The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547256
BY CHRIS BALAS F or several more months, Michigan basketball will sim- ply be known as "reigning na- tional champions." The Wol- verines ended a 37-year drought and a 26-season drought for the Big Ten Con- ference in capturing the program's first title since 1989, dominating the compe- tition on the way to a 37-3 record. Only a handful of holdovers remain from that squad with many having moved on to their next chapters, includ- ing NBA first-round picks Morez John- son Jr., Yaxel Lendeborg and Aday Mara. While they created memo- ries they'll never forget with one of college basketball's best sea- sons in recent memory, the returnees are ready to put it behind them — at least for now — and concentrate on a potential repeat under first-year coach Mike Boynton Jr. "I definitely feel like we're ready to turn the page and move on," se- nior point guard Elliot Cadeau, Most Outstand- ing Player in last year's Fi- nal Four, said at Big Ten Media Day on Oct. 8. "Coach Mike was on the coaching staff last year, so he knows our culture, and we're trying to build the same habits." Speaking to him this summer felt a lot like talking to former coach Dusty May, now the head man for the Dallas Mav- ericks. Boynton admitted learning a lot from his former boss, and his words and actions were very similar. It's evident every day, sophomore guard Trey McKenney noticed. "He's definitely a player's coach, be- cause he cares about the person instead of just what's going on basketball-wise," McKenney said of Boynton. "I think he's done a really good job of just supporting us, whether that has been with basket- ball or not … "Coach Dusty left a really good cul- ture, and Coach Mike definitely had a big 2026-27 BASKETBALL PREVIEW Senior guard Elliot Cadeau was named the 2026 Final Four Most Outstanding Player as Michigan won its first national championship since the 1988-89 season. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL 34 THE WOLVERINE ❱ NOVEMBER 2026