Michigan

Michigan basketball’s Tre Donaldson embracing villain role for Purdue clash

Published

1 year ago

January 24, 2025

Press Room

Michigan basketball’s Tre Donaldson embracing villain role for Purdue clash

All across Big Ten country, there’s a bit of a mystique that surrounds the aura of basketball facilities in Indiana.

Much like SEC-land for football, those in the Hoosier State say basketball just means more and a trio of college hoops cathedrals — from Butler’s Hinkle Fieldhouse to Indiana’s Assembly Hall to Purdue’s Mackey Arena — are just further evidence for that claim.

Not that Tre Donaldson is paying any mind to that.

Michigan basketball’s point guard is one several Wolverines who will be playing at Mackey in West Lafayette — perhaps the toughest of the bunch — for the first time on Friday as U-M visits the Boilermakers (8 p.m., Fox).

“Coming up north, everybody talks about Mackey, down south we don’t talk about arenas how everybody does up here,” Donaldson told media Thursday morning. “I guess it’s like a big deal? I haven’t really looked into it like that, not trying to be disrespectful or anything. I haven’t like, I don’t even know.

“We played at UCLA, at the Pavilion, I know a little bit about that. But not much about Mackey.”

A Tallahassee, Florida, native who played at Auburn the past two seasons, the former SEC guard was immediately asked about the toughest environments he had seen, with Kentucky’s Rupp Arena cited as a potential example.

“Rupp was crazy. That’s more my speed, being from down south,” he said. “That’s how Mackey is? They shoot fireworks at Mackey? In Rupp, they shoot fireworks for starters, indoors, like that blow up and cover everything.”

[ MUST LISTEN: Make “Hail Yes!” your go-to Michigan Wolverines podcast, available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify) ]

U-M’s brash point guard didn’t intend to display any disrespect, but he also isn’t willing to give an inch to the opponent, either.

A former four-star safety (and top-300 overall recruit per 247 Sports’ composite rankings) in the class of 2022, Donaldson ultimately chose to give up the gridiron for a life on the hardwood, but his mentality has carried over.

He has seen NCAA tournament environments and played rivals such as Alabama on the road, and as far as he’s concerned, there haven’t been enough of those opportunities to date.

“I’m on go whenever, like it doesn’t matter to me,” Donaldson said with a laugh. “I’m ready whenever. Whenever it goes down, it goes down. I’ll deal with it when it comes, that’s just mentally how I’m wired. I feel like (football) played a part in.”

Donaldson might also be irked by a feeling that he’s not fully on the Boilermakers’ radar. A backup his first two years at Auburn, Donaldson is now the emotional leader of a surprisingly good U-M team ostensibly built around a pair of primary stars in 7-footers Vladislav Goldin and Danny Wolf.

Likewise, during the media availability Thursday ahead of the the matchup between No. 20 Michigan (14-4, 6-1 Big Ten) and No. 12 Purdue (15-5, 6-2), there were several questions about another point guard, Purdue’s Braden Smith.

Smith has been perhaps the top point guard in the league this season, averaging 15 points and a conference-leading 8.9 assists — with nearly three times as many assists (177) as turnovers (57). The junior drew praise from U-M’s defensive coordinator, Mike Boynton Jr., on Thursday, too..

“I didn’t appreciate how smart he was,” Boynton said, referencing his film study. “He’s had so many reps, the benefit of being in a system over time. … It’s almost like he knows exactly what to expect every single possession, so with a guy like that, you gotta keep him off balance.

“Like a great quarterback, he knows the coverage, he’s going to make a play.”

For his part, Donaldson didn’t seem concerned over how to stop the pick-and-roll duo of Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue’s big man now averaging 18.3 points and 6.5 rebounds a night.

“I mean just Braden Smith’s basketball …” Donaldson said before cutting himself off. “I mean, they gonna have to guard too. Everybody wants to give them their flowers offensively. They got to come down to the other end and guard us as well.”

Donaldson has had more assists than turnovers in five consecutive games, a stretch that saw him average eight points and five assists in two home games and 16.7 points and six assists in three games away from Crisler Center.

As U-M goes into its toughest test yet, Donaldson is ready to try and silence the loudest crowd yet.

“I like it better, I feel like I play better on the road,” Donaldson said. “I go in there, I want everybody to hate me. I’m jumping around, singing the whole time during warmups. Like, that’s just who I am.

“I take on that villain role on the road and I enjoy it.”

Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.

Source link

Click to comment

Michigan

Woman struck, fatally injured, while walking on the Lodge Freeway, state police say

Published

3 hours ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

Woman struck, fatally injured, while walking on the Lodge Freeway, state police say

March 27, 2026 / 7:44 AM EDT
/ CBS Detroit

A pedestrian was struck and died of her injuries early Friday on the Lodge Freeway in Detroit.

Emergency dispatchers started to get calls about 2:30 a.m. about someone who was walking along the Lodge, and then were notified that the person had been struck by a vehicle, the Michigan State Police reported.

When troopers arrived, they found multiple cars stopped along the freeway, and people standing around a woman who was severely injured.

Detroit EMS pronounced the woman dead at the scene, state police said. She has not yet been identified.

The driver who struck the woman did not stay at the scene.

“Troopers are currently using technology that is available in the area to identify the vehicle involved,” MSP F/Lt. Mike Shaw said.

The Lodge Freeway, also known as M-10, was closed at about 2:46 a.m. Friday between Chicago Boulevard / Hamilton Avenue and Clairmount Street for the investigation and emergency assistance, according to Michigan Department of Transportation reports. The Lodge was reported back open at 6:05 a.m.

Michigan Department of Transportation traffic reports are at the MI Drive site.

State police said their investigation is continuing. Those who witnessed the crash or have other information are asked to call the MSP Metro South Post at 734-287-5000 or Crime Stoppers of Michigan at 800-SPEAK-UP.

In:

Source link

Michigan

List of active weather alerts as severe weather moves through Southeast Michigan

Published

15 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

List of active weather alerts as severe weather moves through Southeast Michigan

Severe storms bring risk of tornadoes, hail, flooding

4Warn Weather – The severe thunderstorm warnings in Monroe and Lenawee counties have expired.

A ground stoppage has also been deployed.

Click here for the latest forecast from our 4Warn Weather team.

Here’s a list of the alerts by county.

Wayne County

No active weather alerts.

Oakland County

No active weather alerts.

Macomb County

No active weather alerts.

Washtenaw County

No active weather alerts.

Monroe County

Severe thunderstorm warning expired at 8 p.m.

Livingston County

No active weather alerts.

Lenawee County

Severe thunderstorm warning expired at 7:45 p.m.

Lapeer County

No active weather alerts.

Genesee County

No active weather alerts.

St. Clair County

No active weather alerts.

Sanilac County

No active weather alerts.

Source link

Michigan

Michigan football emphasizes return of discipline under new regime

Published

1 day ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

Michigan football emphasizes return of discipline under new regime

The buzzword continued to come up in Schembechler Hall, from each one of the captains.

From Bryce Underwood to Jordan Marshall, Rod Moore to Trey Pierce − Michigan football players around for the previous regime and in the case of the latter two, the one before that too − each said Wednesday, March 25, that there’s a noticeable difference within the program under new coach Kyle Whittingham.

For Moore, a sixth-year player who will likely become a third-time captain when the official leaders are voted on later this summer, he recognized the vibe.

“I would say it’s kind of a similarity to coach Harbaugh’s regimen,” he said. “It’s a lot more strict than the past two years, and the weight room has kind of been a night-and-day difference than the past two years. We feel a lot stronger, a lot more progress.”

The Wolverines finished winter conditioning and Whittingham graded it with an “A+.” Hope is often the dominant mode at this time of year and adding a new coaching staff to what’s generally a positive time creates little surprise that the Wolverines are raving about the new system.

But beyond the platitudes and clichés, there are tangible examples. Take Pierce: The projected starting defensive tackle has trimmed his weight to 300 pounds while adding muscle mass to his overall frame.

“Something new that we have now is that whenever we start meetings, there’s like a loud air horn that goes off throughout the whole building,” Moore said. “The past two years, we would start the meeting at 2:30, but now we start the meeting at 2:25, even though it’s a 2:30 meeting. Just everyone being five minutes early. The coaches are holding everyone accountable in the meetings, going to class.

“Just the little things that makes a team great, not just the big, broad things that everyone sees.”

There was an implication from everyone, though nothing said explicitly, that the past two seasons featured little enforcement. Most players would show up on time for lifts, but there were those who didn’t, with few repercussions.

“It’s the little things,” Pierce said. “Guys being late for lifts, guys not being where they’re supposed to be, whether it’s [missing] class. Just enforcing that a little bit heavier, that type of thing. … A lot of coaches say that when you’re being recruited in front of your parents. But for [Whittingham] to say that in front of the huddle after practice and say, ‘That’s why I’m here,’ I would say, ‘OK, he cares. He gets it.’”

Throughout the offseason, some who’ve spent time inside the facility said the weightlifting sessions had notably more juice. The past two years felt like a carryover of the previous years in terms of style, but accountability and discipline wavered.

Now, with Doug Elisaia leading the strength and conditioning room, there are different philosophies.

Practices are a bit shorter these days – two hours – but as Marshall said, “I don’t stop moving at practice, like, we’re always doing something that’s not only going to help with us competing with teams, but our conditioning.”

Marshall believes it can take the Wolverines to the next level, he said.

Just more than a week into spring ball, players are oozing confidence. Not just in their skills − the running back room is deep, the wide receiver room has as much raw talent as at any point the past decade, the offensive line returned multiple key pieces, the secondary added depth and the defensive tackles feel underrated − but in mindset.

U-M had early, demanding lifting sessions during winter conditioning, with a clear organization.

“It introduces that factor of toughness, like we’ve been through this at 6:30 a.m., 6:15 a.m., all these days in the grind together,” Pierce said. “It improves team bonding, and puts you in the headspace of, we’ve done harder stuff than this, and nothing can break us.”

The difference between winning and losing can often be razor-thin. Will this pay off when it counts during the season?

“If I can trust you to do things maybe you don’t want to do,” Marshall said, “then I can trust you on the field when it’s the fourth quarter and we have one minute left.”

Tony Garcia is the Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.

Source link