It has taken new Michigan coach Dusty May just nine games to guide the Wolverines into the Top 25.
May and the Wolverines enter the poll at No. 14 and strive to continue their strong start when they face Arkansas in the Jimmy V Classic on Tuesday night in New York.
Michigan (8-1) has reeled off seven straight wins to crack the rankings for the first time in nearly 25 months.
“All this stuff doesn’t matter to me,” May said of the rankings. “It does change the complexion of what we think about and things like that. Overall, I like where we are. We have guys who work well together and they put in the time.”
The Wolverines look to remain hot against the Razorbacks (7-2). John Calipari’s first Arkansas squad has won its past two games.
Calipari spent the previous 15 seasons as coach of Kentucky and claims he’s excited to be in Arkansas.
“I’m not bitter about anything. I’m not,” Calipari said. “This is the first page of the first chapter of a new book. The timing for me and my career and my life, this is perfect. And I appreciate the fans and everybody giving me the opportunity to do that.”
The Razorbacks will be searching for their initial milestone victory under Calipari during their first visit to Madison Square Garden since 1997.
Their losses this season are to then-No. 8 Baylor and Illinois on neutral courts.
Calipari grabbed several players out of the transfer portal in the offseason, including guard Johnell Davis, one of the stars of the Florida Atlantic team that reached the 2023 Final Four.
That squad was coached by May. One of the other Florida Atlantic starters was center Vladislav Goldin, who followed May to Michigan after the coach was hired in the offseason.
Goldin has strung together three straight solid games, including a season-best 24 points in a 67-64 road win over then-No. 11 Wisconsin on Dec. 3. He followed that up with 20 points and a season-high 11 rebounds in Saturday’s 85-83 home win over Iowa.
“He’s just been a guy that you can see when he’s really locked in and focused there’s a different level of play,” said May, “and I think now he’s finding that level of play.”
Goldin is part of a balanced attack. Roddy Gayle Jr. averages a team-best 12.2 points per game, followed by Tre Donaldson and Danny Wolf at 12.1 and Goldin at 12.0. Wolf averages a team-best 10 rebounds per game.
Arkansas is coming off a 75-60 home victory over UTSA on Saturday. Adou Thiero excelled by matching his career high of 26 points to go with 10 rebounds.
Thiero scored 17 points in the second half when the Razorbacks overcame a five-point halftime deficit to outscore the Roadrunners by 20.
“We’ve been seeing that the whole summer,” Arkansas forward Trevon Brazile said of Thiero’s strong play. “Him dominating. Dominating in practice and (Calipari) pushing him. This is just a reflection of the work he’s done this summer and him trusting the coaches.”
Thiero leads the Razorbacks with averages of 18.6 points and 6.1 rebounds. Boogie Fland is averaging 15 points and Zvonimir Ivisic is scoring 12 per game. Davis (9.3) started slow with just two double-digit outings in the first seven games before averaging 12.5 over the last two games.
Michigan holds a 4-3 edge in the all-time series. The Wolverines recorded an 80-67 home victory on Dec. 8, 2012 in the most recent meeting.
–Field Level Media
