The Michigan Wolverines fell to the Cincinnati Bearcats, 100-98, in an exhibition at Crisler Center on Friday. After trailing, 52-34, at halftime, Dusty May’s team tried to mount a comeback but came up just short.
Here’s a recap of the preseason action.
Cincinnati jumped out to an early lead before Roddy Gayle Jr. hit a three-pointer and a reverse layup to get Michigan on the board and cut the deficit to 7-5. Just moments later, Elliot Cadeau found Yaxel Lendeborg for a triple to take an 11-7 lead.
Cadeau continued to fuel the Wolverines’ offense, getting into the lane over and over. After getting fouled and making a pair of free throws, Cadeau slipped into the paint and connected with Lendeborg for an alley-oop to get the crowd going.
The Bearcats did most of their damage on the inside early on thanks to Michigan’s lack of size with centers Aday Mara and Morez Johnson Jr. not playing in this one due to minor injuries. Cincinnati had 10 second-chance points in the first 10 minutes.
After it was tied 17-17 midway through the first half, the Wolverines went more than eight minutes without a field goal as Cincinnati put together a 24-6 run. Shon Abaev highlighted the Bearcats’ run with a pair of three-pointers and a poster dunk over LJ Cason.
Michigan couldn’t find a rhythm on offense — committing 14 turnovers and shooting just 2-for-12 from three-point range in the opening half. Meanwhile, Cincinnati dominated the interior with 24 points in the paint and 12 second-chance points.
HALFTIME: Cincinnati 52, Michigan 34
The Wolverines opened the second half with much more energy and intensity, going on a 9-0 run to cut into the deficit. Lendeborg scored nine points in the first three minutes of the half as Michigan trailed 57-46 with 17:11 left to go.
Cadeau was an integral part of the run as well, recording a steal on the opening possession before finding Lendeborg for a three-pointer. Lendeborg continued to lead the way with back-to-back layups to trim Cincinnati’s advantage to 65-55.
Gayle finished an and-one to get the Wolverines within single digits for the first time since the first half, cutting the deficit to 69-60 with 12:04 left. Then, Will Tschetter drilled two straight three-pointers to get Michigan within five points.
Lendeborg just couldn’t be stopped in the second half, scoring a put-back layup as Michigan trailed 86-84 with 4:32 to go. The Wolverines tried to complete the comeback, but Cincinnati mustered up just enough offense to hold onto the lead.
Tschetter hit a three-pointer to cut the deficit to 100-98 with just 4.3 seconds left, but Cincinnati was able to run out the rest of the clock. Michigan looked much better in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to earn a win.
FINAL SCORE: Cincinnati 100, Michigan 98
Michigan will face St. John’s in the final exhibition game in New York on Oct. 25 before opening the regular season against Oakland on Nov. 3.
- F Yaxel Lendeborg: 31 points, 12 rebounds
- G Roddy Gayle Jr: 18 points, 3 rebounds
- F Will Tschetter: 15 points, 1 rebound
- G Elliot Cadeau: 14 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds
- C Moustapha Thiam: 15 points, 2 rebounds
- G Shon Abaev: 15 points, 2 rebounds
- G Kerr Kriisa: 15 points
- G Sencire Harris: 13 points, 5 rebounds
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