Michigan
For Michigan basketball, matchup with Oakland at LCA ‘made sense on all the fronts’
Greg Kampe is entering his 41st year with Oakland basketball while Dusty May is beginning his first with Michigan basketball.
But despite the 40-year gap in experience at their respective programs, both jumped at the chance to bring a charity exhibition basketball game to Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena on Sunday as the unofficial tipoff to the 2024-25 season for the Wolverines and Golden Grizzlies.
“Extremely excited to play in front of our fans in Detroit, at LCA and for a great cause as well,” May said Thursday. “It’s been a long offseason I think for everyone in college basketball, so now it’s an opportunity for us to turn our attention to the most important thing, which is the players playing games. And you know, we couldn’t be more excited.”
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“Yeah, I’m really pleased Dusty decided to play the game,” Kampe added. “We had a conversation when he got the job and you know, my thing was this will be the first time Michigan fans will get to see his team play, and why not do it in the Mecca of basketball in the Detroit area?
According to Kampe — currently the longest-tenured Division I coach at a single school, and coming off a second-round appearance in the NCAA tournament — he reached out to May almost immediately after Michigan hired him.
At the Final Four, the two discussed a meeting if the NCAA followed through on allowing D-I teams to play non-charity exhibitions, and they began connecting the appropriate parties to line it up.
But the NCAA hasn’t changed its rules on D-I exhibitions yet, so the programs will play for charity and raise funds for Forgotten Harvest, which works “with communities to end hunger and create individual, neighborhood, economic and environmental health” by “rescuing food surpluses from grocery stores, markets, restaurants, caterers, and more” and delivering it to metro Detroit emergency food providers.
May said the game’s location in Detroit prompted the choice of a Detroit charity over options in Ann Arbor or elsewhere.
And the two teams aren’t just playing for charity, they’re putting in the work. Earlier this month, members of both teams got together at Forgotten Harvest’s warehouse in Oak Park to tour the facility, pack apples and do their part to give back.
“I know my guys reflected afterwards and felt pretty good, that maybe they made a little small dent into everything we’re trying to do,” Kampe said.
As for on the court, May said he wanted to schedule the Grizzlies because of Kampe’s unique zone defense. Several Big Ten teams will play matchup zones, he said, so why not get a look at one of the most unique?
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“We don’t want to play ourselves, we can do that in practice, we want someone with a contrasting style,” May said. “For us, it comes down to, is it good for our guys, good for the program and good for the game of basketball? … So it made sense on all the fronts.”
That’s especially important since, from the way May made it sound, the Wolverines have had very few practices featuring their entire team.
“From our point of view, we’re simply excited to see our team play,” May said. “The more our guys can play together, the more beneficial it’s going to be. We’re a work in progress, we haven’t had our roster together for practice because of injuries and illnesses and whatnot, so just to see where we are for October.
“So there’s really no expectations other than go out and play as hard as we possibly can and develop the on-court chemistry that you need on game nights.”
Still, only one Wolverine is not expected to play Sunday: freshman Justin Pippen, the son of former Chicago Bulls star Scottie Pippen.
He called the rest “knick-knack injuries … like most teams are having.” He added that with U-M’s goal being to play its most meaningful games in February, March and “hopefully April,” the team has no intention of playing players through even minor injuries early.
Even with the injuries, May said he likes what he has seen early.
“We share the ball, have a team that puts the time in the gym,” May said. “They put the elbow grease in. As far as (what’s) concerning, you never know how well you will rebound the ball and take care of it until you see someone else. … Until you’ve done it, you don’t know.
“But overall, pleased with how well our group has worked together.”
Two employees who refused to serve a man and his wife because he was wearing a hoodie with President Trump’s name on it were fired after a video of the heated encounter went viral.
Erika Lindemyer and her husband, Jake, were forced out of a Smoothie King franchise location in Ann Arbor, Michigan, following a fiery clash with two young female workers on Sunday.
The employees claimed they didn’t “feel comfortable” serving the couple because of Jake’s pro-Trump hoodie, as captured by Erika in a viral video.
Jake and Erika fired back at the pair and insisted that they were being “discriminated” against based on their “political views.”
“We were just wanting a smoothie and you literally looked at us and I asked you if everything was OK and you said ‘We don’t feel comfortable serving you’ because of my husband’s hoodie. That is discrimination,” Erika spat.
“Okay, well, have a great day,” the first employee said.
“That is illegal,” Erika tried to insist again.
“I said Trump discriminates [against] us,” another employee chimed in.
“Okay, well that has nothing to do with us getting a smoothie!” Erika guffawed.
“OK, well that’s who you support though, that’s who you love,” the first employee chided.
“What’s embarrassing is that we’re American citizens and I wanted to get a smoothie,” Erika huffed.
The second employee noted that they “have a right to refuse service” and directed the couple to the exit.
“You asked a question and [the other employee] gave you an answer. Have a great day. Have a great day. The door’s right there,” the second worker said.
Trump merchandise. Leftism/X
Erika threatened to call the police while storming out, but it’s unclear if she did.
In a separate video shared Monday, one of the workers joked that she might’ve “accidentally started a race war” and called on the public to help remove Erika’s video.
“I am a minor and she recorded me without my permission. The people in the comments are all white and they’re all being hella racist, guys, please help me get this video taken down,” she implored.
Smoothie King confirmed that the girls involved in the viral confrontation “are no longer with the business” as of Monday.
“As a brand, Smoothie King is committed to ensuring our stores are a place free of discrimination of any kind, where every guest and team member is treated with care and respect,” the company wrote on X.
The owner of the Ann Arbor franchise location will also enforce “mandatory retraining for all employees that outlines our guest experience standards.”
In early December, a woman who worked at a Target in California was berated by a customer for wearing a Charlie Kirk “Freedom” T-shirt.
When the employee insisted she was allowed to wear the red shirt, the irate customer accused her of supporting “a racist.”
The medical center where the agitated customer worked was bombarded with upwards of 6,000 “profanity-laced” phone calls after online sleuths doxxed her personal information.
Ann Arbor — The Wolverines won the outright Big Ten regular-season title with two games to go, but it came at a great cost.
L.J. Cason, Michigan’s backup point guard and a key piece of the rotation, tore his right ACL in the championship-clinching win at Illinois. Just like that, Cason’s season was over and Michigan was hit with a brutal blow.
But when adversity strikes, opportunity knocks. While the team won’t be the same without Cason, coach Dusty May believes Michigan has backcourt pieces who can step up and make up for the loss.
“This is a great opportunity for Roddy (Gayle Jr.), Trey (McKenney) and Nimari (Burnett) to play more, and those guys are really good players,” May said Monday. “Our rotation has been nine and nine, I think, is too deep. It’s playing too many guys, if you want to optimize everyone. But we felt like we had nine guys that deserved to play, that gave us a different element.
“We look at this as another challenge, but it’s also an opportunity for guys to play a little bit more, to play longer periods, to play through a mistake, to play a little bit different role. We do feel like these guys are a lot better than they were earlier this year, so we’re prepared to handle whatever comes at us.”
May said he doesn’t know exactly when Cason tore his ACL, and neither does Cason. The sophomore guard fell to the court and got up favoring his right leg on two separate occasions against Illinois.
The first instance came in the final minute of the first half, when Cason tipped a long rebound ahead and chased it down to start a fast break. After he grabbed the ball in the air and bounced it backward between his legs to a trailing teammate, Cason went down. He got up hobbling, was subbed out and went back to the locker room.
Cason briefly checked back in during the second half and scored a driving layup a minute into his shift. But on Michigan’s next possession, he fell down after trying to score through contact and got up limping again. Shortly after that, Cason motioned to the Michigan bench to be taken out of the game and he exited for good.
“At halftime, the training staff came and said basically he’s passed all of his jump test. He just did the bike. He says he’s 100% ready to go. I was surprised, because I was expecting him to be out,” May said. “I said, ‘What about the test?’ They said both of his knees are loose, so it’s hard. We don’t feel that anything is torn.
“He comes back in. He lands funny again. … It’s unfortunate for him because he was playing so well. When an ACL pops on a noncontact injury, you’re like, ‘Man, what could we have done different?’ When it happens on a funny, quirky play, usually those are the ones that aren’t preventable.”
May added it hasn’t been determined yet when Cason will undergo surgery. Given the typical recovery timeline for a torn ACL ranges anywhere from nine to 12 months, May said Cason redshirting next season is a possibility that’s “on the table.”
“That’s certainly been discussed as well, and then that impacts the recruiting decision-making,” May said. “But right now, we’re still trying to figure out when he’s going to have it. What’s the timeline? Does it make sense to go ahead and sit out next year? … We haven’t made any definitive decisions, because all the information is so inconclusive.”
Moving forward, the plan isn’t to have just one guy replace Cason, who averaged 8.4 points and 2.4 assists in 18.6 minutes per game, shot 40.2% from 3-point range and served as a facilitator when starting point guard Elliot Cadeau wasn’t on the court. It’ll be a by-committee approach.
That said, Cason’s absence is certainly going to put much more on Cadeau’s shoulders. The Wolverines can ill afford to have Cadeau commit unnecessary fouls and miss long stretches at a time. Without Cason, Cadeau is the one guard who can break down opposing defenses off the dribble and create for others.
“This will force Elliot to be much more solid with his defensive decision-making when it comes to fouling,” May said. “He doesn’t have that insurance policy anymore named L.J. behind him, because L.J. came in and carried the load several games for our group. That’s not there anymore.”
While Burnett, Gayle and McKenney haven’t had to be facilitators in their roles this season, May expressed confidence all three can take on minutes with the ball in their hands and initiate the offense.
Even beyond the guards, May noted the team has “other capable weapons” who can serve as triggers on offense depending on the matchup, like forwards Yaxel Lendeborg and Morez Johnson Jr. and big man Aday Mara.
Add it all together, May feels the Wolverines can find a way to absorb the blow, fill the void and forge ahead with Cason sidelined.
“We have enough to overcome what L.J. brought to the team,” May said. “I don’t know if he’s the best backup point guard in the country, but I can’t think of one that’s better. We’re losing a lot, but once again, we’re not going to sit here and look at it from that angle.
“This is an opportunity for all these other guys to do a little bit more, and they’re more than capable. It’s on us to find the right rotations and situations. Without a doubt, we have a lot of confidence in our roster.”
jhawkins@detroitnews.com
@jamesbhawkins
The Michigan State Police is looking for the driver of a Jeep that the agency said hit one of its patrol cars on Lodge Freeway in Detroit Sunday night.
According to officials, the incident happened at 7:50 p.m. on the northbound side of the freeway near Shaefer Highway. The agency said a trooper was investigating a crash and had the patrol car parked on the right shoulder of the freeway with its emergency lights on when it was rear-ended by the Jeep.
“The impact forced the patrol car to strike the concrete wall on the right shoulder,” according to the agency.
The Jeep then went across three lanes of the freeway and hit a median wall, officials said. The driver, identified by law enforcement as a 29-year-old Detroit woman, left the vehicle and fled the scene.
Michigan State Police First Lieutenant Mike Shaw said that while the trooper was evaluated and cleared at the scene by medical personnel, he was still taken to the hospital as a precaution.
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