ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan begins life as the reigning national champion on Monday night, when the No. 16 Wolverines host in-state opponent Oakland at Crisler Center in the 2026-27 opener. Tipoff is 6 p.m. on Big Ten Network.
The game is the first in charge for Mike Boynton Jr., who was elevated to head coach on July 1 after Dusty May left for the Dallas Mavericks of the NBA. Boynton was an assistant last season on a staff that went 37-3, set a program record for wins, captured the Big Ten title and beat UConn 69-63 for the program its first national championship since 1989.
Boynton has made a point of telling his players that the title belonged to a different team. Several newcomers never played for that group, and the coach has said the job now is to build a legacy of their own rather than defend an old one. The Final Four this season is in Detroit, though he has downplayed any extra pull from a hometown finish.
Only a handful of key pieces return. Senior guard Elliot Cadeau, the most outstanding player of the 2026 Final Four, and sophomore guard Trey McKenney were both picked to the preseason All-Big Ten team, and Roddy Gayle Jr. is back for a fifth college season.
The rest of the rotation is new. Michigan brought in transfers J.P. Estrella from Tennessee, Jalen Reed from LSU, Moustapha Thiam from Cincinnati and Kenny Noland from Columbia, plus six freshmen, to replace three lottery picks from the last NBA draft.
Openers have been friendly to the Wolverines. Michigan has won 23 straight dating to the 2002-03 season and has not lost an opener at Crisler since a 68-63 defeat to Western Michigan in 1997. It went 2-1 in exhibitions, beating Eastern Michigan and Oregon State before losing to No. 10 Houston, and holds a 9-1 edge over Oakland all time.
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