Leave Or Stay: Sherrone Moore Have Taken The Decision That They Fans Won’t….

Conference rematches always pose an interesting opportunity for both teams. They provide a chance to see if and how teams can adjust to what they saw the first time around. Swapping home arenas adds another twist to a repeat that may or may not look familiar to the first go-round.

But in the Michigan men’s basketball team’s rematch against No. 14 Illinois in Champaign, it might not even look like the same two teams are on the court.

For starters, well, both teams’ starters will be different.

When the two teams first met, in Ann Arbor on Jan. 18, the Wolverines had their most explosive weapon available: their starting point guard, sophomore Dug McDaniel. While he scored 14 points and tallied six assists, McDaniel’s presence still wasn’t enough to keep Michigan from fading late in a game it hung around in for the first 27 minutes.

For the rematch, McDaniel will be out of the picture. With McDaniel serving a road-game suspension, graduate guard Jaelin Llewellyn has been starting in away games. Llewellyn has run with his opportunity, growing into an increasingly steady and reliable force. But in Champaign, Llewellyn’s legs won’t be anywhere near as fresh as they typically are. The Wolverines are facing a quick turnaround coming off a road loss to Nebraska Saturday and, just a few days prior, Llewellyn saw his heaviest home usage of the season in Michigan’s upset victory over then-No. 11 Wisconsin on Wednesday.

With the Wolverines’ sparse road-game backcourt, Llewellyn’s performance against the Fighting Illini becomes even more critical. If he doesn’t show up as the best version of himself, his team’s chances go from slim to slimmer.

Before playing Nebraska, Michigan coach Juwan Howard emphasized the quick turnaround between playing the Badgers and playing the Cornhuskers. The Wolverines now face that same quick turnaround, this time compounded and with even more jet lag. So behind Llewellyn, freshman guard George Washington III may have to step up, too. Washington hasn’t seen many meaningful minutes this season, but Howard stresses that he’ll be ready if his name is called.

“As games go, (Washington’s minutes are) just based on a feel for the game and how the tempo is flowing,” Howard said Feb. 9. “I can’t tell you that it’s guaranteed that he will play every game that’s moving forward. But I will tell you one thing, I guarantee George will be ready to play every game for sure.”

If Washington sees the court Tuesday, he’ll see a very different Illinois team than the one he didn’t crack the rotation against the first time around. Because not only are Michigan’s starters going to be different, but the Illini’s are likely to be as well.

The first time the teams met, Illinois guard Terrence Shannon Jr. — the team’s leading scorer — was serving an indefinite suspension after being charged with rape. But on Jan. 19, a federal judge ended the suspension and Shannon was reinstated.

After coming off the bench in the first game of his return, Shannon reclaimed his starting spot and played to the caliber of his unanimous preseason all-Big Ten recognition. He’s averaging 20.5 points and 4.2 rebounds per game this season. He also has a knack for getting to the free throw line, shooting nearly eight foul shots per game. While the Wolverines didn’t have to face Shannon in January, they will Tuesday.

Even in Shannon’s absence last time, the Illini dominated Michigan on the boards and had five double-digit scorers. Forwards Coleman Hawkins and Quincy Guerrier led the charge, each recording a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds and 16 points and 14 rebounds, respectively. With the beating they took last time, the Wolverines know how critical keeping Illinois off the glass will be Tuesday.

“Have a stronger attention to detail as far as not letting them get o-boards,” graduate guard Nimari Burnett said Feb. 10. “I think that’s a big part of Illinois’ offense. It was a big part of Nebraska’s offense today. So I think we cut that out, play good individual defense, keep guys in front, we’ll have a better shot, especially in comparison to today.”

Tuesday’s matchup doesn’t provide Howard with the most optimistic odds to secure his first-ever win against the Illini, especially seeing as they have lost at home just twice all season, with one of those losses coming against No. 4 Marquette. But the game will look very different from the two teams’ earlier meeting. Michigan likely hopes it can learn from the mistakes it made the last time around and get strong performances up and down the lineup.