6 takeaways from Michigan Basketball’s overtime win vs Wake Forest

Wow, what a game.

In front of thousands of Michigan fans at Little Caesars Arena, the No. 6 Wolverines were able to beat the Wake Forest Demon Deacons by a slim 85-84 margin in overtime. Michigan did not have a good shooting night, but the Wolverines did enough defensively to earn a tight victory that was way too close for comfort.

This is the second season in a row the Wolverines and Demon Deacons have faced off in non-conference play, with last year’s game being the first loss of the Dusty May era, 72-70. This is an ACC squad that ranked 66th in KenPom ahead of this game and was picked to finish 11th in the conference in the preseason. Like last season, I expect Wake Forest to be on the bubble come March.

Here are some takeaways from Michigan’s second win of the season.

Overtime was electric

After a large offensive lapse in the second half, Michigan got two quick buckets from Aday Mara and Roddy Gayle Jr. to settle things down and take a two-point lead minutes into overtime. Michigan played great defense in overtime, including pivotal blocks from Morez Johnson Jr. and Mara.

The game was tied at 84 after a nice hook shot from Cooper Schwieger over some tough defense from Johnson. Trey McKenney got charged with a foul deep into a half-court set, sending Mekhi Mason to the line with 1:13 to play, where he missed them both.

Elliot Cadeau had a nice drive to the rim, but was called for a charge to go to what felt like the game’s 58th stoppage for a challenge. After Michigan forced a stop on a reverse lay-up attempt from Juke Harris, Michigan got the ball with 28.1 seconds left. Cadeau, one of Michigan’s few consistent scoring options on the night, knocked down 1-of-2 free throws to take the lead.

The final attempt from Wake Forest was off the mark, and Michigan held on to win. Michigan never should have been in that place, but it’s nice to get this close-game experience for this squad still developing chemistry.

A bad night from three

Michigan made just 4-of-25 attempts from beyond the arc, far worse than Wake Forest’s 10-of-34. The Wolverines were getting good looks, but they just didn’t knock the shots down.

Michigan’s first three of the second half came when Roddy Gayle hit a dagger with just under two minutes to play. It’s great he made the big shot, but it was a putrid shooting performance from U-M.

I don’t think this is a bad three-point shooting team, and Michigan had no issue creating looks in this one. Sometimes the shots just don’t fall. It’s a good thing Michigan was getting points in the lane and in transition, because the Wolverines had a rough night from downtown.

It was also a bad night at the free throw line

This game would have been a lot less stressful if the Wolverines made their free throws. The Wolverines got to the line a lot, but only made 18 of its first 36. Michigan ended making only 67.6 percent of its free throws, including several key misses in the second half and overtime.

Perhaps Michigan is out of practice early in the season, but I’d imagine more free throws are about to be shot in practice moving forward.

Turnover check-in

Turnovers were a lingering problem last season, and despite a new roster full of transfers, it doesn’t look like the program has rid itself of that problem.

Last season, turnovers were a main culprit in the Wake Forest loss, with Michigan turning the ball over 16 times. The Wolverines continued to struggle with turnovers all season long, with a turnover percentage that ranked worse than all but 40 teams in DI men’s basketball.

Turnovers were an issue early in this game, with Michigan turning the ball over four times in the first four minutes, which helped Wake Forest get on a 9-0 run and a 11-7 lead.

Turnovers were the biggest reason why Wake Forest lead for the early parts of this game and a big reason Michigan gave away the lead midway through the second half. Michigan ended up turning the ball over 17 times, four more times than Wake Forest.

A nice game for Elliot Cadeau

After logging just one basket in the blowout win over Oakland, Cadeau was more aggressive early in this one, leading all scorers with 12 points in that first half. He ended this one with 17 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.

He is a throwback point guard who is always looking up the floor for easy buckets, but Cadeau was hitting shots tonight as well. A pretty solid combo for college basketball in 2025. Offense was hard to come by, but Cadeau did his part.

Size matters, especially when passing the ball

Michigan had an obvious size advantage against Wake Forest, and the Wolverines went to that advantage early and often. While Michigan started with Johnson, Yaxel Lendeborg and Mara on the floor at the same time, we didn’t see that lineup much with Johnson picking up his second foul with 11:30 left in the first half.

Johnson had Michigan’s first two baskets, with the first basket of the game coming from a nice high-post pass from Mara. Michigan looked to Mara in the middle of the lane almost every possession, with the (very) big man posting 18 points, 14 rebounds, five blocks and an impressive six assists. Court vision is perhaps the 7-footer’s biggest talent; Mara had a sweet alley-oop to Lendeborg coming out of a timeout.

Mara was dominant inside, doing whatever he wanted in the paint on both ends. He was a commanding presence around the rim, and I loved how he threw the ball up the floor for long outlets in transition. Very Kevin Love-esque from the Spanish big man.

Up Next

The Wolverines will head to Texas later this week for their first true road game of the season, with Michigan taking on the TCU Horned Frogs at the Ed & Rae Schollmaier Arena. Stock up on coffee now, Michigan fans; Friday’s game is set to tip-off at 9 p.m. EST on ESPN2, just 15 hours before the Michigan football team kicks off against Northwestern.

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