LOS ANGELES — The meat and potatoes portion of Big Ten basketball season is here. That has Michigan basketball looking to beef up its standing for the 2025 NCAA tournament.
The battle for seeding in March Madness, of course, began months back, but with league play underway, every game only seems to get amplified.
It was another solid week for coach Dusty May’s Wolverines, picking up a pair of victories as they wrapped up the nonconference slate and traveled to the West Coast for a week-long stay to begin two months of conference foes.
The Wolverines (11-3, 3-0 Big Ten) are tied atop the conference with rival Michigan State, the only other undefeated team in league play. This is a massive turnaround for Michigan, which missed the postseason the past two seasons under then-coach Juwan Howard, including last season when it finished a program-worst 8-24 overall.
Each week, the Free Press will take a look at the Wolverines’ previous week and assess how their resume has changed and stacks up to the competition.
Updated entering Sunday.
TIDAL WAVE:Michigan basketball catches waves — three of them — en route to 85-74 win over USC
Michigan basketball NCAA tournament résumé for 2025 March Madness
NET rankings: No. 12 (Last week: No. 31)
All rankings entering Sunday.
Quad 1 record: 1-2.
Quad 2 record: 4-1.
Quad 3 record: 4-0.
Quad 4 record: 2-0
Michigan KenPom rankings: No. 12 (Last week: No. 21)
All rankings entering Sunday.
Offensive efficiency: No. 23.
Defensive efficiency: No. 18.
Michigan basketball bracketology projections
ESPN: 6-seed in East Region: Providence (as of Jan. 3).
On3: 6-seed in East Region: Providence (as of Jan. 4).
CBS: 7-seed in Midwest Region: Cleveland (as of Jan. 3)
T3 Bracketology: 7-seed (as of Jan. 3).
How NCAA tournament committee selects at-large teams
Record: The team’s overall record, conference record and nonconference record.
Strength of schedule: The strength of the opponents the team played against.
Head-to-head results: The results of games between the teams being compared.
Conference championships: Whether a conference championship was won in the regular season or tournament.
Common opponents: The results of games against common opponents.
Adjusted Net Efficiency (NET): The NCAA’s preferred metric measuring a team’s overall performance during the regular season.
Team Value Index: A results-oriented component of the NET that ranks teams based on who they beat and where they played.
Rating Percentage Index (RPI): A formula that ranks teams using a team’s winning percentage, opponents’ success and opponents’ strength of schedule.
Michigan basketball results last week
Dec. 29: 112-64 win over Western Kentucky at Crisler Center — The most lopsided victory this season against WKU (No. 121 KenPom) was due to U-M’s hot shooting: The Wolverines tied a program record with 19 3-pointers made. All five starters finished in double figures and nine players had seven or more points. Danny Wolf had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds and Tre Donaldson had his first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Jan. 4: 85-74 win over USC at Galen Center — The Wolverines allowed a 15-point second-half lead to evaporate, but made necessary plays late to leave their first of two games in Los Angeles with a road victory. Wolf became the third U-M player in two decades to put up 21 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and six blocks and simply took over the contest. He and Vlad Goldin, who scored 11, went on a 13-0 run themselves in the second half to power U-M. Nimari Burnett and Tre Donaldson each chipped in 16 points.
Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
