Dusty May was hired last offseason to be the Michigan men’s basketball coach after spending six seasons with Florida Atlantic.
May, 48, was asked about what he learned in his first season in the Big Ten during a recent appearance on OutKick’s “Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich.”
“It was even more physical and physically demanding than we anticipated. All summer, every time one of our players would complain about a foul, our response would be, ‘We play in the Big Ten, you’ve got to play through it,'” May said.
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Michigan head coach Dusty May looks on during the first half against Michigan State on March 9, 2025. (IMAGN)
The Michigan coach said the coaching staff didn’t prepare the players well enough for the physical play.
“I don’t think we were as intentional enough at creating an environment of physicality every day. Whether it was pads, everything we did should have had – there’s no freedom of movement. Just giving bodies on bodies at all times, we didn’t prepare our guys well enough,” May said.
While May lamented the team’s preparation, he noted they weren’t built to play a physical game.
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Michigan head coach Dusty May talks to a referee regarding a call during the second half against Michigan State on March 9, 2025. (IMAGN)
“But also, we are not built that way. We have a lot of guys who are very skilled, and they’re finesse by nature. It’s not as if we recruited to it either we just tried to get the best players we could in a small window,” he explained.
The Michigan Wolverines are 22-9 this season going into the Big Ten tournament, and May appeared pleased with the team’s foundation in his first year.
“We laid a really strong foundation, we learned a lot, I learned an incredible amount, but those are the things that really jump out.”
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Michigan head coach Dusty May watches a play against Maryland during the first half at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor on March 5, 2025. (IMAGN)
May will look to further build on that foundation in the Big Ten tournament.
The Wolverines are the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten tournament and will play their first game on Friday at 9 p.m. ET. They will play the winner of USC and Purdue.
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