The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1542609
FEBRUARY 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 45 ❱ MICHIGAN BASKETBALL they wanted to off the bounce in some matchups that we usually don't have that happen against us caused us to change our rotations. It caused us to change our coverages. "But it wasn't as if they weren't mak- ing plays, especially [guards] Nicho- las Boyd and John Blackwell. The thing that really jumped out, and I didn't go back and look at the film, was it seemed like several rebounds offensively, espe- cially, we fought for them, we worked for them, we got in position to get them … I thought we had them, and then they would come in with a fingertip or just a way to knock it loose, and we weren't able to come up with those possessions." If they had, he added, they could have avoided being on the defensive end so long. Instead, the Wolverines fell to 14-1 overall and 4-1 in Big Ten play. "Scouting report details, not over- reacting to certain things which cause a continuing effect in a negative way … that's probably the most natural thing to do when you do give up the stretch threes," May said when asked about lessons they took from the loss. "You overreact in some other areas. And our principles — we didn't stay with our principles even when things weren't go- ing well. Maybe the game got a little bit too loose as the offense started flowing. "They were able to put us in a pickle because of their ball movement. They played two stretch fives and made eight combined threes. Anytime your two centers score 24 points from the three-point line, you're probably going to be in a good position to win. Then you sprinkle in two elite drivers, one-on- one players with that, and it puts you in a pickle." WOLVERINES HAD SHOWN SIGNS OF VULNERABILITY As for those other three games May mentioned preceding the initial loss, the PSU one in particular stood out as a red flag. Backup point guard L.J. Cason's 14 first-half points helped the Wolverines stay a step ahead, leading to a 40-31 edge at the break, but 15 Nittany Lions offensive rebounds and a late, furious rally had them within two with the ball on the last possession. A long, contested triple hit the back rim, and Michigan escaped. "It's the experience of being in these moments, and if you put yourself in them enough, you gain the confidence you're going to figure it out," May said. "We were very fortunate to get out of here with a win, but also, this is such a grind, we can't be too high, too low. "I am a little bit relieved. I don't want to say I'm happy that our guys aren't jumping with joy, but we have to play better if we're going to chase a cham- pionship. "Defensively, we were extremely de- termined, and even though they were able to get a couple loose balls in the last two minutes that we've got to figure out a way to come up with, we made the two stops when we needed to and came up with the basketball." The road victory came against a team that had taken other conference front- runners, including Michigan State and Illinois, to the wire in Happy Valley. Frosh guard Trey McKenney and grad wing Nimari Burnett each scored 12 in the win to complement Cason's output. Prior to that contest, Michigan ham- mered USC, 96-66, in Ann Arbor to improve to 3-0 in conference play. Sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr. dominated inside and finished with 29 points, while veteran guard Roddy Gayle Jr. added 12 in victory. "He's such a hard worker, and he's so accountable," May said of Johnson after the game. "I can get on him for a mistake that maybe wasn't his sole re- sponsibility, because he's so mature and he can take it. We're still learning how to coach these guys better, but he's a great teammate. He's a junkyard dog. He's a warrior; he's competitive, he talks." Johnson was also Michigan's second- leading scorer after 15 games at 14.2 per contest, trailing only graduate forward Yaxel Lendeborg's 14.7. — Chris Balas ❱ 2025-26 U-M Men's Basketball Schedule (14-1 overall, 4-1 B1G) Date Opponent Result/Time (TV) Oct. 17 CINCINNATI (exh.) L, 100-98 Oct. 25 at St. John's (exh.) W, 96-94 (OT) Nov. 3 OAKLAND W, 121-78 Nov. 11 vs. Wake Forest* W, 85-84 (OT) Nov. 14 at TCU W, 67-63 Nov. 19 MIDDLE TENNESSEE W, 86-61 Nov. 24 vs. San Diego State^ W, 94-54 Nov. 25 vs. Auburn^ W, 102-72 Nov. 26 vs. Gonzaga^ W, 101-61 Dec. 6 RUTGERS W, 101-60 Dec. 9 VILLANOVA W, 89-61 Dec. 13 at Maryland W, 101-83 Dec. 21 LA SALLE W, 102-50 Dec. 29 MCNEESE W, 112-71 Jan. 2 USC W, 96-66 Jan. 6 at Penn State W, 74-72 Jan. 10 WISCONSIN L, 91-88 Jan. 14 at Washington 10:30 p.m. (BTN) Jan. 17 at Oregon 4 p.m. (NBC) Jan. 20 INDIANA 7 p.m. (Peacock) Jan. 23 OHIO STATE 8 p.m. (FOX) Jan. 27 NEBRASKA 7 p.m. (Peacock) Jan. 30 at Michigan State 8 p.m. (FOX) Feb. 5 PENN STATE 6:30 p.m. (FS1) Feb. 8 at Ohio State 1 p.m. (CBS) Feb. 11 at Northwestern 8:30 p.m. (BTN) Feb. 14 UCLA 1 p.m. (CBS) Feb. 17 at Purdue 6:30 p.m. (Peacock) Feb. 21 vs. Duke# 6:30 p.m. (ESPN) Feb. 24 MINNESOTA 8:30 p.m. (BTN) Feb. 27 at Illinois 8 p.m. (FOX) Mar. 5 at Iowa 8 p.m. (Peacock) Mar. 8 MICHIGAN STATE 4:30 p.m. (CBS) Mar. 10-15 Big Ten Tournament$ TBA All times Eastern * Wolverine-Deacon Challenge at Detroit ^ truTV Players Era Championship at Las Vegas # Duel in The District at Washington, D.C. $ at Chicago ASSOCIATED PRESS TOP 25 (As of Jan. 12, 2026) Rk. Team (1st-place votes) Record 1. Arizona (60) 16-0 2. Iowa State (1) 16-0 3. UConn 16-1 4. Michigan 14-1 5. Purdue 15-1 6. Duke 15-1 7. Houston 15-1 8. Nebraska 16-0 9. Gonzaga 17-1 10. Vanderbilt 16-0 11. BYU 15-1 12. Michigan State 14-2 13. Illinois 13-3 14. North Carolina 14-2 15. Texas Tech 12-4 16. Virginia 14-2 17. Arkansas 12-4 18. Alabama 11-5 19. Florida 11-5 20. Louisville 12-4 21. Georgia 14-2 22. Clemson 14-3 23. Utah State 14-1 24. Tennessee 11-5 25. Seton Hall 14-2