Michigan basketball fizzles late in 72-70 loss to Wake Forest

Dusty May is two games into his Michigan basketball tenure, but the changes in play style and effectiveness is obvious.

The Wolverines got off to a hot start Sunday afternoon in the Deacon-Wolverine Challenge vs. Wake Forest in Greensboro, North Carolina. But the offense fizzled down the stretch, and back-to-back turnovers in the final 90 seconds proved critical in a 72-70 loss to the Demon Deacons (3-0) at First Horizon Coliseum.

U-M fans showed support throughout the arena in what was effectively a Wake Forest home game, just more than 30 miles west of campus. But they watched U-M shoot 2-for-16 on 3-pointers in the second half after making 8 of 17 in the first half (10-for-33 total, 30%).

The Wolverines (1-1) had balanced scoring with seven players scoring between eight and 11 points. Roddy Gayle Jr., an Ohio State transfer, led U-M with 11 points, and Tre Donaldson and L.J. Cason each scored 10.

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U-M led by as much as 13 points in the first half at 25-12. But it had to rely on a Donaldson banked-in half-court 3-point shot at the buzzer to lift the Wolverines to a 38-34 halftime lead. The Demon Deacons used a 10-0 run over 90 seconds before Donaldson’s heave, and forced six turnovers in seven minutes to cut into the deficit.

U-M had 16 turnovers, nine coming in the first half, and six from Yale transfer Danny Wolf.

This was a good test for the Wolverines, who smashed Cleveland State on Monday, 101-53, in the opener in Ann Arbor.

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The Demon Deacons were ranked third in the preseason ACC poll, behind just Duke and North Carolina, and received one vote for first place.

U-M next season will host Wake Forest at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

U-M returns to its home court at Crisler Center on Friday vs. TCU (6 p.m., FS1).

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Author : Detroit Free Press

Publish date : 2024-11-10 20:16:00

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