After CMU in 2022-23 and McNeese in 2023-24, the Michigan Wolverines are unlikely to neglect the Christmas shopping games anytime soon. This team, in particular, is extremely locked in right now, sitting in first place overall in Kenpom and routinely crushing their opponents by more than 25. The only thing that can be a problem on Sunday is an overwhelming lack of focus, and that’s not the case for Dusty May.
La Salle Explorers are not good. Outside of the top 250 at Kenpom, none of their four wins have been against anyone significant, and double-digit losses to Penn State and Villanova provide a glimpse of what to expect. Garbage time is expected to arrive early in this contest, which could alleviate some of the landslide, but another 100-point effort and a 40-point final margin are well within reach.
La Salle (4-8) at No. 2 Michigan (10-0)
Date and time: Sunday, December 21, 4 p.m. ET
Location: Crisler Center, Ann Arbor, MI
TV/Streaming: Peacock
This appears to be the first confrontation between these two programs. Michigan has faced many other Atlantic 10 opponents in the past, although it’s been a few years (VCU in 2017, George Washington in 2018 – both MTE wins). Meanwhile, La Salle has had infrequent meetings with the Big Ten, with a matchup in 2020 against Maryland in the previous matchup before Penn State’s loss this season.
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 will be plenty of rebound opportunities given their absolutely abysmal shooting numbers and a date with the toughest defense in the country, and two of Michigan’s last three opponents have made over 30 percent of their misses, leaving some room for improvement for the home team.
However, one wouldn’t expect the Wolverines to really struggle in this department given the gap in athleticism. 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 has had very limited impact despite posting prolific rebounds in almost every other game.
Michigan scorers: 11 (in four of last five games)
Before last weekend, the Wolverines had exactly six bench players record at least one point in each of the previous four games, and other players saw the court as well. This seems like exactly the type of game in which Oscar Goodman, Winters Grady, Malick Kordel and friends can spend long minutes in front of a probably meek Crisler.
While it’s impressive to see so many human winning minutes this season, these kinds of games are also huge for guys Trey McKenney and LJ Cason, whose contributions to this team could be critical in 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 significantly lighter than the frontcourt, so seeing these young guards continue to grow is more of a need than a luxury.
