Michigan
5-3,0-0Big Ten
Kentucky
6-2,0-0SEC
Michigan Battles but Comes Up Short Against No. 19 Kentucky in London
12/4/2022 4:32:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Site: London, England (The O2)
Score: #19 Kentucky 73, Michigan 69
Records: U-M (5-3), UK (6-2)
Next U-M Event: Thursday, Dec. 8 -- at Minnesota (Minneapolis, Minn.), 8 p.m. CST (TV: Big Ten Network)
LONDON, England -- Although a late push pulled the Wolverines within striking distance with under two minutes to play, the University of Michigan men's basketball team fell 73-69 to No. 19-ranked Kentucky on Sunday (Dec. 4) at the Basketball Hall of Fame London Showcase at The O2.
Overall Summary: In a game that was close from the opening tip and the biggest lead of the contest being eight points, Michigan (5-3) got a three-pointer from Jett Howard and a layup from Hunter Dickinson to pull U-M within two of Kentucky (6-2) with 1:40 left in regulation. The Wildcats responded with a Casson Wallace three-pointer, which proved too much to overcome, and KU defeated the Maize and Blue 73-69.
Second Half: Kentucky's Wallace scored eight points in the opening minutes of the second half, and the Wildcats jumped out to a 45-37 lead. Dickinson answered with a layup and a triple to cut the deficit to three, but two more interior buckets from Kentucky put the Wolverines behind by seven at the 15-minute mark. Michigan held Kentucky scoreless for the next three minutes, and four Wolverine free throws followed by a Howard floater and Dickinson layup capped off an 8-0 run to reclaim the lead. Kentucky responded by making five straight field goals, and Michigan trailed 60-54 with nine minutes to play. At that point, Jaelin Llewellyn suffered a knee injury and did not return. Dug McDaniel replaced Llewellyn and immediately made a pull-up triple to pull U-M within two. The Wolverines did not score for the next three and a half minutes, and the Maize and Blue surrendered a 6-0 run to the Wildcats, falling behind 66-58 with four minutes remaining. A Bufkin steal led to a put-back layup by Howard to end the drought, and an ensuing floater from McDaniel pulled U-M within four and forced a Kentucky timeout. The Wildcats scored shortly thereafter, but Howard answered with a midrange jumper off the glass. Bufkin then drew a charge to give possession back to Michigan, and Dickinson scored on a post layup to cut the Kentucky lead to two points with ninety seconds left in the game. Wallace answered Michigan's late push with a three-pointer, and the five-point deficit with just over a minute to play was too much for the Wolverines to overcome. The Wildcats converted two late free throws down the stretch, and despite one last triple from Howard, Michigan fell to Kentucky, 73-69.
First Half: Howard opened the game scoring for the Wolverines with a corner three on the team's first possession. Kentucky responded with six unanswered points to jump out to an early lead, but after great ball movement from Michigan, a triple from Bufkin tied the game at 8 with 16 minutes to play. Kentucky came out of the media timeout with a quick three-pointer, but two layups from Bufkin gave the lead back to the Wolverines. A Dickinson block led to a smooth driving layup by Llewellyn, and three free throws from Howard capped off a 9-0 Michigan run to take a 17-11 lead, their largest of the game. Kentucky went on a 6-0 run behind Sahvir Wheeler's fadeaway three-pointer as the shot clock expired. Dickinson scored his first basket on a well-executed pick and roll with Llewellyn to end the run, and Terrance Williams II followed up with a triple to give Michigan a 22-19 lead with nine minutes before the break. The Wolverine offense slowed down, going nearly five minutes without a field goal, and the Wildcats tied the game at 24. Isaiah Barnes' first two career three-pointers helped push Michigan to a 34-29 advantage with three minutes before halftime. However, Kentucky went on a 7-0 run while Michigan missed six of its last seven field-goal attempts of the half, and a Wildcat free throw left the Wolverines trailing 37-36 at the break.
What's Next: The Wolverines will open Big Ten play on the road against Minnesota on Thursday (Dec. 8). The Game will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network at 8:00 p.m. CT (9:00 p.m. ET).
Notes
• Sunday's Basketball Hall of Fame's London Showcase appearance marked Michigan's first regular-season game played in Europe.
• U-M is now 2-6 all-time against Kentucky.
• U-M has played three neutral-site games over its first eight games of the season -- vs. Eastern Michigan (Nov. 11 in Detroit), two games at Legends Classic (Nov. 16-17 in Brooklyn) and Kentucky (London). The Wolverines will play one more neutral-site contest, a non-conference game vs. North Carolina at the Jordan Invitational on Dec. 21.
• Isaiah Barnes made the first two career three-pointers of his career in the first half.
• After his 11-point, two-rebound, three-assist, one-block and two-steal night, Kobe Bufkin has four games with at least eight points, two rebounds, two assists and a block and steal, including his last three.
• Bufkin leads the team in total steals (11) and ranks third in blocks (nine).
• Hunter Dickinson's 23 points give him double-figure scoring in seven of eight games.
• Dickinson finished with three blocks and now has five games with at least two swats. Over his last four games, he has 14 of his team-best 19 blocks.
• Jett Howard has scored in double figures in eight games this season, including his last six.
• Michigan, which had eight long-range buckets against Kentucky, has five three-pointers or more in six of eight games. Over the last four games, the Wolverines have produced 38 of their 65 on the season.
• The Maize and Blue forced 14 Kentucky turnovers while only surrendering seven. The team turns the ball over only 9.25 times per game, which ranks sixth nationally.
