If you want to say Michigan Tech is in the middle of nowhere, we’ll allow it. The men’s basketball team traveled four hours by bus to Green Bay for a game Wednesday, and then four hours back to campus in Houghton, in the ear of the Upper Peninsula, and that’s the shortest road trip it will have all season.

Just don’t called Michigan Tech “Nobody U,” not anymore, not after the Division II program made national headlines Wednesday with its 72-70 win over Division I Green Bay.

The win came after Green Bay’s new head coach, sports-media personality Doug Gottlieb, made the “Nobody U” comment ahead of the Michigan Tech game ― though Gottlieb has insisted he wasn’t speaking specifically of Michigan Tech, and Michigan Tech head coach Josh Buettner didn’t take it personally, either.

Of course, that didn’t stop Buettner from using the clip of Gottlieb as motivation for his players in practice this week.

“I listened to his press conference. I’m not trying to squash (Gottlieb’s comments), but if you read the whole thing, I don’t think it’s a direct shot at us,” Buettner told The News after arriving back on campus Wednesday night. “(But) we had showed the guys (the clip). Any form of motivation you can get, you’re gonna do it.

“We were somewhat prepared that it would be a pretty big story (after Tech won) … and it’s even more than what I thought it would be. I’m happy for the guys. I’m happy for Michigan Tech.”

Gottlieb, 48, has been a lightning rod this season, his first as a Division I had basketball coach, in large part because he continues to host his daily talk show on Fox Sports Radio.

The double-dipping was embraced locally in Green Bay, because Gottlieb was certain to bring visibility to the program in an era where visibility ― and donor dollars ― are so paramount. Of course, visibility doesn’t seem like such a good thing anymore, as Green Bay is off to a 2-11 start after the loss to Michigan Tech (the game was an exhibition for Tech, but not for Green Bay), including eighth straight losses.

Green Bay’s struggles are so bad that it even led to an X (formerly Twitter) war of words between ESPN’s Adam Scheffter and Gottlieb on Tuesday, when Gottlieb questioned Schefter’s sources on a story, and Schefter responded by telling Gottlieb to spend less time on social media and more time coaching his team, as the losses are piling up.

“Obviously, everybody knows Coach Gottlieb’s gonna have a little bit of a target … hosting that radio show, he’s putting himself out there,” Buettner said. “He’s kind of in a no-win situation when the world’s looking at and listening to everything you have to say.”

Following Michigan Tech’s win Wednesday, before a crowd of more than 5,000 (including many Michigan Tech alums and fans) at Resch Center in Green Bay, many X users took a dig at Gottlieb over losing to “Nobody U.” Gottlieb took exception, saying he was “done with this crap” and that he never disrespected any opponent.

Buettner backs up Gottlieb’s comments, and even pointed out that Gottlieb was complimentary of Michigan Tech on a podcast leading up Wednesday’s game.

Gottlieb’s point with “Nobody U,” he said, was that he was going to have to rethink how he scheduled in the future. He scheduled tough this season, with games against Oklahoma State, Providence and Ohio State, and that it hasn’t looked pretty. And next up is a game at Drake, which is teetering on the brink of the Associated Press Top 25, on Saturday, It’s a fine line, Gottlieb said; he made the argument you can learn more your team losing to a power program that beating a low-level program, and that’s where he threw out the “Nobody U” line.

“We just happened to be the DII team that was coming up right after he said it,” Buettner said.

Michigan Tech, with the win Wednesday, sent a statement to the rest of a very good Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference that it means business. Michigan Tech is 7-3 on the season, including 2-0 in the GLIAC.

The Huskies won behind a 30-point game from junior guard Marcus Tomashek, who just happens to be a Green Bay native, but wasn’t recruited by the program in the years preceding Gottlieb’s stunning hiring in May. Tomashek is averaging 24.1 points on the season, not including the Green Bay exhibition. He’s scored 30 in a game three other times, and 40 once. It was fun to see, Buettner said, though he knows Wednesday’s performance almost certainly should put Tomashek on the Division I radar should be want to transfer up after the season.

Tomashek is one of 10 Wisconsin natives on Michigan Tech’s roster; the other six are Michigan natives. The school is academics first, known for its engineering. So Buettner, a former Michigan Tech standout, has played the long game since he was hired in April 2021, developing players out of high school. Many of those players are juniors and seniors now, and the fruits of his labor are shining through.

That’s the story Buettner wants to talk about, not the Gottlieb criticism. For the record, the two didn’t say much in the handshake line Wednesday. Gottlieb congratulated Buettner, and then walked away, to face a firestorm on X. Buettner, meanwhile, got in the bus, for the four-hour ride home ― a drive that, suddenly, didn’t seem so bad.

“It didn’t, and that’s short for us. The Chick-fil-A tasted great,” Buettner, whose team got paid a few thousand bucks to play Green Bay, said with a chuckle. “It was a great opportunity for us going into the Christmas break. … And people are talking about Michigan Tech, and Michigan Tech is a great university and a great place.

“It’s awesome for Michigan Tech. It’s a really good school in a unique part of the country.”

In the middle of nowhere, perhaps.

Nobody U, not so much.

tpaul@detroitnews.com

@tonypaul1984

DEARBORN, Mich. (WXYZ) — Michigan is all set to roll out its new law banning the sale and production of caged eggs across the state.

The law that was passed in 2019 will be enacted starting Dec. 31, 2024. This places Michigan among the 10 states in the country to ban the production of caged eggs.

But will this lead to an increase in egg prices? And who will it impact the most?

Egg Bar is one of the fresh new restaurants to hit the streets of Dearborn. The co-founder, Karl Makky, says they take pride in the food they serve.

Just about every item on the menu involves an egg.

“Even the bread has eggs in it,” Makky said.

To crack this wide open, Egg Bar place uses more than 800 eggs a day, spending more than $5,000 a month. For them, eggs being important is an understatement.

“One hundred percent. Life for Egg Bar depends on eggs,” Makky said.

It turns out all the eggs used at the restaurant are pasture-raised, cage-free eggs.

“Because that was our statement. We wanted to give the customer the best egg. And animal cruelty, we have a soft spot for animals,” Makky said.

“So you must be welcoming this new rule which is coming to Michigan starting December 31st, any egg sold in Michigan has to be cage-free eggs,” said Javed.

“Yes, I am. But I wish they would have done it from the very beginning. So now, the punishment is on the restaurant and on the customers,” Makky said. “Because the prices are going to go up.”

But Dr. Nancy Barr with Michigan Allied Poultry Industries has the other side.

“I don’t think so. Again, the supply and the demand is really the major factor for egg prices. And because of the impacts of the highly pathogenic avian influenza over the past year or two… that’s why you are seeing higher egg prices now,” Barr said.

Hear more from Nancy Barr in the video player below:

FULL INTERVIEW: Dr. Nancy Barr talks about cage free egg law

Even though whole egg prices are set on the commodities market, in the long run, Barr says supply should not be an issue. And that’s because the state law, which only allows the sale and production of cage-free eggs, was signed in 2019 and was given a five-year, phase-in period.

“Our farmers have been committed to moving in this direction, so they’ve been doing it over a number of years and they are ready to supply all the eggs Michigan needs,” Barr said.

The new requirement exempts eggs produced at farms with less than 3,000 egg-laying hens. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development will monitor the cage-free standard.

Barr says the quality and taste of the eggs won’t change “a bit” and customers should not notice a difference.

“Only that the company that is selling the eggs has labeled the carton as such,” Barr said.

Barr also says that even if egg prices rise in the new year, they will still be an affordable source of quality protein.

Oklahoma will take its unbeaten record to a neutral site showdown for a matchup with upstart Michigan. 

While the Wolverines have dropped two straight after an 8-0 start, they appear to be a formidable Big Ten unit this season under first-year head coach Dusty May. They are poised to take down 10-0 Oklahoma as favorites in Charlotte on Wednesday. 

How do these two teams match up? Will OU maintain its sterling record, or can the Wolverines show that the two-game skid is nothing more than a blip on what should be a strong first campaign from May in Ann Arbor? 

Here’s our betting preview. 

Spread

Moneyline

Total: 150.5 (Over -110/Under -110)

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Oklahoma

Jeremiah Fears: The freshman has been stellar in starting his career in Norman, averaging nearly 17 points per game with three rebounds and nearly five assists while doing an excellent job of getting to the free-throw line.

Michigan

Danny Wolf: The Yale transfer has been an instant star for the Wolverines, playing point forward as the team’s leader in assist rate while also contributing as a top three score as a threat from both inside and out. Wolf is scoring more than 12 points per game with nearly 10 rebounds and three assists, one of the Big Ten’s unique talents. 

Michigan is over-reliant on Wolf’s creation as its backcourt is way too sloppy with the ball. Overall, the Wolverines are 335th in turnover rate with its best offense being Wolf and Vladislav Goldin’s two-man game. While effective, the Sooners’ defense is elite against the pick-and-roll and is a turnover-minded defense that ranks top 20 in the country in turnover percentage. 

Michigan’s inability to protect the rock and stop transition opportunities for opponents, ranking below the national average in points allowed per possession in transition against an OU offense that loves to hunt for opportunities in the open court. 

This game should be open with plenty of possessions, and Michigan should find answers around the rim against a limited OU frontcourt that is 239th in points allowed near the rim, per Haslametrics. I expect a big night for Wolf and Goldin around the rim. 

However, the OU offense should be able to win on the margins with transition buckets and a justified top-50 effective field goal rate. 

In what should be a back-and-forth affair, I’ll side with the over in Charlotte. 

PICK: OVER 150.5

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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