Michigan head basketball coach had some great things to say a day before heading to Penn State for a tough road game within the Big Ten.
If you're a fan of basketball, you love to hear Dusty May talk. If you're a Michigan fan, you love it even more.
May and his No. 2 ranked Wolverines will be at Penn State on Tuesday evening to take on a scrappy, 9-5 Nittany Lions team. Michigan is favored by a whopping 22.5 points over the Nittany Lions, but things have been tough on the road against PSU in the past. Before the team hit the road, May took to the podium to drop some knowledge on everyone.
"I can't imagine there's a more valuable sixth man than Roddy Gayle in all of college basketball."
May is obviously biased, and is going to speak highly of his own player, but this is not hyperbole. Gayle started 25 games for the Wolverines last year but has transitioned to his role as the first man off the bench this year seamlessly. He's playing big minutes for the Wolverines and continues to do everything that made him a reliable starter last year. He's tough, physical, smart and experienced, which makes him invaluable on U-M's second unit.
Gayle brings a lot of intangibles to the court but he's also a damn good player. He's shooting just under 35% from three-point range, he's the best finisher at the rim on the team, he's an excellent perimeter defender and he rebounds very well for a 6-5 combo guard. His numbers aren't exactly eye-popping at 10.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2 assists per game, but he does so many other things and makes so many winning plays that don't show up on the stat sheet that May can say what he did about him and mean it.
"No, I don't really want to be in one-possession games."
I love this quote from May. A lot of coaches might do the coach-speak thing and say, 'Yeah, a tough game would give us a challenge we're looking for," but not Dusty. He knows his team is playing well and he wants to keep doing that. He did go on to say that if his squad ends up in a close game while both teams are playing well, then so be it. But he doesn't see the need to manufacture "seriousness" in a game. Every game is important and if you're playing well and winning by 30 like Michigan is, you'll take that.
"There's going to be several teams in our league that go into Happy Valley and leave very disappointed in the result, and we just want to make sure that we're not one of them."
Another great quote from May. He knows that his team is supposed to go into Happy Valley and win by a wide margin, but he also knows that it's not a guarantee just because of what it says on paper. May referred the loss at Minnesota several times during his press conference, which implies that he is drilling home the message about not sleeping on "inferior" teams, especially on the road. Penn State is currently 9-5 overall and hasn't won a game in the Big Ten, and May and Co. are going to do everything in their power to keep it that way.
"I think there's a real community to our group and they're accountable to each other."
This is definitely something that you can see on the court. Obviously we the media and the fans aren't privy to the day to day operations of the program, but what goes on behind closed doors often spills out onto the court, and what we routinely see is a group of guys that loves each other. They're happy for one another's success, they want walk-ons and bench players to get in and shine and they obviously play really, really well together.
When May says things like community, accountability, team effort, leadership and next man up, it's not coach speak. You can see all of those traits oozing from the starting five, the backups and even way down the bench. Everyone has bought in and they realize that they are on a roll and could be hooping towards something very special.
"I still think we have another jump to make as far as shooting the ball."
Excuse me?! How much better can this team get, Coach???
Michigan is currently sitting at 13-0 with several massive blowout wins under its belt. The Wolverines have compiled multiple 30-40+ point victories over ranked teams. There was even a 50-point smackdown in there. Some of the top analytics rankings like KenPom #1 have U-M as the best team in the country and it's not particularly close. Michigan boasts elite offensive and defensive efficiency and they've already broken some Big Ten records with their overwhelming margins of victory.
The Wolverines are playing a fast, modern style of basketball under May, positioning them as a top contender and arguably the best team in the nation. They currently sit at No. 2 nationally, behind just Arizona, but the gap between the Wildcats and Wolverines is getting smaller and smaller.