Dusty May Previews Michigan's Non-Conference Game vs. Duke, 'Mental Recess' From Big Ten Play

No. 1 Michigan has a loaded slate this week. The Wolverines will travel to take on Purdue for a highly anticipated Big Ten game on Tuesday night, before having a late-season non conference game against Duke at the nation's capital.

The Wolverines have their sight set on winning the Big Ten, but Michigan the Wolverines will have to shift gears a little after the Purdue game. The Wolverines will have a test with a historic blue blood of the sport.

Last season, Illinois played Duke just four games before Big Ten play ended. It didn't go well for the Illini as they fell 110-67 to Duke, but coach Dusty May said he talked to Illinois coach Brad Underwood before scheduling the game to get his input.

Michigan head coach Dusty May, right, talks to guard Elliot Cadeau (3), and forward Yaxel Lendeborg. — Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"We took that into account when we scheduled the game," May said on Monday. "We anticipated being in the hunt, and I talked to [Illinois coach] Brad Underwood about it, and they had a tough showing last year, and for a number of reasons, they had some injuries and illness and whatnot. And I said, with that being said, would you still play it?

"And he said, 100 times out of 100. And I think he's, I've said this before, he's one of the forward thinkers in our game, and it's good for the sport, these non-conference games. I remember being a young kid, being glued to the TV to watch a cross-country matchup between two historic programs, and it's different.

"The ratings show that they're well-received by the fans. Obviously, attendance and the people that are looking for tickets, you tell them to go to the secondary market, and then you start looking at the secondary market. That shows that this game is going to be good for the game and for the sport, and also with NIL and things like that, we're constantly trying to generate revenue for our program."

How Michigan is treating the game

Michigan and Duke are KenPom's No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams in the country. Both programs are searching for an NCAA Tournament win and Saturday could be a preview of the finals come Apri. Coach May said they are using this game as a tournament preview.

Duke Blue Devils forward Cameron Boozer. — Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

"And we're going to treat it like an NCAA format, where this is a first-round opponent or Sweet 16 opponent, or hopefully a Final Four opponent.," May said of playing Duke. "You have a couple days to learn someone that you're typically unfamiliar with. Obviously, the magnitude of Duke is, you're never unfamiliar with Duke.

"I've seen the Boozer's play in South Florida since they were young. It's an opportunity for us to take a recess mentally from Big Ten play, maybe give some things to work on, but also just learn something new and prepare like we would for an NCAA tournament, meaningful game."