Wake Forest Basketball Meets Michigan for Second Straight Season
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We'll get an opportunity to learn a lot more about this Wake Forest basketball team as they prepare to take on the Michigan Wolverines in Detroit for the second year of the Deacon Wolverine Challenge. Last year, the Deacs came out victorious against the Wolverines in Greensboro by a score of 72-70.
After this game, both teams continued to take very different paths the rest of the season. Wake struggled offensively and missed the NCAA tournament, while Michigan won the Big Ten tournament and was a four seed in March. This season, Wake looks to get a signature win early while the Wolverines seek revenge. Let's break down the matchup.
Opponent Preview
The Michigan Wolverines come into this game as the number six-ranked team in the nation. They blew past Oakland in their first game of the season, 121-78. In this game, Michigan set its school record for most points scored in a single half with 69. Clearly, in Dusty May's second season at the helm, the Wolverines will be able to score the basketball.
Michigan's roster has no shortage of talent. They landed the most sought-after transfer in the country this offseason in Yaxel Lendeborg. After going through the NBA draft process, he decided to come back to school and play for Michigan. The 6'9' senior is a do-it-all player and will present a matchup problem for the Deacs.
Speaking of matchup problems, UCLA transfer Aday Mara stands at 7'3" and will definitely be an imposing presence in the paint. Alongside him, Illinois transfer big Morez Johnson Jr. was their leading scorer in game one with 24 points. They brought in a familiar face for Deacon fans in Elliot Cadeau from North Carolina to run the point. These guys join returners Nimari Burnett, Roddy Gayle Jr., and Will Tschetter to make up a stacked roster for the Wolverines.
Key for the Deacs: Push the Tempo
So, as you can see, Wake will certainly have their hands full Tuesday night. Michigan has the more talented roster and more size to go along with it. However, one thing the Deacs' new-look offense has shown to be capable of is pushing tempo. Michigan, along with other Big Ten teams, usually wants to slow down the tempo and run its offense. This makes sense considering their size advantage. However, to limit the size gap, the Deacs must push the tempo to get the Wolverines out of rhythm.
Wake has good positional size and has shown the ability to get baskets at the rim in transition. If they can do that, they will likely be able to pick up some easy baskets on the Wolverines and force them to adjust. By Wake playing fast, Michigan may get sped up and start making mistakes. The Deacs have shown the ability to create turnovers, generating 19 against Morehead State and 18 against American. These turnovers are key to getting Michigan out of its rhythm and getting out in transition.
We all know this will be a challenging game for the Deacs, but with challenge comes opportunity. Wake Forest will get to showcase their new-look system against a top-ten opponent. If they can push the tempo and play with the potential we saw at times in their first two games, there is no reason not to believe Wake can be in this game. I'm excited to see how the team performs in an early-season challenge!
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Justin is a student at Wake Forest University. He is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and aspiring finance major interested everything sports. In his freshman year, Justin completed an internship with the Wake Forest Ticketing Department where he gained some valuable insight into the sales and operations aspects of collegiate athletics. Before working with Wake Forest On SI, Justin was a contributing writer for Wake Forest’s student publication The Old Gold and Black. Currently, Justin serves as a student manager on the Wake Forest Men’s Tennis team. In his free time Justin enjoys spending time with his family and friends on the golf course and traveling.