Michigan Shakes Off First Half Three Point Shooting Scare, Throttling Howard In The Second half To Advance
Howard's perimeter onslaught met Michigan's interior dominance. Wolverines weathered the storm, exploding offensively to secure their Round of 32 berth.
BUFFALO, N. Y. — March Madness is often defined by the "scare"—that moment where a heavyweight looks vulnerable against a relentless underdog.
For twenty minutes on Thursday night, the Michigan Wolverines were squarely in the middle of one. However, behind a historic shooting performance and a dominant interior presence, Michigan weathered a first-half blizzard of three-pointers to dismantle the Howard Bison, 101-80, advancing to the Round of 32. Took care of business in round one!
💯 pic. twitter. com/Puj6wqApre — Michigan Men's Basketball (@umichbball) March 20, 2026 A First-Half Firefight The story of the first half was Howard’s refusal to miss.
The Bison entered the locker room having turned the KeyBank Center into their own personal shooting gallery. Led by Bryce Harris and Cam Gillus, Howard shot a scorching 60% from beyond the arc in the opening frame. Gillus, in particular, was unconscious, finishing the game with 21 points on 5-of-6 shooting from deep.