Michigan’s Offense Erupts Once Again In Rout Of La Salle
The Michigan Wolverines continued its offensive tear, taking down La Salle by a score of 102-50 to remain undefeated.
In a buy game during winter break, the No. 2 Michigan men's basketball team (11-0) handled business against La Salle (4-9), taking down the Explorers by a score of 102-50.
The Wolverines didn't jump out to an immediate lead as they have so often this season, instead, La Salle kept them in check for the opening six minutes. The Explorers collected four offensive rebounds in that span, eliminating Michigan's ability to get out and run on the break.
The bench unit came in around the 14-minute mark, however, and they were able to open up a Wolverine lead with a 13-2 run. Sophomore guard L.J. Cason knocked in a triple to kick it off, and he also added a sweet spin move in the paint for an easy left-handed layup. Freshman guard Trey McKenney hit two 3-pointers, and senior guard Roddy Gayle Jr. mixed in two free throws to help Michigan open up a double-digit lead at 22-12 with 11 minutes to play in the half, a margin they'd never relinquish.
The run didn't stop there, either. As the starters trickled back into the game, they built on the energy that the bench unit built up. Suffocating La Salle with constant full-court pressure, the Wolverines extended their run to 22-2, pushing the score up to 31-12 with 8:33 to play in the half.
Then, it was junior guard Elliot Cadeau's turn to get hot. He's found his rhythm in December, especially from deep, and he continued that trend against La Salle. He scored eight-straight points for Michigan in the back-end of the first period, knocking in two threes and converting an acrobatic right-handed reverse finish.
The Explorers figured some things out on offense toward the end of the half, but they had no answer for Michigan's dynamic offensive attack. With balanced scoring all around, the Wolverines entered the break with a 54-33 lead.
Even with the comfortable lead, Michigan came out of halftime with the same energy as the first half: It continued to apply full-court pressure and get out in transition. Sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr. was at the point of the press, with graduate forward Yaxel Lendeborg operating one of the wings. The 6-foot-9 duo caused all sorts of problems for the Explorers in the backcourt, and even when they did break the press, it only had 15 or so seconds to run their offense.
While Lendeborg didn't have his biggest scoring night, he affected the game in a big way in the second half. In the first 10 minutes of the half alone, he collected four assists and six rebounds. No single player took the brunt of the scoring in the second half, instead, the Wolverines put up points by committee, sharing the ball to near perfection.
By the time the under-eight minute timeout rolled around, Michigan had opened up yet another 40-point lead at 83-43, and head coach Dusty May started to empty his bench.
Freshmen forwards Malick Kordel and Oscar Goodman checked into the game alongside freshman guard Winters Grady to get some more on-court experience. And all the freshmen did was extend the Wolverines already-massive lead. Grady knocked in a 3-pointer and Goodman picked up a stick-back to help Michigan to its fifth 100-point outing in its last six games.
The Wolverines held La Salle to just 17 points in the entire second half, and as the clock ran down to zeroes, they celebrated their 52-point rout, 102-50, of the Explorers.
