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Jay Bilas says absence of Isaiah Livers will hurt Michigan ‘a lot’
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Michigan head coach Juwan Howard had to deliver some unfortunate news on Saturday morning, announcing that Isaiah Livers is out indefinitely with a foot injury. The senior underwent an MRI after Friday’s win over Maryland in the B1G Tournament quarterfinal round.
Livers won’t play in Saturday’s game, as Michigan takes on rival Ohio State in the semifinals. ESPN’s Jay Bilas says that the absence of Livers, who is averaging over 13 points per game this year, is a big blow for the Wolverines.
“(It will hurt) a lot,” Bilas said on ESPN’s SportsCenter. “Livers takes Michigan from being a good offensive team to elite offensive team. Not just because of his ability to score, but he’s an excellent cutter and passer, and they have an amazing flow when he’s in the game. That was true of this team last year. But Michigan is much better this year than last year, because they have better pieces overall. But the crown jewel of that offense is Livers.”
Over the course of his four seasons at Michigan, Livers has played in 118 career games and has scored 987 points. Along with being a dynamic scorer, the senior brings experience to the floor that helps during tournament time.
Livers was a member of Michigan’s 2018 squad, which won the B1G Tournament and reached the national championship under previous head coach John Beilein.
Michigan won the outright B1G regular season title during the regular season. There’s still a chance Livers could return for the NCAA Tournament, but right now, it doesn’t look like a great outlook for the senior.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB