Michigan Basketball: 3 things to watch for in exhibition game against Cincinnati

While the game won’t officially count as a win or loss, Michigan’s exhibition contest against Cincinnati will serve as a good measuring stick for both programs to gauge where they stand heading into the season, which is just around the corner.

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Friday’s game is the first of two exhibitions on the schedule this season for the Wolverines, who will be coming into the season No. 7 in the country in the preseason AP Poll with plenty of hype surrounding the program in Dusty May’s second season.

Here’s what to watch for as the Wolverines take on the Bearcats.

What will the rotations look like, and how deep into the bench will the Wolverines go?

During Big Ten Media Days last week, May told reporters that he hasn’t had much time to practice with a full squad as injuries and absences during practice have put them behind a bit in regard to establishing a rotation and who will be key players off the bench.

While the injuries and illnesses the team has don’t expect to be long-term, it will be interesting to see what the starting lineup could look like and whether May treats this exhibition as a regular-season contest or an opportunity to get all of his players time on the floor. Depending on who will or won’t be available on Friday, he might have to play the entire bench out of necessity for the time being.

While Friday’s starters might vary between Friday’s exhibition and next week’s exhibition against St. John’s, you’d have to expect that a few spots in the starting five will be locked up, assuming those spots are healthy.

Those are:

PG: Elliot Cadeau

SG: Nimari Burnett

PF: Yaxel Lendeborg

C: Adai Mara

The small forward position could still be determined, as May has noted that true freshman Trey McKenney has had a good preseason and is pushing for minutes. Morez Johnson Jr. has been hurt and has missed some practices, and it’s unknown whether he will play on Friday. And, of course, Roddy Gayle returns to the program and could be a key figure off the bench.

It could also very likely be a scenario where the exhibitions are used for experimentation entirely, and nothing should be taken away from the rotations until the November 3 season-opener against Oakland.

How often will U-M use a big lineup?

May found some lightning in a bottle during his first season in Ann Arbor by capitalizing on the combination of Danny Wolf and Vlad Goldin to give himself a larger frontcourt duo that ended up being crucial for the program last year.

With that in mind, and Goldin and Wolf no longer with the program, May addressed those needs by going even more athletic and taller in the frontcourt, giving him many different options and combinations at his disposal this season.

Depending on availability and how much he’s willing to experiment, will May show some unique looks with the frontcourt?

The Wolverines have known commodities in Aday Mara, who comes in at 7’3, Yaxel Lendeborg and Johnson Jr., who both are listed at 6’9, as well as Will Tschetter at 6’8, who will feature prominently this season.

If May decides to go deeper into the bench, Oscar Goodman (6’7) and Malick Kordel (7’2) are younger options that the staff are excited about. Both players are relatively raw but offer a ton of upside, where both are considered potential contributors down the road.

Turnovers and shooting numbers

U-M’s turnover issues were one of the major sticking points that hovered over the heads of the program all season long, and it’s something that May said needed to be addressed all of last season.

He hopes that by bringing in UNC transfer Elliot Cadeau that the turnover numbers will improve. In its first game action, not in a scrimmage against themselves, you can’t really declare the issue being fixed one way or the other after one game, but you’re able to get a sense of what the team looks like structurally. The hope is Cadeau can provide that structure and May has been pleased with what he’s seen so far.

As for shooting, the three-pointer was a sticking point last year that May has addressed. The hope is that the increase in athleticism across the board would allow defenses to respect those around the rim, especially Lendeborg. With that added attention, you’d have to figure that you will find some open looks beyond the arc.

It will be very encouraging if you see a good shooting night from deep.