Michigan basketball hosts Iowa on Saturday afternoon in the Big Ten home opener at the Crisler Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:10 p.m., and the game will air on FS1.
The Hawkeyes are 7-1 with wins over Washington State and Northwestern — the latter thanks to a deep 3-pointer from Josh Dix at the buzzer. True to Fran McCaffery’s style, they’re strong on offense, boasting the 14th-best effective field goal percentage while playing at a high tempo. PG Brock Harding is the primary ball-handler and owns one of the nation’s best assist rates, per KenPom, while 6-foot-10 center Owen Freeman (17.3 ppg, 7.6 reb, 65% FG) will present a challenge for U-M’s front court.
Michigan assistant Justin Joyner spoke Friday to preview the Hawkeyes. Here’s what he said about Saturday’s game:
Justin Joyner on Michigan defending Iowa’s high-powered offense
We’ve been really good this far in the season at limiting assists. I think we’re fourth in assist rate defensively. So it’s going to be a battle of wills, so to speak.
I think they’re 20 to 21 assists a game. We’re fourth in the country in defensive assist rate. So we’ve got to do what we do. It’s going to be switching. It’s going to be our ball screen covered.
But I think the biggest thing for their assist rate being so high is their transition attack. So us being good at getting back, creating walls, locating shooters in their early attack is super important. And then the other piece is any time you have a big that can command attention on the block like Owen Freeman can, it becomes a little bit of a pinch, right? Are you going to bring help on the post? Are you going to play them one-on-one? You have to solve that riddle, so to speak. And so that’s going to be the key in us making them play one-on-one and limiting assists is how we kind of defend them in the post and how we defend them in transition.
Justin Joyner on what to expect in a battle of two up-tempo teams
I came from St. Mary’s. We were one of the slowest tempos in the country. I’m looking forward to seeing it as well.
Listen, we want to play our style of play. We want to play the way that excites our fan base and ultimately gives us the best chance at winning games. And so playing fast is definitely a part of our product. But at the same time, we have to understand that it’s their deal as well. And can we get back and get them out of transition and get them into the half court? That’s going to be a challenge.
Justin Joyner scouts the Iowa Hawkeyes
They really play well together. It’s impressive. They have a great connectivity about them.
Obviously, Owen Freeman is a load inside, special on the block. He presents problems because he’s a good passer. He presents problems because if you don’t bring help, he can crush you. He’s a really good player, really well-rounded.
And then their point guard, he’s elite, elite as a creator. He really has a good push, really has a good pace, really has a good tempo and can really see the floor.
Doing a good job of keeping him in front, trying to keep him out of transition, trying to build walls, and then understanding that if he’s not scoring, he’s really setting the table for those guys and makes those guys the best version of themselves, which is what a point guard needs to do. So we’ve got to get him under control, and we’ve got to do a good job with Freeman as well.
Justin Joyner on his expectations for an energized Crisler Center
I hope so. As you continue to watch our team, the measure of a really good team is the ability to win in different type of ways. I think we’ve won games where we’ve played fast and put a lot of points on the board.
I think we’ve won games where it’s been a little bit grindy and we’ve had to do it on the defensive side of the ball. We’ve won games where we’ve had to really take care of the ball. So I think the product on the floor is that of a product that Michigan can be proud of, and hopefully that rings true tomorrow with our crowd.
