Next: Indiana State

Michigan hosts Indiana State University tonight @ 7:00pm

Eastern Michigan 77 Michigan 64

Michigan fell behind early and couldn't quite come all the way back.  It was a bit of a frustrating game because Michigan shot poorly from the 3 point line (2-12), had some annoying defense lapses and committed 17 turnovers (not all forced).

Credit to Eastern Michigan - they definitely earned the win, in large part because of a great game by Tavelyn James (38 points, including 13/14 from the line - several down the stretch).  James became Eastern's all time leading scorer early in the game.

Next:: Eastern Michigan University

Michigan travels down the road to visit Eastern Michigan University, hoping to get a bit of payback for last year's loss in the WNIT.  The Eagles are 5-3, with close losses to Michigan State and Missouri-Kansas City in their last two games.  They are led by guard Tavelyn James (23.5 pts/game) and forward Paige Reddit (10.1 pts/game and 9.8 rebounds/game).

Michigan hopes to go to 10-1 as the head toward the last of their non-conference games.

Catching Up

Michigan has started the season with three wins - over Florida, Florida Atlantic and Utah.  This afternoon they travel to Seton Hall.  The Pirates have started the season 3-0 as well, but they have not faced any strong teams yet - Florida Gulf Coast, Army and Vermont. The focus of their offense is senior guard Jasmine Crew who is currently averaging 21.3 points per game.

A quick look at Jeff Sagarin's (very early) ratings has Michigan about a 2 point favorite on a neutral court, which is less than the 4+ point advantage of home court, so it could end up being a very interesting game.

Big Ten Tournament/NCAA Selection Monday

Michigan had a disappointing game in the Big 10 Tournament, losing 55-47 in the second round to Illinois.  The Illini jumped out to an early lead and combined with some poor shooting and a few turnovers Michigan couldn't overcome a huge deficit.  They made a strong comeback at the end, but there wasn't enough time left to pull it off.  Uneven officiating didn't help, but that was not the main problem.

From the Michigan Daily:

Against Illinois on Friday, the Wolverines couldn't do either effectively, which eventually doomed them against a team with the worst record in the Big Ten.
Even though Michigan played solid defense, it never found offensive rhythm from anywhere on the court. Despite getting plenty of open looks, the Wolverines couldn't capitalize consistently. Whether in the post, perimeter or midrange, it didn’t matter — Michigan simply couldn't find the net.
“We were getting some good looks, and the people we wanted to shoot were shooting it and they weren't falling for us,” senior guard Veronica Hicks said after the game. “They were making shots and we weren't.”

Today the NCAA announces which teams will be in the field of 64 - despite the loss, Michigan is "on the bubble" and has a decent shot at being invited.  Charlie Creme currently has them as one of the last four "in".  We'll find out tonight.

Video preview from youtube

Next: Illinois (Big 10 Tournament)

Michigan plays Illinois today in second round of the Big 10 tournament.  Illinois advanced yesterday after an upset win over Wisconsin.  Michigan won the regular season meetings between the two teams 69-59 in Ann Arbor and 58-55 last Sunday in Champaign.

Michigan should be the favorite, but it can be tough to beat a team three times in one season.  Illinois is a young team with quite a bit of talent that has lost a number of tough games - the win against Wisconsin yesterday may give them some much needed confidence.

The winner of the game faces the winner of Purdue - Penn State tomorrow.