The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1525654
SEPTEMBER 2024 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 45 ❱ MICHIGAN BASKETBALL "Brooks missed the early part of the summer with a knee injury, and imme- diately upon return, you could feel his presence in practice with his defensive acumen," May said. "Pippen's missed a good portion of the summer, too, with a minor injury, but he's a poised, steady player for a freshman. Those guys are all going to have opportunities to fight their way into the rotation." The overall success, though, will rely heavily on the veterans, May said. "It's so hard," May said of playing freshmen. "Based on their summer performance, they all could impact the game … but I think out of the Elite Eight last season, there was maybe one fresh- man starter. You had 16 teams, 16 times 5, 80 players … 79 out of the 80 weren't freshmen for the best teams. "Typically now, if you're a freshman and you're playing a lot, you're either with a lot of veterans or you're on a team that's not winning and you're building towards something later. But I would be very, very comfortable if those guys earned the minutes and were in the ro- tation, because they all bring something really unique to the game." DUSTY MAY SHEDS INSIGHT ON HIS FIRST TEAM Michigan head coach promised two things during his first few interviews with the media after taking the U-M job —that his teams would play up-tempo and be fun to watch, and that he would recruit shooters at every position. He was true to his word in constructing a roster many feel will compete well in the Big Ten this year. May admitted he hasn't had enough time yet to know exactly what he's got, but he's excited about his roster and encouraged by what he has seen this summer. "We have a very skilled, a big team, and we've shot the ball pretty well," May said Aug. 8. "We've tried to, just in the last few weeks, pick up our tempo and our pace. We're working through that fatigue. When we're not tired, we shoot it really well, and as we've gotten into playing more up and down, we haven't shot it quite as well." They're just trying to expedite the process, he said, to make sure it continues in games when the intensity picks up. "One area that I don't think we'll struggle with is making open shots," he continued. "We'll have to improve as far as our cut- ting, our screening, our off-ball movement so we can generate re- ally good looks. But I would think going forward that's going to be a strength of this team." His goal is to not allow de- fenses to stop and get set — to continue to put pressure as early and often as possible. He won't be stringent about tempo and playing "free," he said, as long as it's done responsibly. "I'm perfectly content of giv- ing up control to our players on game night. Now, we have to be trained to play like that," he said. "We have to be committed to it. It's a responsibility for all five players on the court to play unselfishly, to get the ball out of their hands, to get it moving. We have a long way to go, but we have made progress in that area. "It also takes a great deal of condi- tioning of mental and physical tough- ness to play the way we want to play. That's another area that we have to con- tinue to improve. You're never going to be there in August or September, but we need to be in tip-top shape in No- vember to play the pace that we want to play, and that we think is difficult to go against." They're getting there under new strength coach Matt Aldred, and May ex- pects them to be one of the nation's best- conditioned teams when it matters. ❏ 2024-25 U-M NONCONFERENCE SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Nov. 4 Cleveland State Nov. 10 vs. Wake Forest* Nov. 15 TCU Nov. 18 Miami (Ohio)# Nov. 25 Virginia Tech## (FS1) Nov. 27 South Carolina/Xavier## (FS1) Dec. 22 Purdue Fort Wayne Dec. 29 Western Kentucky Big Ten Home Opponents^ Illinois Iowa Maryland Northwestern Oregon Penn State Washington Big Ten Road Opponents^ Indiana Minnesota Nebraska Ohio State UCLA USC Wisconsin Big Ten Home/Away Opponents^ Michigan State Purdue Rutgers * Deacon-Wolverine Challenge, Greensboro, N.C. # Fort Myers Tip-Off On-Campus Matchup ## Fort Myers Tip-Off, Fort Myers, Fla. ^ Dates TBA Graduate transfer Rubin Jones, who captained North Texas a year ago, gives U-M a ball-hawking guard capable of defending multiple positions. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETICS