6 takeaways from Michigan Basketball’s exhibition win vs Oregon State

A familiar face came to Ann Arbor for Michigan men’s basketball’s second exhibition game of the season, with the Wolverines hosting Justin Joyner and the Oregon State Beavers on Friday night. In a back-and-forth battle, Michigan did just enough in the final minutes to come away with a 98-93 win.

This was a good test for the Wolverines. Not only does Joyner know Michigan’s coaching staff and returning players well after spending two years in Ann Arbor as an assistant, but his OSU roster featured plenty of size, including three seven-footers in Peteris Pinnis (7-foot-2), Dennis Evans (7-foot) and Xavion Staton (7-foot-1).

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Michigan maintained a double-digit lead for a large portion of the first half, but Oregon State cut the lead to three by halftime after knocking down some tough threes. The game was back-and-forth in the second half, but Elliot Cadeau carried Michigan offensively when the Wolverines needed a bucket late.

Here are some takeaways from the exhibition game.

Remember, it’s just an exhibition

As exciting as it is to see Michigan on the floor again, these games are essentially scrimmages, where coaches are more so experimenting with lineups than trying to do everything possible to win.

There were several aspects of the game that Michigan could have looked better in; the transition defense wasn’t great, the offense lacked flow for stretches, and the Wolverines forced a few threes. But Michigan got plenty of open looks and made a good amount of them. U-M also did a decent job taking care of the basketball, logging just seven turnovers, including just four in the first half.

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Overall, this looks like a group that is still working to develop chemistry, which is perfectly reasonable for a mid-October exhibition against a team projected to finish in the middle of the pack in the Pac-12. There’s a lot of stuff that could be ironed out, but Michigan still has a few weeks before these games count towards their record.

Elliot Cadeau takes over the second…

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Publish date : 2026-10-17 01:17:00

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