ANN ARBOR, Mich. _ After Michigan was hammered at Illinois on Jan. 11, losing by 16 points, the Wolverines were embarrassed.
It was their worst game of the season, magnified because it came against a lower-division Big Ten opponent.
They wanted revenge and found it emphatically Saturday, pounding the Fighting Illini, 66-57, at Crisler Center, controlling the final 30 minutes.
The lead reached 21 points with just under six minutes to play.
Though Illinois chipped away near the end, Michigan was never threatened in the second half.
The tone was set from the start of the game when the Wolverines (13-7, 3-4 Big Ten) chose to wear their blue uniforms at home, an unusual move for a team that traditionally wears white or maize.
But the rationale was obvious. Illinois center Maverick Morgan called the Wolverines a "white collar program" after the first game, implying they were soft. So the blue (collar) was symbolic.
Then when the game started Michigan showed its toughness, driving to the basket and not settling for outside shots, trying to demonstrate its physicality. By game's end, U-M outrebounded the Illinois, 30-27, despite a significant size disadvantage.
Michigan's power forward, D.J. Wilson, set the tone, attacking the offensive glass with a few put-backs and tip-dunks, showing the desire to mix it up in the paint.
Following his scoreless game in the four-point loss at Wisconsin on Tuesday _ a striking anomaly as he was averaging close to 16 points per game in Big Ten play entering that game _ Wilson was aggressive on the offensive end, with 12 points by halftime, including three offensive rebounds.
He finished the game leading Michigan with 19 points while adding seven rebounds and five assists.
Michigan forced Illinois into 17 turnovers.
Despite leading by 10 at halftime, when Illinois opened the second half with a basket, the Wolverines responded with an 18-7 run to push the lead back out to 19, effectively burying the Illini (12-8, 2-5).
Michigan spread out its scoring as Zak Irvin continued his strong play with 15 points, following up on consecutive 20-plus point games.
One player who got some redemption was Derrick Walton Jr., whose first-half technical foul at Illinois kickstarted a U-M collapse that sustained the whole game.
On Saturday, Walton scored 13 points but more impressive for the 6-foot-1 guard, had 11 rebounds and provided the Wolverines' highlight when Morgan got switched on him.
Walton crossed him over, drove for a right-handed layup and was fouled, symbolizing U-M toughness goal, undressing the key target.
