West Lafayette, Ind. — It was a big test.
OK, a really big test, this monstrous Purdue team.
And Michigan, playing again without its leader, Caris LeVert, hung in there nicely before falling, 87-70, to No. 20 Purdue at a filled-to-the-rafters Mackey Arena on Thursday night.
The loss ended Michigan’s six-game winning streak, and was its first since a Dec. 8 shellacking at SMU.
In fact, all four of Michigan’s losses have come against teams with a massive size advantage — but none was bigger than Purdue, with its two 7-footers.
The Wolverines (12-4, 2-1 Big Ten) cut the deficit to six with 5:20 left when Zak Irvin made three free throws.