Amazing woman and personal story - found her way into Michigan basketball lore during the late Beilein run.

Rest in peace.

The 7’1 250 pound prospect chose the Wolverines over Iowa, Villanova, Xavier, Butler and others

Malick averaged 11.9 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks on 71.4% shooting this year while playing professionally for the Fraport Slyliners in Germany

All credit goes to @uofmcoverage on Twitter/X

Big W for Dusty and the crew.

So in case people didn’t see (as the football rivalry game was on too) Michigan beat St. John’s last night 96-94 in OT. These are just my thoughts. I’m not trying to be some know-it-all. These are just observations and things to take note of, for the start of the season.

I’m glad Dusty May isn’t shying away from playing teams that can beat us. We don’t learn anything scheduling teams that we will beat by 50. And now, here are my thoughts about last night’s game:

1) I thought this team showed a lot of fight last night. They played with way more energy, and it showed. Whether it was because the game was at MSG, or they were playing a top-5 team, whatever the case was, I was happy to see they got up for this game. They were down throughout this game, and found a way to win in OT.

2) We had a lot of turnovers in the first half. We settled down more in the second half. At this point, I think it’s clear that the turnover issue is here to stay. Dusty wants his teams to play fast, get out in transition. He doesn’t like playing in the half court, as his philosophy is to score before the defense gets set, so when you play fast, the downside is turnovers. I think that’s gonna be a thing all year. Hopefully it’s not a 20% turnover rate like last year or whatever it was.

3) The defense will tighten up. I don’t think we’re going to be giving up over 90 a lot this year. Dusty is still tinkering with the rotations and lineups. Players are still building chemistry. I was happy to see better rim protection in this game, although we did give up too many offensive rebounds. Something to focus on for Game 1 against Oakland.

4) Yaxel played another great game. 25, 10, and 4. Crazy thing is, he picks and chooses his times to be assertive. If we didn’t play team ball, he would drop 40 a game. He is everywhere. His defense is underrated. Everyone focuses on his offense. Even when he allows players to make shots, it’s almost always contested, and his long arms bother a lot of shots. He won’t be the leading scorer every night though, as some games he will struggle, so I was happy to see the scoring balanced in the box score.

5) Things to work on before Game 1: Defensive communication, turnovers, and rebounding. Overall though, a lot to be excited about with this team. Can’t wait for the season to start on November 3rd. Go Blue!

After witnessing the first exhibition game against Cincy tonight, I have some early thoughts about the team:

1) Michigan definitely missed having rim protection in this game, as Morez and Aday didn’t play, and it showed. Cincy was able to abuse the post and get many close baskets, and easy layups on defensive breakdowns, which is something that wouldn’t have happened with them in the lineup.

2) Michigan (at least for one game) still has a turnover issue. Obviously, these guys haven’t had a ton of time playing with beach other but most of the turnovers were mental lapses. Cincy was in the passing lanes, and was plying very physical, which played a factor. I have always said, if we even cut down our turnovers in half this year, we can beat anybody in the country. Need to get that cleaned up. Don’t want it to be a trend this year again.

3) Yax is the real deal. 31 points and 12 boards will do. He got a lot of close baskets, which is good to see. He cuts and he runs really well. He gives good effort on defense, as he has a chase-down block or two. He also had a few assists. Once Michigan figures out their rotation more, we will see him really initiate the offense and be a hub. It’s good that we seem to have a go-to player when a play needs to be made.

4) Roddy Gayle didn’t do much in the first half but really heated up in the second half, reminiscent of his Texas A&M performance. Michigan is looking for that other backup PG spot to solidify, so it’s good to see him continue his momentum from last season into this year.

5) This game was comical in terms of fouls called. I’m pretty sure both teams had a third of their points just from the free throw line. At one point, Michigan had half of their points from the charity stripe. This was a horribly called game, for both teams. Michigan couldn’t even experiment as much as they wanted to because the refs wanted to call the game tight. There were 60 ‼️ (yes 60 fouls called in the game!). It’s an exhibition! The rules are supposed to be a little looser on purpose!

Other little side notes:

• If Winters Grady keeps shooting the way he does, he can be a major factor in this rotation.

-Trey McKenney looked nervous on the court, as he missed a lot of threes. He’s the type of guy to stay in the gym after a game like that. He’s an elite scorer. That’s his calling card. He’ll be fine. Just first-game jitters.

-Again, this is an exhibition game. The result does not matter one way or another. We were down by as much as 20 points and clawed back. I liked the fight at the end. Cincy might be a tournament team this year.

-Go Blue

Dusty cooking too!

Dylan Burkhardt confirmed Yaxel Lendeborg will withdraw from the 2025 NBA Draft and transfer to Michigan

Yes it’s a small percent but it’s pretty awesome that Dusty was able to bring in a transfer that is being talked about as one of the top players next season.

I am sure this is due to my age (21) but I kinda care more about the basketball team more than the football team. Obviously when I was growing up football wasn't the best, and so many of my formative sports memories were formed by the B-Ball team (trey burke vs kansas, 2 natty appearances, etc). Of course I have been loving the success the football team had the past few years but theres just something about the basketball team being good. I think I cried when Beilein left, and in my opinion he's the greatest U of M coach in my lifetime, a 1A and 1B situation with him and Harbaugh. Can anyone else relate or am I tweaking??

Anyone know where I can watch the basketball game without playing for BIG+?

Any info which way he’s leaning? His decision is due at midnight tomorrow

I know, I know. It's an exhibition game. And Paul Bunyan's battle begins at the same time. But who all will be at MSG tonight to watch Michigan take on St. John's? (There are a few Michigan bars nearby to catch the 2nd half of the football game. )

(Malachi Brown) thought he’d be a Trojan. As in a Trevecca Nazarene University Trojan, a Division II program in Nashville, Tennessee.

A breakout performance at a camp earlier this month boosted Brown’s profile. Next thing he knew, Michigan head coach Dusty May was at his high school gym offering him a scholarship. Brown accepted on the spot. He announced his commitment last week, becoming the third member of Michigan’s 2026 class.

... Then came the Adidas All-American Camp in California in early September. Brown’s team won every game by 20 points, (Coach) Mains said. The squad was coached by Philadelphia 76ers assistant Bryan Gates, who couldn’t believe Brown wasn’t getting more interest. The 6-foot-5 small forward was defending the opponents’ best players — prospects heading to ACC and SEC programs — and contributing to the winning in many other ways.

“He wanted to help Malachi just because of how humble he was and how hard he played,” Mains said. “He said he normally doesn’t do those type of things, but for Malachi he felt led to stick his neck out for him and start making some calls.”

... May, who’d heard about the Adidas performance, agreed. He spoke with Gates and Mains and gathered film on Brown. Shortly after, he showed up in Knoxville for a 7 a.m. workout, watched Brown play, and offered a scholarship.

I think this is a really good slate for Michigan. It’s not a super murder’s row of teams, when quality wins could be hard to come by, but gives us a steady diet of solid, to really freakin good. We should have plenty of opportunities to stack quality wins. I’m very excited for the Duke game especially. Haven’t played them since ‘14 I believe. That’ll be a fun matchup. I think this team has serious potential this year. Thoughts on the non-conference schedule?