Michigan basketball blown out at UNC

There were signs of improvement at times, but it was another tough night for the Michigan Wolverines in Chapel Hill as the North Carolina Tar Heels handed them their third loss of the season.

Michigan has looked lost on offense. The players are failing to complement each other, they’re struggling to shoot the ball and there have been a lot of bad turnovers. It has been ugly. Freshman Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate looked great in the first half, combining for 19 of Michigan’s 27 first half points. The defense was strong and things were looking good for awhile before a late 7-0 run by the Tar Heels to end the half put North Carolina up 29-27.

Things got out of hand pretty quickly in the second half, much like Michigan’s game against Arizona. Hunter Dickinson picked up his fourth foul with just over 18 minutes left to play — he had two points and three turnovers at that point. North Carolina went on a quick 15-6 run and continued to stretch the lead as the second half went on, eventually blowing the Wolverines out 72-51.

DeVante’ Jones and Brandon Johns have particularly struggled to get going offensively. Jones got a shot to fall in the second half to break a streak of three straight halves without a score. Johns’ jump shot has shown great improvement in his time at Michigan, but he hasn’t quite been able to find it yet this year.

Despite the struggles, it’s not time to hit the panic button. Michigan has a ton of talent on this roster, and we all know how great of a coach Juwan Howard is. There have been flashes of this offense gelling well together, like during the Buffalo game. Michigan was able to score a lot that game and the playmakers made plays and shot the ball well from three. It’s Dec. 1, there’s a lot of time left in this season and still a lot of time for Michigan to improve before the bulk of Big Ten play.

The Wolverines are back in action this Saturday at home against San Diego State at 1 p.m.