The Michigan women’s basketball team might not focus on records or streaks, but there are a few statistics that can’t be ignored anymore.
The Wolverines (4-3 Big Ten, 11-7 overall) are 11-2 when they score at least 60 points in a game. And they did it again in their 75-65 win over Northwestern on Thursday.
Senior guard Veronica Hicks led the Wolverines with 16 points and 14 rebounds after starting the game off strong — she snagged two rebounds and tallied five points within the first three minutes of play en route to her second consecutive double-double.
“(Hicks) played pretty well,” Michigan coach Kevin Borseth said after the game. “She played well on both sides of the ball, rebounding well. We had to rebound on the weak side and a lot of those rebounds are credit to her.”
The energy provided by Hicks gave Michigan the advantage it needed to get ahead from the start and hold the lead for the entire game. But the Wildcats (3-4 Big Ten, 14-6 overall) weren’t an easy opponent to tame, twice coming back from behind to bring the contest within reach.
“(Hicks) is from Chicago and she’s never beaten Northwestern (in Evanston) before,” Borseth said. “But she inspires the other kids, especially in practice. Yesterday she was guarding everybody very hard and that kind of fuels their fire.”
According to Borseth, the key to holding the lead was not throwing the ball away. The Wolverines had only nine turnovers all night and tallied 16 points off Wildcat turnovers.
Northwestern pulled within seven points with just over three minutes left in the first half after trailing by as many as 14 points. But sophomore guards Jenny Ryan and Kate Thompson hit jumpers late in the half to push the Wolverines ahead.
Michigan gained its momentum off Thompson’s shot, which she hit as the buzzer sounded. And the Wolverines never looked back — leading by double-digits for the majority of the second half.
But even with the Wolverines shooting just under 50 percent and snagging 30 rebounds, the Wildcats had another comeback. They went on an 8-0 run with just over two minutes left in the game — cutting the score to single digits for the first time since the first half.
“Thompson had a three at the end of the first half — that was one way to fend (Northwestern off),” Borseth said. “The other was that we got a couple of hits and made some free throws at the other end late in the game. We just didn’t throw the ball away.”
The Wildcats were on fire from behind the 3-point arc, burying shot after shot in order to stay alive. And with 30 seconds left on the clock, it was down to a two-possession game — the closest it had been since the scoreboard read 14-9.
But the Wolverines kept Northwestern at bay by sinking free throws down the stretch. Sophomore forward Rachel Sheffer sealed the deal with a layup in the final 16 seconds of the game. Sheffer was another hot offensive player for Michigan, tallying 14 points in just 26 minutes of play.
Though the Wildcats won the battle on the boards, 42-30, it was a successful showing by the Wolverines. For the most part, Michigan kept Northwestern off the glass during the first half, limiting the Wildcats to just five offensive rebounds. The Wolverines also held All-American candidate Amy Jaescke scoreless and only gave her one rebound all night.
“Any win in the Big Ten is a big win,” Borseth said. “And on the road it’s even bigger. But getting a win is what it’s all about.”