Ann Arbor — The Wolverines put on quite the show in their opening act.
They erupted for 121 points against Oakland, a program record for a season opener. They set another program mark with 69 first-half points and tied the school record with 19 made 3-pointers.
With a week break and plenty of time to dissect the blowout win, coach Dusty May felt it was a good starting point but far from perfect.
“We did some good things at home, especially shooting the basketball,” May said Monday. “After analyzing the film, we knew we had a lot to clean up on and build upon.”
That goes for both sides of the ball. While the Wolverines were pleased with their offensive execution and shot-making, May stated they need to do a better job of attacking the offensive glass. On the other end, forward Will Tschetter noted after the opener the team wasn’t too happy with its defensive effort and left a lot to be desired.
At this time of the year, a team’s defense might be ahead of its offense. For Michigan, it’s the other way around.
“We can’t count on making 19 3s on a given night, and obviously our size and passing ability will make us tough to zone, but we have a lot to clean up on defense,” May said. “It begins with what our foundation is — taking away layups and rhythm 3-pointers. Right now, teams are getting too many of both of those, and we’re not turning (opponents) over nearly enough for us to be at our best. We’ve challenged some guys in some different areas.”
Up next is a trip to Little Caesars Arena in Detroit for a matchup with a Wake Forest team that will challenge Michigan in similar ways that Cincinnati did in the first exhibition.
For starters, the Demon Deacons play a physical style like the Bearcats, who beat Michigan, 100-98, in the exhibition opener that featured a combined 60 personal fouls and 83 free-throw attempts.
“Their guards, they have good speed, they’ve got good size. They’ve got guys that get to the basketball,” May said. “They’re going to push us off our spots, so our ability to take care of the ball is going to be pivotal.
“They also have smaller, versatile bigs, and as the first three games have shown us that’s been a little bit of a hole in our defense. We’ve got great size and we’ve been able to take advantage of that size around the rim. But on the defensive end, we’ve got to find a way to contain these small, versatile, athletic wing type of bigs. It’s another good test for us.”
And for big man Aday Mara in particular.
While Mara protected the rim at a high level and blocked five shots against the undersized Golden Grizzles, he had his good and bad moments when defending in space out on the perimeter.
“(Mara) is a really good player. He hasn’t done that well enough yet for us to be a championship level program. He has to improve his ability to contest 3s, to sit down and guard,” May said. “And we’ve got to do a better job of supporting him as well, because there’s matchups on both sides of the ball. On the other end, Wake is going to have to double-team him most likely.
“That is an area of concern in November. But like most areas of concern, if you can get exposed this early, then you have more time and more intentionality to improve, and those guys have done that.”
It also helps that Michigan will be healthier. May said forward Yaxel Lendeborg “should be close to 100%” after being limited in the opener with a hand injury. Freshman wing Winters Grady, who was in a walking boot because of a minor foot injury and missed the Oakland game, returned to practice last week.
According to May, guard L.J. Cason looks back to pre-injury form and more “in rhythm” after dealing with multiple ailments. Cason missed time in the preseason with an ankle injury and was held out of the Oakland contest as a precaution after he was seen favoring his shoulder on the bench following pregame warm-ups.
Even if Michigan is at full strength and even despite there being a bunch of new faces on both rosters, May said Wake Forest still thrives in certain areas that hurt the Wolverines in last season’s meeting, a 72-70 setback.
While rewatching the tape from that narrow loss may put May in a “terrible mood,” he pointed out how that game taught the Wolverines a lot about themselves and led to them discovering a few things that ultimately paid off. The hope is there will be a similar outcome but a different result on the scoreboard in Round 2.
“I think we’re better in a lot of areas since last week,” May said. “We’re not where we need to be, but I do think we’re inching in the right direction.”
Michigan vs. Wake Forest
▶ Tipoff: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit
▶ TV/radio: FS1/94.7
▶ Records: No. 6 Michigan 1-0; Wake Forest 2-0
▶ Outlook: This is the return game in a two-year neutral-site series between the programs. Michigan lost last season’s meeting, 72-70, in Greensboro, North Carolina. Wake Forest was picked to finish 11th out of 18 teams in the ACC preseason poll. Michigan is 3-0 at LCA since the venue opened in 2017.
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