When Rutgers met Michigan at the Crisler Center 10 months ago, it suffered a heartbreaking loss because of a stunning buzzer-beating three that left head coach Steve Pikiell cursing in a postgame interview.
There was much less drama this time around.
The Scarlet Knights were demolished by the No. 3 Wolverines on Saturday in a 101-60 loss, surpassing 35-point losses to Purdue and Illinois in the 2018-29 and 2021-22 seasons, respectively, as the biggest blowout loss of Pikiell’s decade-long tenure. It is the biggest margin of defeat for the program since it suffered a 107-57 loss to Purdue at home during the 2015-16 season.
With the result, Rutgers (5-5, 0-2) falls to 2-19 all-time against Michigan (8-0, 1-0) and 0-10 all-time in Ann Arbor.
“That’s by far the best team I’ve played,” Pikiell said in a postgame radio interview with Jerry Recco and Austin Johnson. “They made us pay for every mistake that we made. … I watched them live against Gonzaga (in the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas) and they did the same thing. They just overwhelm you.”
Michigan led for the final 37 minutes and 57 seconds, with its advantage standing at 25 points at halftime and ballooning as high as 42 points in the second half.
The Wolverines scored 1.44 points per possession, shot 60% from the field — 44.8% on threes, 78.1% at the rim and 66.7% from the free throw line. It rebounded 11 of its 27 misses (40.7%), leading to 14 second-chance points, and blocked eight shots. On the other end, Rutgers committed 16 turnovers, shot 35.8% from the field — including 26.1% on threes — and assisted just 10 of its 24 made field goals.
Most glaringly, Dusty May’s team completely dominated the Scarlet Knights physically, with eye-popping statistics piling up.
— Michigan scored nearly as many points in the paint (52) as Rutgers scored in general.
— Michigan made more layups and dunks (25-of-32) than Rutgers had made field goals (24).
— Michigan had more assists (26) than Rutgers had made field goals.
When Michigan took an 11-point lead after seven-and-a-half minutes, it marked the fifth time in its last six games that Rutgers fell into a double-digit lead. The Scarlet Knights lost all five games, and only against Notre Dame did it wind up losing by single digits.
Rutgers’ five losses this season come by an average margin of 20 points.
Rutgers will not return to action until next Saturday, when it faces in-state rival Seton Hall at the Prudential Center. Pikiell’s team won the last meeting in Newark during the 2023-24 season, but considering the Pirates’ strong start to the season, it will be another tall task for the struggling Scarlet Knights.
“We got to play a lot better,” Pikiell said. “It’s early December. We played the best two teams in the league. We got to learn from it. They’re elite. We got nowhere to go but figuring it out ourselves. Nobody feels sorry for us. We got enough in this locker room and we got to figure it out.”