Wolverines Prove Worthy National Title Contenders: How They Got Here

The 2025-26 regular season couldn’t have gone much better for the Michigan men’s basketball team — at least, aside from flipping its mere two losses into wins.

The Wolverines, according to both the metrics and the good old-fashioned eye test, are one of the scariest teams in the country. They ran away with the Big Ten regular season title, dismantled some of the top teams in the country, and they’ve all-but secured a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. All things considered, it’s one of the better regular seasons that a Big Ten team has produced in recent history.

As the postseason begins, Michigan is widely considered to be one of the biggest contenders to win it all. Here’s how the Wolverines have reached this point…

It’s been parroted ad-nauseum at this point, but it’s the truth: College athletics is in a new era.

With NIL and the Transfer Portal, the NCAA is becoming more and more akin to a professional league. The debate about what that means for the future of college sports aside, it’s become fairly clear over the past few years that if a program wants to win, it can’t hide from the shift. It must adapt.

Michigan head coach Dusty May has adapted quickly.

This season, he brought in four transfers, which isn’t as many as some of his peers, but May’s group has found the most success. Headlining the class was the No. 1-ranked transfer Yaxel Lendeborg, with junior guard Elliot Cadeau, sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr., and junior center Aday Mara filling out the group.

All of these players are extremely talented, but May didn’t go for talent alone, he went for fit. Because of this, all four transfers have exceeded expectations. The returning players and the transfers blended fairly seamlessly, allowing a cohesive unit to form, not just a hodge-podge of talent.

May brought in four transfers, and it’s fair to say that they’re the four most impactful players on the roster.

The Wolverines’ defense has been one of the best in the country all season, and a great defense can take a team a long way — although it also helps that they have a top-five offense, too.

There’s several reasons why Michigan’s defense has been so staunch. For one, the Wolverines are quite big. With 7-foot-3 Mara, 6-foot-9 Johnson, and 6-foot-9 Lendeborg all in the starting lineup, they boast a ridiculous amount of length on the interior. Mara won Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, and both Johnson and Lendeborg joined him on the All-Defensive Team.

With that trio roaming the paint, Michigan’s guards and wings had more freedom to pressure the ball and take chances on steals, because they knew even if it backfires, they have elite rim protection behind them.

May has also employed a unique, switch-heavy defensive scheme. Given the versatility of most of his lineups, the Wolverines switch on almost every screen and cut, with the exception of Mara.

While it can cause occasional bad mismatches, his high-stay-high, low-stay-low style causes a ton of problems for opponents more often than not.

And even if opposing coaches gameplan against the scheme, it’s almost impossible to simulate the size and athleticism that Michigan employs.

For most of the season, the Wolverines ran a consistent nine-man rotation, but that number shrank to eight when sophomore guard L.J. Cason went down with a torn ACL in late February. Regardless, Michigan’s bench pieces have been integral to its success.

When he was playing, Cason was a spark-plug. He significantly improved his playmaking and process from his freshman season, but his ability to put the ball in the basket is still where he made his money. If Cadeau was having a rough outing, Cason was a capable and consistent option to run the show off of the bench.

Senior guard Roddy Gayle Jr. is generally the first substitution, and he brings solid defensive versatility and a slashing threat on offense. Freshman guard Trey McKenney functions as the Wolverines’ sharpshooter, but he’s also comfortable in the mid-range and a capable defender.

Finally, graduate forward Will Tschetter sees the least amount of action, but he’s an indispensable part of the team. A five-year player, he’s the longest-tenured Wolverine and brings vocal leadership alongside his shooting and energy.

This bench unit averages a combined 30.7 points per game, which is the highest mark in the Big Ten. The Wolverines have one of the best starting lineups in college basketball, but their productive bench more than carried its weight in the regular season.

Indeed, Michigan’s first 31 games went just about as well as anyone could have hoped for. But the Wolverines didn’t come into the season pining simply for a great regular season — they’re dreaming of a trophy and some jewelry. 

But college basketball in March guarantees nothing, so the Wolverines will still need to play their best ball for those dreams to become reality.