A Michigan basketball team replete with high expectations finishes its preseason with a high-profile exhibition game Saturday night at Madison Square Garden. The Wolverines will face St. John’s at one of the sport’s iconic venues, with tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m. and the contest broadcast on BTN+. Bob Brainerd (play-by-play) and Brian Butch (analyst) will be on the call.
Facing quality opponents who can expose weaknesses was a goal for Dusty May in U-M’s exhibitions.
“I’ve always said I would like to get beat in exhibitions. I want to play teams that can beat us to expose some weaknesses. I want to play against great coaches,” May said earlier this offseason.
St. John’s certainly fits the bill: In the AP Top 25 poll, the Johnnies check in at No. 5, a new program high for preseason rankings. Zuby Ejiofor was tabbed as the Big East Preseason Player of the Year, while Bryce Hopkins, Ian Jackson, Joson Sanon and Dillon Mitchell all earned preseason All-Big East recognition. The Red Storm’s seven-player Transfer Portal haul, which includes Mitchell, Jackson, Sanon and Hopkins, is the only class ranked above Michigan by 247Sports this offseason.
And the Wolverines will get that team at MSG, where the Johnnies were undefeated last season.
Of course, an exhibition is less about winning and more about trying different player combinations, evaluating individual strengths and weaknesses, and testing strategies against new competition. Despite losing Danny Wolf and Vlad Goldin to the pros, Michigan can play even bigger in 2025-26, and that’s something the staff is eyeing. They could get their first answers at its viability against St. John’s, particularly if Aday Mara and Morez Johnson Jr. can both play after missing the Cincinnati game.
“I think we can be even more unique,” Dusty May said over the summer. “There will be times where we roll out a really, really big lineup.”
What might that look like? We expect Yaxel Lendeborg, Morez Johnson Jr., and Aday Mara could see the floor together this winter. That’s a 6-foot-9 ball-handling forward in Lendeborg, a 6-foot-9 physical menace in Johnson Jr. and a 7-foot-3 towering center in Mara. But that only works if Lendeborg can reliably guard smaller forwards and can space the offense with his ball-handling and shooting — and, of course, if Johnson Jr. and Mara are healthy.
This will be the seventh all-time meeting between St. John’s and Michigan. In countable games, the Johnnies hold a 4-2 series advantage.
Where to watch Michigan basketball vs. St. John’s
Who: Michigan Wolverines vs. St. John’s Red Storm
What: Bad Boy Mowers Series: New York exhibition
When: Saturday, October 25 at 7:00 p.m. ET
Where: Madison Square Garden (New York City)
TV: B1G+ | Bob Brainerd (play-by-play) and Brian Butch (analyst)
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