Wolverines-Hoosiers: The Michigan Miracle at Assembly Hall

The Michigan Wolverines basketball team came into Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana fresh off their 10-point victory over the Illinois Fighting Illini (13-2, 1-1). It was their sixth victory in their last seven games.

They were taking on a very young and inexperienced Indiana Hoosier team who had struggled to a 5-8 record going into the game. It was expected to be an easy victory for Michigan.

As Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast my friend”.

The last time the Wolverines won at Indiana was way back in 1995. They didn’t make it any easier for themselves to finally end their losing streak in Bloomington on Wednesday night, either.

Michigan took a 6-5 lead early on in the game, but the Hoosiers stormed to a 39-22 halftime lead.

Indiana then jumped out to a 44-24 lead just under two minutes into the second half. The Wolverines were ice cold from the floor, and they seemed lifeless.

Then the Wolverines finally showed some resiliency. They clawed their way back to within seven points with just over 12 minutes left to play. However, they had hit just six out of their first 27 three-point attempts.

This would prove to be meaningless, as the Big Ten’s leading scorer, Manny Harris, hit a three pointer to pull Michigan within three. Just thirty seconds later, freshman transfer Laval Lucas-Perry hit a three pointer to tie the game at 59-59. Indiana missed a three-point shot with less then three seconds left in regulation and the game would go to overtime.

The young Hoosiers never led in overtime. They were able to shoot 12 free throws in the extra period, but they made only three of them.

Michigan hit six of their last 13 three-point attempts, and Harris hit two free throws with less than a minute to go in the game. His free throws gave Michigan a 72-66 lead and sealed the game.

Who could have thought of a better way for Michigan to get their first victory in 14 years at Assembly Hall? 

The win improved Michigan’s record to an impressive 12-3 and lifted them to 2-1 in conference play. The Hoosiers' fell to 0-2 in conference play, and 5-9 overall.

Lucas-Perry finished with a career high 18 points to lead all scorers. He has scored at least 10 points in all of his first six games, after having to sit out a semester due to the NCAA transfer rules.

Harris finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds. DeShawn Sims added 14 points and seven rebounds.