Trey Burke and the Michigan Wolverines will move on after eliminating the South Dakota State Jackrabbits on Thursday night, but Burke did not start his journey through the NCAA tournament strong. Michigan notched a 71-56 victory despite the poor outing that Burke would undoubtedly love to have back.
NCAA Tournament 2013: Trey Burke struggles in tourney opener against South Dakota State
Trey Burke wasn’t able to carry the Wolverines as the efficient point guard he has been through the year, but Glenn Robinson III helped propel Michigan to a victory over South Dakota State.
Burke went only 2-for-12 from the field while missing all five of his three-point field goal attempts through the game. He also took a hard fall that sent him to the locker room to undergo concussion tests, but returned to the game shortly after. Overall, Burke wound up with six points and a game-high seven assists. This was the first time Burke has been held to single digit scoring this season.
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With Burke being an undersized guard, his efficiency from the field has served as a selling point for his readiness to play at a professional level, averaging 47 percent from the field and 40 percent from beyond the arc on the season, but neither were on display while the Wolverines dispatched the Jackrabbits. With a height of only 6’0, Burke will need to show he can be an efficient scorer through the remainder of the tournament to help his draft stock.
Glenn Robinson III, son of former No. 1 draft pick Glenn Robinson, had a phenomenal opening to his tournament as he scored 21 points on 8-of-9 shooting while making all three of his three-point field goals. He also had six rebounds to go with the hyper-efficient game.
Senior Nate Wolters of South Dakota State University struggled to carry his team, making only three of his 14 field-goals and missing all five of his three-point attempts as the Jackrabbits were unable to upset the Wolverines. The battle of two highly regarded point guards didn’t play out as expected, with both Wolters and Burke playing under their potential.
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