UPDATE: Cowboys topple Michigan
Published 8:49 pm Friday, December 29, 2023
Sending shockwaves throughout college basketball, McNeese State completely dominated Michigan Friday, toppling the Big Ten blue blood 87-76 inside Crisler Arena.
Pulling off the biggest win in program history, the Cowboys led for the final 33 minutes of the game, completely outplaying the Wolverines in Ann Arbor.
The victory was the first ever by McNeese against a team from the Big Ten and just the third over a team from a power conference. The Pokes’ other such wins came at Mississippi State in 2014 (66-47) and over Texas Tech in 2012 (80-75).
The victory was the sixth straight for McNeese, which improved to 11-2 under first-year head coach Will Wade, the best start in 51 seasons. Michigan fell to 6-7.
“This is just absolutely awesome,” said Wade. “I’m so happy for our players, they prepared all year for this. I’m happy for our fans, they have been through so much.”
Shahada Wells led all scorers, finishing with 30 points to lead the Pokes. It was the TCU transfer’s third 30-plus game this season. Wells finished 9-of-19 from the field and 11-of-13 from the free throw line.
Wells also pulled down 10 rebounds and handed out six assists.
DJ Richards added 15 points while Christian Shumate tossed in 14. Terrance Williams finished with 20 for the Wolverines.
McNeese forced 15 turnovers while only committing four. The Cowboys finished scoring 20 points off those Michigan miscues.
“Our activity was really good, we were in the passing lanes and we stayed focused and with our game plan,” said Wade.
The Pokes also scored the Wolverines 42-14 inside the paint.
DJ Richards added 15 points while Christian Shumate tossed in 14. Terrance Williams finished with 20 for the Wolverines.
Michigan’s only run in the second half ended on Richards’ three-pointer with 4:47 left, giving the Cowboys a 10-point lead. Any thoughts of a Wolverine comeback ended when Javohn Garcia hit a key three-pointer with 2:35 remaining to give the Cowboys a 78-65 lead and send a good portion of the Michigan crowd headed to the exits.
McNeese started fast, jumping out to a 9-3 lead behind three quick Michigan turnovers. But the Wolverines recovered by hitting three straight three-point shots to take a 12-9 lead just under five into the game thanks to the 9-0 run.
Wells’ steal and layup tied the game at 17-17 seven minutes in despite Michigan hitting five of its first seven three-point attempts. The Wolverines would not take the lead again.
Cameron Jones put the Pokes up for good 20-17 with a traditional three-point play with 12:22 to go in the half. McNeese forced seven turnovers in the first seven minutes leading to nine points.
Richards hit three three-pointers in a row himself as McNeese extended its lead to 35-23 with 5:45 in the half. That’s when Michigan got hot and went on a 14-1 run, grabbing back the lead thanks to Te Williams’ three 37-36 with 1:25 left.
It was Michigan’s 10th three-pointer of the half in 19 tries. It was also the last the Wolverines would score in the half as McNeese ended with four straight points, the last two a basket from Omar Cooper just before the buzzer, to lead 40-37 at the break.
McNeese will open Southland Conference play when they play at Texas A&M-Commerce on Jan. 6 and then travel to Northwestern State two days later.
The Cowboys won’t return to the Legacy Center until they host Southeastern on Jan. 13.
