Hunter Dickinson posted 13 and 11 rebounds and Michigan stymied host Rutgers 58-45 Thursday night in Piscataway, N.J.
The Wolverines (16-12, 10-7 Big Ten) took their first lead late in the first half and never relinquished it, controlling the game by turning 13 Rutgers turnovers into 17 points.
Michigan’s Dug McDaniel led all scorers with 16 points, and Kobe Bufkin scored 10 of his 14 points in the first half to help Michigan win for the fifth time in seven games.
Rutgers (17-11, 9-8) went a dismal 5-for-16 from the foul line and could not capitalize after trimming the deficit to 40-38 with 10 minutes left.
McDaniel’s layup launched a 6-0 run and the Wolverines went on to outscore Rutgers 18-7 in the game’s final 10 minutes, with the Scarlet Knights coughing up five of their turnovers in that span.
Cam Spencer had 11 points and seven rebounds for Rutgers. Clifford Omoruyi added 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Jett Howard, Michigan’s second-leading scorer, did not play due to a lower leg injury. Terrance Williams II (knee) came back from a two-game absence and had four points and nine rebounds.
Michigan started the game 1-for-13 from the field. Caleb McConnell — a late scratch from Rutgers’ last game at Wisconsin due to back spasms — subbed in off the bench and knocked down a 3-pointer for a 13-3 Rutgers lead.
Dickinson and Bufkin answered by combining for a 9-0 Michigan run.
Rutgers tried to pull away, but the Wolverines came back with a 13-2 stretch. Dickinson’s jumper gave them the lead at 22-21 with 2:37 left in the half, and Joey Baker added a 3-pointer 25 seconds later.
McConnell made a basket and drew a foul with less than five seconds in the half, but he missed the and-one. McDaniel raced the other way and was fouled attempting a buzzer-beater. He made one free throw for a 26-23 Michigan lead at intermission.
Dickinson, the 7-foot-1 center, drilled a 3-pointer to give Michigan its largest lead to that point, 36-28, with 14:59 to play. Rutgers clawed back to within two when Paul Mulcahy converted a three-point play with 10 minutes left.
–Field Level Media
