The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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36 THE WOLVERINE ❱ NOVEMBER 2026 2026-27 BASKETBALL PREVIEW "These guys really care about winning for Michigan," Boynton insisted. "These dudes compete. They know what this is about. They understand the gravity of what our program is. I think you'll see a team that plays really, really hard every night." OUTSTANDING TALENT STARTS WITH AN ELITE BACKCOURT And make no mistake — there's a lot of talent here, too. It starts with the backcourt of Cadeau and McKenney, both having proven that they could play on the biggest stage with their perfor- mances in the NCAA Tournament a year ago. While both were hugely important pieces of the offense last year, they'll be asked to do even more in 2026-27. Cadeau proved to be a much better shooter than advertised, shooting at 37.6 percent from three-point range, to go along with great assist numbers (5.9 per game). He averaged 10.5 points per game to McKenney's 9.9 in 22.1 minutes. No Mara, Johnson, or Lendeborg means more shots are available, though, and both guards will be expected to score more. "We definitely feel like there's more expectations on us and bigger roles for us," Cadeau said at Big Ten Media Day. "We're just really excited for it and very confident in ourselves for sure, and we're going to lead even more this season." "Me and Elliot are definitely prepared for this year," McKenney added. "Last year, our team was so talented, and we weren't asked to do as much as we could have done. I think this season, we'll be able to show more of our game." Gayle, too, brings championship DNA and great defense as the third major con- tributor returning from last year's squad. His presence alone helps on both ends, but if he shoots like he did in the NCAA Tournament — 52.8 percent from the floor, an outstanding 53.3 percent from three-point range — his value goes up even more. From there, the depth will be decided in practice and in the exhibition season. Columbia transfer Kenny Noland (17.1 points, 3.7 assists last year), sophomore Ricky Liburd and freshman Joseph Hart- man will all be in the mix for playing time, and all have shown flashes of their ability in the early going. Surrounding them with talented big men was a priority in the offseason, and they accomplished that in landing Cin- cinnati transfer Thiam (7-2, 250), who averaged 12.8 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 27.2 minutes per game a year ago, and 6-11, 240-pound Estrella (10.0 points, 5.4 rebounds) from Tennessee in the portal. Both guys can step out and shoot it a bit — Estrella, especially, has shown that in the preseason, going 2-for-3 from three-point range in a victory over East- ern Michigan — while Thiam has proven to be outstanding in the pick-and-roll with Cadeau. "That's going to probably be one of the main gravity points of our offense, those two guys with some shooting around them and figuring out how teams will counter that specific action," Boynton noted. While they don't have three lot- tery picks on the front line this year, he added, they are confident in their guys. Trey McKenney Is Primed For A Breakout Season Michigan sophomore guard Trey Mc- Kenney was a huge part of U-M's success a year ago in a backup role, averaging 22 minutes per game for a national champi- onship squad. No Michigan fan will ever forget his dagger three-pointer in the na- tional championship win over Connecti- cut that finally created some separation down the stretch, leading U-M to its first national title since 1989. This year, McKenney is expected to im- prove greatly on his 9.9-point scoring av- erage and be one of the leaders on both ends of the floor. Head coach Mike Boyn- ton said the 6-4, 220-pounder would have "as green of a light as you can have," but added, "there's also responsibility that comes with that." "I don't expect him to, but if it's abuse and we start taking bad shots or shots that aren't high quality or shots within our offense, then we'll have to have a conver- sation," Boynton said. "I don't expect him to do that, knowing his character and that he wants to win, first and foremost. But he doesn't have a whole lot of restrictions from our coaches and staff." A bit of a throwback, McKenney pro- vides an outstanding midrange game to go with his stellar three-point shooting. He's also been working on getting to the rim, and a slimmed-down frame has helped him in that respect. All told, it would be surprising if he wasn't one of the team leaders in scoring this season along with senior point guard Elliot Cadeau. "Obviously, you get happy when you can take more responsibility on the offensive end, but it's nothing that we aren't prepared for," McKenney said. "Last year, we were definitely talented enough to take more responsibility with whatever the coaches called upon, and this year we're just going to be able to show more. "I'm definitely excited to show more of our game." — Chris Balas McKenney played in all 40 games last season coming off the bench, delivering 9.9 points and 2.8 rebounds in 22.1 minutes per outing during U-M's national championship campaign. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL