'Moral of our season': Michigan falters late, falls to Indiana in another close loss

Ann Arbor — All season long, the Wolverines haven’t been able to finish strong and break through in tight games against marquee opponents.

It happened against Virginia. It happened against Kentucky. It happened against North Carolina. It happened against Purdue. That problematic pattern continued Saturday and happened, once again, against No. 18 Indiana.

This time, Michigan faded down the stretch, missed nine of its last 10 shots and went scoreless over the final 5:12 as it saw its three-game winning streak come to an end with a brutal 62-61 loss at Crisler Center.

BOX SCORE: No. 18 Indiana 62, Michigan 61

“It is extremely unfortunate that we weren't able to capitalize on this,” said junior center Hunter Dickinson, who finished with 16 points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots. “This was a great opportunity for us, a great opportunity to build our resume.

“We need a lot of help in order to make the (NCAA) tournament, and this was a great opportunity that slipped through our fingers. But I feel like that's the moral of the season so far — not capitalizing on those opportunities that we get.”

Sophomore guard Kobe Bufkin scored 14, while freshman wing Jett Howard added 12 points and missed an off-balance 3-pointer as time expired on the final play for Michigan (14-11, 8-6 Big Ten), which led for much of the contest and by as much as 11 points.

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Everything started to fall apart with under nine minutes to go. After freshman center Tarris Reed Jr. converted a three-point play for a 56-54 advantage with 8:49 to play, Michigan struggled to execute as its offense disappeared and it made one more shot the rest of the way during a late-game collapse.

“Organization, that was a big reason why some of the sets we weren't able to get to what we were asking from the offensive end,” coach Juwan Howard said. “There are times when guys want to go ahead and do it how they want to do it, or they see how the defender is playing and they feel that this is the best way how to run the set.

“You've just got to trust. You also have to trust what is being asked and then also apply. That's where I think we got into trouble down the stretch. We weren't able to get to the offense that was called.”

Indiana, meanwhile, made just two of its final 10 shots over the final nine minutes but managed cut the deficit to one point three times down the stretch. Dickinson mustered a response the first two times, with two free throws and a close-range shot — Michigan’s last made field goal — to make it 61-58 with 5:12 remaining.

The third time, though, Dickinson missed a hook shot. The Hoosiers (18-7, 9-5) followed with two free throws from Jalen Hood-Schifino to grab a 62-61 edge with 2:58 remaining, setting the stage for a frustrating finish during which the Wolverines missed their final seven shots and wasted one opportunity after another.

After Dickinson stole the ball from Trayce Jackson-Davis, freshman guard Dug McDaniel had his layup attempt blocked at the rim. After Indiana turned the ball over again on its next possession, Michigan gave the ball right back as junior forward Terrance Williams II’s pass into the post was intercepted.

With Indiana still clinging to a one-point lead, Michigan got a stop on the ensuing possession. But the Wolverines, once again, couldn’t capitalize as Jett Howard misfired on a deep jumper.

“I don't know, man. I really don't know,” Dickinson said, shaking his head, when asked went wrong offensively down the stretch. “The last five minutes was kind of a blur. I don't really know what happened.

“We weren't really getting that many good looks at the basket the last couple of minutes. Whatever we were doing wasn't working. Whether it's executing or just running the plays right, it wasn't a good all-around effort by us out there.”

The Hoosiers had a chance to extend their lead with 12 seconds left when Jackson-Davis was fouled. They couldn’t. Jackson-Davis missed the front end of a one-and-one and left the door open for the Wolverines to win it after they corralled the rebound and called a timeout with eight seconds left.

On the final possession, Bufkin tried to get downhill and attack the basket but was cut off by Indiana’s Trey Galloway. With time running out, Bufkin kicked it out to the perimeter to Howard, who put up a contested 3-pointer that missed everything.

“We were setting a ball screen with a riser,” Dickinson said of the final play. “I set a ball screen for Kobe. (Galloway) went under so he was able to get back in front of Kobe. It was just a good defensive play on their part. Then Jett got the ball with only three seconds left and he didn't really have much opportunity there.”

Added Juwan Howard: “It was what I drew up, but unfortunately we didn't get what we were looking for.”

Jackson-Davis, the Big Ten preseason player of the year, played the entire game and finished with 28 points and 11 rebounds. Hood-Schifino added 21 points for Indiana, which has won eight of nine and was without starting forward Race Thompson.

Much like the contests against Virginia, Kentucky and North Carolina, Michigan played well for a good portion of the game. In the first half against the Hoosiers, the Wolverines blocked shots, came away with steals and made half their shots as they built a 32-21 lead.

But after Hood-Schifino and Jackson-Davis cut the 11-point deficit to four by halftime, the two continued to give Michigan problems. The duo teamed up and handed Indiana a one-point lead early in the second half.

It was short-lived. The Wolverines answered with a 10-2 burst to go back in front and twice pushed the lead to seven points, the last on a Dickinson bucket that made it 53-46 with 11:34 remaining.

The Hoosiers countered once again with Jackson-Davis and Hood-Schifino, who keyed a string of eight unanswered points to reclaim a 54-53 edge at the 9:05 mark.

From there, Michigan regained a slim lead that it held until the final few minutes as a familiar script unfolded.

“It felt very winnable until the last shot,” Dickinson said. “For us to just have it slip away like that really hurts.

“I would say we probably have one more of these left to use up if we want to make the (NCAA) tournament. I think the progress (the past couple weeks) got erased out there. We’ve got a lot of work to do and try to build back that momentum that we had entering the game.”

jhawkins@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @jamesbhawkins