The Michigan Wolverines are on the quest for a Final Four (and more) and have already built up quite the non-conference resume, taking down three teams that have recently reached that stage of the NCAA Tournament: San Diego State, Auburn, and Gonzaga. Tuesday represents the opportunity to add a fourth victim to the list, with the Villanova Wildcats coming to Ann Arbor for the first leg of a home-and-home.
Villanova made the switch to Kevin Willard over the offseason, who is tasked with getting back to the Tournament after three-straight flubs by Kyle Neptune. December is always a weird month with Big Ten play starting last weekend and continuing against Willard’s old squad on Saturday before the final two buy games, but championship contenders must always keep their foot on the gas.
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Villanova (7-1) at No. 2 Michigan (8-0)
Date & Time: Tuesday, Dec. 9, 6:30 p.m. ET
Location: Crisler Center, Ann Arbor, MI
TV/Streaming: FS1
This is the fifth meeting between these schools since 2014-15, with next year making it a remarkable six head-to-head encounters. The Wildcats hold the 3-1 edge, including Tournament wins in 2018 and 2022, though Michigan did get some minor revenge in the 2018-19 Gavitt Games, winning by 27 on the road. With how things are looking right now, this could be another lopsided victory for the Wolverines in this series.
Two Stats to Watch
Michigan 3PT Shooting: 37.3% (49th)
In the three games leading up to the Players Era, Michigan shot a combined 21.1% from behind the arc, but then hit 40.0% of its threes in Vegas on 95 attempts. Against the Scarlet Knights, the Wolverines connected on 44.8% of their looks, moving them into the top-50 nationally on the season. This is terrible news for Tuesday’s opponent, who is second-worst in the entire country (!!) in this stat.
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Three-point defense has some questionable projectability, but the fact that Villanova has played limited legitimate offenses yet struggles so badly from defending the perimeter is hard to ignore. Michigan is proving it can score however it wants, but has taken nearly 44% of its shots from three. Accordingly, this matchup sets up for this high-power offense to keep launching it for fun, especially in transition.
Villanova OREB: 44.5% (2nd)
Just one school (Tennessee) has been better than Villanova at rebounding its own misses this season, and much of that has to do with Duke Brennan, who leads the nation with an impressive 12.9 RPG. The 6-foot-10 Grand Canyon transfer has double-digit rebounds in six of seven games this season, though again, the Wildcats’ schedule has not been anything like Michigan’s.
Brennan is going to be seriously challenged by Aday Mara, Yaxel Lendeborg, and Morez Johnson, who all have been great at cleaning up the defensive glass. Still, this is a good test for Dusty May’s group, as defensive rebounding was a struggle at times last season. The good news for Brennan is that given the Wolverines’ outstanding defense, there will probably be many opportunities for offensive boards!
