Danny Wolf scores 20 and Michigan knocks off No. 22 Xavier 78-53.
FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — Danny Wolf had 20 points and 14 rebounds, Vlad Goldin scored 18 points and Michigan beat No. 22 Xavier 78-53 in the Fort Myers Tip-Off on Wednesday night.
Tre Donaldson added 13 for the Wolverines (6-1) who led 41-30 at halftime.
Ryan Conwell led Xavier (6-1) with 19 points and Zach Freemantle added 14, but the Musketeers shot just 20 of 58 (34.5%) from the field while Michigan shot 30 of 61 (49.2%), including 50% on 3-pointers.
With former Michigan basketball coach John Beilein in attendance, the Wolverines used a 19-3 run to take a 38-21 lead.
Xavier committed 14 turnovers in the first half and the Wolverines had six steals.
Wolf had 16 of his points in the first half and had four 3-pointers in the game.
Takeaways
Xavier: The Musketeers need to avoid scoring lapses. After going scoreless for 6:45 against South Carolina, Xavier had one basket during a 7:15 stretch as Michigan went on its 19-3 run. The team also scored just 23 in the second half.
Michigan: Going into Big Ten play in less than a week, Michigan looks ready with a nice combination of defensive pressure (10 steals), interior play (38 points in the paint) and 3-point shooting (11 of 22).
Key moment
Xavier cut Michigan’s lead to 59-51 and forced a miss but the Wolverines’ Will Tschetter grabbed the offensive rebound and passed out to L.J. Cason for a 3-pointer to put the Wolverines back up double digits.
The Musketeers never drew within single digits again.
Key stats
Xavier had 19 turnovers to just 10 for Michigan.
Up next
Xavier will play host to South Carolina State on Sunday.
Michigan will travel to No. 15 Wisconsin to open Big Ten play on Tuesday night.
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