Michigan finds new way to lose another close one

Madison, Wis. — Michigan found itself in another tight game in crunch time.

With under five minutes to play in Tuesday night’s matchup at the Kohl Center, Michigan chopped a 12-point deficit down to one against Wisconsin, setting the stage for an all-too-familiar finish.

This time, the Wolverines managed to find a new way to lose a close game. Due to a combination of missed shots, bricked free throws and poor defensive rebounding, the late comeback bid fell short and Michigan added another chapter to its maddening season with a 64-59 loss.

BOX SCORE: Wisconsin 64, Michigan 59

“I expected it was going to be one of these games where you had to come in, bring your hard hat and try to win the muscle areas. We failed in that area,” said Michigan coach Juwan Howard, whose team was facing Wisconsin for the first time since last season’s postgame melee.

“It was an extremely competitive game. Unfortunately, we came out on the losing end.”

The Wolverines (14-12, 8-7 Big Ten) ended up in the loss column again as the offense scuffled down the stretch for the second straight game. After missing its final seven shot attempts and going scoreless over the final five minutes in Saturday’s one-point loss to Indiana, Michigan stumbled to the finish line in similar fashion.

Michigan shot 2-for-11 from the floor over the final seven minutes and missed eight consecutive field goal attempts at one point. On top of that, the Wolverines clanked four free throws in the final 4:10, squandering multiple chances to tie the game at the line.

That allowed Wisconsin (15-10, 7-8) — which scored its final 12 points on free throws and missed its last 15 shot attempts over the final 10:45 — to hang on and hand Michigan its ninth defeat by six points or less.

“I feel like we executed down the stretch on multiple plays, but we just weren't able to hit the shots down the stretch,” said sophomore guard Kobe Bufkin, who finished with 21 points. “That's just the game of basketball.”

After Wisconsin capped an 11-2 burst with two free throws following a technical foul on Howard and grabbed a 54-42 lead with 10:27 remaining, Bufkin keyed a spurt that brought Michigan back in the game. He knocked down a step-back 3-pointer and a pull-up jumper to kick off a 12-1 run over a six-minute stretch.

Michigan ended the spurt with a string of free throws. Freshman center Tarris Reed Jr. knocked down a pair. Junior center Hunter Dickinson followed with two of his own. By the time freshman guard Dug McDaniel split two free throws, the Wolverines pulled within 55-54 with 4:10 to play.

“It was more emphasis on defense than it was offense,” Bufkin said of what sparked the run following Howard’s tech for arguing with an official.

Added sophomore forward Will Tschetter: “Down the stretch, we've had a big emphasis on trying to finish games, lock in, make sure that we're communicating extra, making sure that we're able to try to keep guys in front, really communicate our assignments. The big emphasis is trying not to let up offensive rebounds, which we didn’t do a great job of.”

Michigan couldn’t get any closer the rest of the way due to missed free throws and empty possessions. After Connor Essegian knocked down two free throws to make it a three-point game, Dickinson split a pair of his own to cut it to 57-55 with 1:59 remaining.

Dickinson then blocked a shot by Steven Crowl and forced a shot clock violation. Dickinson followed that up by dishing a pass inside to Tschetter, who drew a shooting foul and had a chance to tie it but missed both free throws.

On Wisconsin’s ensuing possession, Michigan got the initial stop but couldn’t corral the rebound. Crowl came away with it and it led to two more free throws from Essegian, making it 59-55 with 44 seconds left.

Freshman wing Jett Howard scored inside to make it a two-point margin with 24 seconds left. The threat ended there as Wisconsin made five more free throws to salt the game away.

Dickinson finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Tschetter made his first career start in place of junior forward Terrance Williams II, who was out with a bruised knee, and finished with four points and five rebounds in 26 minutes.

Essegian scored a career-high 23 points, Crowl added 11 points and 12 rebounds, and Max Klesmit scored 10 for Wisconsin, which overcame a 33.3% shooting performance (22-for-66) by grabbing a season-high 15 offensive rebounds and scoring 13 points off 12 Michigan turnovers.

“Tonight, we played pretty good, solid basketball, specifically on the defensive end, on the glass and taking care of the ball,” Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said. “You're not maybe going to play every part of the game perfect. But if you can be sound and solid in enough areas, you give yourself a better chance.”

Early in the second half, it appeared Michigan wasn’t going to have any chance at all. After battling back from a seven-point deficit and grabbing a one-point lead at halftime, the Wolverines quickly fell behind again due to miscues, self-inflicted wounds, and turnovers.

The Badgers forced a shot clock violation on one end then scored inside on the other. On the next possession, Michigan couldn’t finish off the defensive possession and Wisconsin cashed in on a second-chance opportunity.

After Crowl swished an open 3-pointer, Michigan had a basket waved off as Dickinson was called for offensive goaltending. An offensive foul on Tschetter was followed by a Wisconsin layup. Seven minutes into the second half, the Wolverines had more turnovers (six) than made baskets (four) and trailed 48-40.

Things continued to get worse. Essegian scored on back-to-back drives to the rim. Juwan Howard was hit with a technical foul for arguing with an official. Essegian made the ensuing free throws to put the Wolverines in a 12-point hole they somehow, someway couldn’t get out of.

“It's tough to win on the road when you give a team extra possessions like the way we did — (15) offensive rebounds and 12 turnovers,” Howard said. “The turnovers were undisciplined for us. We had some travel calls that were unusual, but we'll take ownership of it. We'll go back home, fix it and try to get better for our next matchup.”

jhawkins@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @jamesbhawkins