After CMU in 2022-23 and McNeese in 2023-24, the Michigan Wolverines are unlikely to overlook the Christmastime buy games anytime soon. This squad, specifically, is extremely locked in right now, sitting No. 1 overall in Kenpom and routinely crushing opponents by 25-plus. The only thing that can cause a problem on Sunday is an overwhelming lack of focus, and Dusty May is not about that.
The La Salle Explorers are not good. Outside the top 250 in Kenpom, none of their four wins have come against anyone meaningful, and double-digit losses to Penn State and Villanova paint a picture of what to expect. Garbage time should come early in this contest, which may relieve some of the landslide, but another 100-point effort and 40-point final margin are well within reach.
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La Salle (4-8) at No. 2 Michigan (10-0)
Date & Time: Sunday, Dec. 21, 4 p.m. ET
Location: Crisler Center, Ann Arbor, MI
TV/Streaming: Peacock
This appears to be the first matchup between these two programs. Michigan has played plenty of other Atlantic 10 opponents in the past, though it has been a few years (VCU in 2017, George Washington in 2018 — both wins in MTEs). Meanwhile, La Salle has had infrequent encounters with the Big Ten, with a 2020 game against Maryland the previous contest before the Penn State loss this season.
Two Stats to Watch
La Salle OReb: 38.1% (27th)
The Explorers boast a top-30 offensive rebounding rate and even posted a 39.4% mark against Villanova. There projects to be many rebounding opportunities given their absolutely dreadful shooting figures and a date with the nation’s toughest defense, and two of Michigan’s past three opponents did grab over 30% of their misses, leaving some room for improvement for the home team.
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One would not expect the Wolverines to really struggle in this department given the athleticism gap, however. Justin Archer and Josiah Harris are the two La Salle players to watch on the offensive glass, and expect May to have a plan for them just as Nova’s Duke Brennan had a very limited impact despite prolific rebounding figures in just about every other game.
Michigan Scorers: 11 (in four of last five games)
Prior to last weekend, the Wolverines had exactly six bench players record at least one point in each of the previous four games, with additional players seeing the floor as well. This seems like exactly the type of game where Oscar Goodman, Winters Grady, Malick Kordel, and friends can see extended minutes in front of a likely mild Crisler.
While it is awesome to see so many minutes from human victory cigars this season, these sorts of games are also huge for Trey McKenney and LJ Cason types, whose contributions to this team could be critical come February and March. Michigan is loaded with talent at the top of the roster, but it takes more than five players to win a championship. The backcourt is definitely less top-heavy than the frontcourt, so seeing these young guards continue to grow is more of a need than a luxury.
