Michigan
12-0
Air Force
4-7
Undefeated Wolverines Keep Rolling with 21-Point Victory over Air Force
12/22/2018 7:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball
» Michigan is one of six undefeated teams remaining as it moves to 12-0 with a 71-50 victory over Air Force.
» The Wolverines forced Air Force into 20 turnovers, which ranks second this season behind the 21 forced at then-No. 8 Villanova.
» Ignas Brazdeikis led Michigan with 19 points, and Charles Matthews recorded 17 points and grabbed a team-best seven rebounds.
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Crisler Center)
Score: #4 Michigan 71, Air Force 50
Records: U-M (12-0), AF (4-7)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Dec. 30 -- vs. Binghamton (Crisler Center), noon (TV: BTN)
• Kornacki: Michigan's Swiss Army Knife Revels in Role
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan men's basketball team (No. 4 AP, No. 5 USA Today) continued its perfect start to the 2018-19 season, defeating Air Force, 71-50, Saturday (Dec. 22) at Crisler Center. The Wolverines (12-0) are one of just six undefeated teams remaining in 2018-19.
Senior Charles Matthews notched his 40th career double-digit scoring effort, netting 17 points against the Falcons, while Ignas Brazdeikis led the Wolverines with 19 points, marking his 10th double-digit scoring effort. Sophomores Jordan Poole and Isaiah Livers also netted double-digit scoring as each scored 11 for the Maize and Blue.
Furthermore, sophomore Eli Brooks proved to be the spark the Wolverines needed offensively early in the first half, scoring six points and dishing out four assists while blocking one shot. Zavier Simpson dished out seven assists to mark the 10th game in which he has had five or more helpers in the 2018-19 campaign.
Defensively, Michigan forced 20 turnovers, scored 17 points off Air Force miscues, and kept the Falcons to 2-for-11 shooting from beyond the arc. U-M's 20 forced turnovers rank second on the season behind the 21 it forced against then-No. 8 Villanova. The Wolverines also had nine steals against the Air Force offense, with Simpson swiping four and Livers grabbing two.
On the boards, Matthews had seven rebounds, including two on the offensive side of the ball, while Livers pulled down three offensive boards and six total for the Maize and Blue. The Wolverines blocked five shots with Jon Teske swatting two and Brazdeikis, Matthews and Brooks all adding one.
The Michigan defense made up for a slow-starting offense as it earned three straight steals for four points and brought the Wolverines within one of Air Force, 10-9, with 11:34 remaining in the first half.
Coming out of the second media timeout of the half, Michigan put the Falcons in an offensive lull for five minutes, forcing three turnovers, blocking two shots and swiping three quick steals. The defensive pressure turned into an 11-2 run for the Wolverines as they went up 16-12.
Michigan increased its lead to 11 points, 24-13, when it worked the ball all the way around the arc for Livers to drain a three-pointer from the corner. The teams exchanged baskets to finish the half with the Wolverines taking a 28-21 advantage into the break.
In the first 20 minutes of play, the U-M defense forced Air Force into 11 turnovers, earned five steals and blocked four shots. The Falcons' 11 turnovers turned into nine points for the Wolverines.
Matthews came out of the half to score four straight points for the Maize and Blue, followed by a trey from Poole and four straight points from Brazdeikis to put Michigan up 39-28 with just over 15 minutes to play.
Each time Air Force tried to close the gap, Michigan answered on the opposite end of the court to maintain at least an eight-point lead in the second half. U-M continued to work its lead up to 15, 57-42, heading into the third media timeout.
Michigan maintained it lead and went on to secure its 12th victory of the season.
The Wolverines will wrap up the 2018 calendar year next Sunday, Dec. 30, when they welcome Binghamton to town for a noon matchup live on BTN.
