Takeaways from Michigan’s road loss to Northwestern

Dylan Widger-USA TODAY SportsDespite getting off to a hot shooting start, the shorthanded Michigan Wolverines suffered another second-half collapse and lost to Northwestern on the road Thursday night, 76-62.

After facing Northwestern, the Wolverines have now played every Big Ten team. The Wildcats made the NCAA Tournament for the second time in school history last season, beating No. 10 Boise State in the Round of 64 before falling to No. 2 UCLA the following round. Led by 2023 All-Big Ten guard Boo Buie, the Wildcats are ranked fourth in the Big Ten standings and have impressive wins over Purdue (No. 1 at the time) and Illinois (No. 10 at the time).

Spotty defense combined with an offense…