sportspig.com

Not being a big Michigan fan means I don’t always watch their games. Last night however I tuned in to the game vs. #1 Illinois. I came away very impressed with Dion Harris and the Wolverine big men (namely Sims and Hunter). The Wolverines looked the best I have seen them this year and almost pulled off the upset.

Down the stretch Illinois came alive and was able to “steal” the victory. It was Dee Brown’s speed that eventually did the Wolverines in. I think Brown is a fantastic player, but he does get some breaks on his steals. On two occasions under two minutes to go, I saw him make steals while getting alot of arm on Wolverines players. One they even showed a beautiful slow motion replay of the steal - and he HIT ALL ARM! I know great players get the benefit of calls, but it might have been a different outcome with the correct call.

I still remember when I used to play basketball that our coaches always stressed to move your feet and flip up with your hands, not big swiping motions with your arms, because if the ref saw that he would just call a foul even if you didn’t get his arm. I saw the exact opposite last night. That’s my complaining for today.

Game Recap from the Free Press