4 Takeaways From Michigan Basketball's Disappointing Loss to UConn in NCAA Title Rematch

It felt like March when both Michigan and UConn took the court in the TD Garden on Friday night. Just three games ago — which took place months ago — the Wolverines had defeated UConn in the national title. Both teams returned a few familiar faces, but both Mike Boynton Jr. and Dan Hurley had to add pieces to their respective rosters.

And it was clear who the better team was on Friday. UConn took down the Wolverines, winning 85-77 over Michigan. The Wolverines have a lot to clean up and work on if they hope to contend at a high level this season.

Here are four takeaways from the game.

Trey McKenney finds a spark in second half

Michigan Wolverines guard Trey McKenney — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Trey McKenney came back to Michigan to become the star for the Wolverines this season. Entering his sophomore year, McKenney has breakout written all over his name, but in his first big game of the season, it was quite short of a breakout game — in the first half.

McKenney went 0-for-7 in the first half and he missed both of his technical free-throw attempts. Things didn't start much better for the Wolverines' star guard to begin the second half, but a layup and a three-point attempt went down, and that's what he needed to see.

The Wolverines would claw back into the game and cut UConn's lead to single digits, and McKenney was the catalyst behind that. He would score 22 in the game, and hopefully, the second half can get him rolling moving forward.

Turnovers haunt Wolverines' offense

Michigan Wolverines guard Elliot Cadeau — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

UConn typically has one of the best defenses in college basketball under Dan Hurley, and the Huskies might have the best defensive team they've had under him in 2026-27. That showed on Friday night and the Wolverines' offense struggled to gain consistent momentum.

UConn played physical and the Wolverines didn't have the personnel to match it. Elliot Cadeau had a mixed game, and while he was one of the Wolverines' better players in the first half, he appeared to force too many errant passes that resulted in turnovers.

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The Wolverines had 11 turnovers in the first half and Michigan couldn't capitalize on UConn's foul trouble. For the game, the Wolverines had 14 turnovers and the Huskies did a great job of converting those into points, scoring 16 points off turnovers.

Three-point shooting remains a major concern

The exhibition games could've been a sign of what was to come for Michigan's offense this season. Against both Oregon State and Houston, the Wolverines shot 25% and 27%, respectively, from deep. And things didn't improve in the opening game against Oakland. The Wolverines shot 20% against the Golden Grizzlies but were clearly the more talented team.

However, Michigan, once again, shot poorly from deep against UConn. The Wolverines shot 25% from three and the issue is that Mike Boynton Jr. has said multiple times that Michigan will lean on its three-point shooting this season.

The Wolverines are going to need to figure that out moving forward, or it's going to be hard to contend shooting below 30% from deep. If this trend continues, Boynton Jr. will have to reevaluate how many shots his team takes from three.

Michigan showed fight, but has a lot to improve

Michigan Wolverines head coach Mike Boynton Jr. — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Michigan could've folded. The Wolverines went down by 13 at half and found themselves down 18 toward the middle of the second half, but Mike Boynton Jr.'s team showed fight and cut the lead to single digits.

UConn would end up taking another double-digit lead and it was clear that the Huskies were the better team on Friday night. UConn played with more physicality and its offense gelled way better than the Wolverines' offense did.

This was a good litmus test for Michigan and it shows where the Wolverines are at. This isn't last year's Michigan team, and the coaching staff can really see where the Wolverines need to improve moving forward. It will take work for this team to compete against the best, but it's also good to have these tests early in the season.

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