Michigan
6-0
North Carolina
5-1
Wolverines Serve Up Thanksgiving Upset of No. 6-Ranked Tar Heels
11/28/2019 4:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball
» Eli Brooks tied a career best with 24 points.
» Michigan used a 19-0 run early in the second half to lock up the win.
» Four players notched double-digit scoring.
» Michigan will play No. 8 Gonzaga in the Battle 4 Atlantis final Friday (Nov. 29).
Site: Paradise Island, Bahamas (Imperial Ballroom)
Event: Battle 4 Atlantis (Semifinal)
Score: Michigan 73, #6 North Carolina 64
Records: Michigan (6-0), UNC (5-1)
Next U-M Event: Friday, Nov. 29 -- vs. #8 Gonzaga - Battle 4 Atlantis Final (Paradise Island, Bahamas), 2 p.m. (TV: ESPN)
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas -- A 19-0 run early in the second half surged the University of Michigan men's basketball team to a 73-64 victory over No. 6 North Carolina in the semifinal round of the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis on Thursday (Nov. 28) at the Imperial Ballroom.
Junior Eli Brooks tied a career best with 24 points, going 9-for-14 from the field and 4-for-6 from beyond the arc, while Isaiah Livers added 12 points and David DeJulius scored 11, including six in a 39-second span in the first half. Senior Jon Teske netted 10 points, draining two treys for the Maize and Blue, and grabbed a team-best eight rebounds.
Defensively, Teske added a season-high four blocks, while Brandon Johns Jr. had two swats for the Wolverines. As a team, Michigan forced North Carolina into 42.6 percent shooting and just 15.4 percent (2-13) from the three-point line.
The Wolverine offense was slow to start as U-M fell behind by nine points, 16-7, but 7-of-8 shooting, including a big tip-in from Colin Castleton and a three-pointer from Brooks, gave the Maize and Blue a 24-22 lead at the under-8:00 timeout.
A layup by Livers with 5:54 left in the first half gave Michigan the lead for good before DeJulius went on his six-point run in 39 seconds to put the Wolverines up 36-29 with just over three minutes to play in the opening frame.
A three-pointer by Brooks would be the final points of the half for the Wolverines as Michigan took a 39-34 lead into the locker room.
Brooks went 4-for-7 from the floor, including two three-pointers, for 10 points in the first half, while DeJulius scored nine points in 10 minutes on the court. As a team, the Wolverines shot 51.7 percent from the floor and made five shots from beyond the arc.
The Michigan offense came out on fire in the second half. After the teams traded baskets, the Wolverines went on a 19-0 run, with six different players scoring, over a 5:21 span to take a 60-36 lead and force a North Carolina timeout with 11:15 remaining in the second half. The defense also put the UNC offense on ice, forcing the Tar Heels into a 6:12 scoring drought during which they were 0-for-10 from the field.
North Carolina came out of the break and went on a 9-0 run to come within 14 of the Wolverines with just over seven minutes to play in the game. The Tar Heels continued to close the gap on U-M and got within eight, the last time at 69-61 with 2:46 on the clock.
However, Brooks came up big in the closing minute of the game, hitting his fourth three-pointer from the top of the arc to put Michigan up 72-61 and seal the Wolverines' first win over a ranked opponent this season.
U-M will play No. 8 Gonzaga, a 73-72 overtime winner over No. 11 Oregon in the other semifinal, for the Battle 4 Atlantis championship at 2 p.m. Friday (Nov. 29). The game will be televised on ESPN.
