36 field goals made (tie), .590 field goal percentage, .688 single half FG percentage (first half) and 21 assists (tie).
-- Senior Josh Asselin scored a career-high 26 points after going 11-for-12 from the field. His 11 field goals were also a career best. His previous best point total was 22 points, which he did three times -- Iowa (March 1, 2000, and Jan. 22, 2000) and Ohio State (Jan. 16, 1999).
-- Senior Josh Asselin's 11-for-12 performance from the field was the third best Michigan individual game in history. He finished shooting .917 from the field, which ties John Lockard (1972-73), who did it against Oregon (Dec. 29, 1971), and Chris Webber (1992-93), who did it against Northwestern (March 13, 1993). His .917 mark was also the third best performance in Crisler Arena history, matching Webber's performance against Northwestern.
-- Senior Mike Gotfredson scored his first points as a Wolverine on a three-pointer in the first half, also giving him his first U-M triple. He finished the game with career highs in points (3), rebounds (3), assists (3) and minutes (17). Gotfredson transferred from Calvin College last season.
-- Junior Chris Young had a career-high 19 points. His previous best was 15 at Oakland (Nov. 17, 2000). He also had a career-high eight field goals, besting his seven at Oakland. In addition to the offensive numbers, he tied a career high with three blocked shots, a feat he did at Wisconsin (Feb. 16, 2000).
-- Although his 11 points was his lowest output of the season, freshman Bernard Robinson Jr. has now scored in double figures in all 11 games this season.
-- Freshman Avery Queen finished the game with eight assists to just one turnover. The eight dimes is the second best of his career behind his nine at Duke (Dec. 9, 2000).
-- Sophomore Gavin Groninger has now scored in double figures in three straight games.
-- The 11,627 fans was the largest home crowd of the season for the Wolverines, besting the 9,767 against Wake Forest (Nov. 28) in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
