The Michigan Wolverines have lost just three times all season, and yet it still feels like there is another gear for this team.
Michigan has received production from every player that has seen meaningful time this year. Nonetheless, even when Nimari Burnett gets going from deep, Morez Johnson Jr. is dominating in the paint, Aday Mara is towering over the entire defense or Elliot Cadeau is catching fire, the Wolverines are at their best when Yaxel Lendeborg plays to his potential.
The Big Ten Player
of the Year and All-American averages 14.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists on 50.8 percent shooting. He was already being talked about as a lottery pick coming into the season, and now he has cemented himself in that category for the upcoming NBA Draft.
But with all his success and hype this season, Lendeborg had been relatively quiet in Michigan’s last few games. Facing Ohio State in the quarterfinal of the Big Ten Tournament, he posted just six points on 1-for-4 shooting. The following day against Wisconsin, he had just 12 points, making a last-second buzzer-beater triple to mask the quiet performance. And in Michigan’s matchup against Howard in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, he had nine points on 2-for-5 shooting.
The Wolverines still won those games, but on Saturday vs Saint Louis, Michigan dominated in a way it hadn’t done in months due to Lendeborg showing his entire arsenal on the big stage by being more aggressive.
The Billikens led the regular season in defensive field goal percentage, allowing just a 37.7 percent conversion rate. The Wolverines attacked the paint from the jump, and instead of continuing to use Lendeborg as a decoy, head coach Dusty May put the ball in his star player’s hands.
“The first half, we thought that he played an average game for him,” May said. “We looked at the stat sheet — I think he had 11 and filled up the stat sheet like he always does. He just has such a high ceiling. He obviously had about 50 great plays, and man, he’s a special player, special person. But to see his growth and to see how great of a teammate he is for the situation is even more impressive.
“Everyone is asking him to be more aggressive. We’re asking him to be on the perimeter when those two ultra talented players are in the game and be more of a spacer and a post feeder and a cutter, and then when one of them checks out, to play a different role and style. It’s not always easy just to say be aggressive. Being aggressive can mean a lot of things. Drive into a hornet’s nest, spacing, and you turn it over, that’s bad aggression. I think he’s done an unbelievable job of giving what the game has given him and playing smart, practical basketball all year.”
Lendeborg finished with 25 points and six rebounds, shooting 9-for-13 from the field and 3-for-5 from three. His 12 points in the paint were the most since Feb. 11 at Northwestern, showing the change in mindset played a key part in Michigan’s dominant 95-72 win.
The Wolverines have been susceptible to giving up big runs out of the halftime break in recent weeks. In the Big Ten Tournament, Michigan gave up nine quick points to Ohio State while committing three turnovers in the opening minutes. In the Championship Game, Purdue went 11-for-13 to open the half and took a 13-point lead with 10 minutes left.
Saint Louis tried a similar approach, with big man Robbie Avila coming out firing with two threes to start the second half. But Lendeborg never let the game get out of hand.
“All season long we struggled coming out aggressively in the second half,” Lendeborg said. “Thursday kind of shifted for us because we really needed that second half for us to separate. We’re just learning from our mistakes against Purdue. We let them step away.
“We’re going to start coming out more aggressively in the second half from now on. When they started going on their run, it went back to learning on each other and playing poised and believing we can compete with anybody.”
Lendeborg already had the attention from NBA scouts and love from Michigan fans. But between his posterizing dunks, consistency from three and selflessness with the talent that is around him, the team’s ceiling truly relies on his play. If he can stay aggressive and continue to grow in confidence, Michigan is going to be a tough out.
