When Dusty May accepted the Michigan job last offseason, he inherited a tall task — pun intended — building a roster around two 7-foot transfer centers, Vlad Goldin and Danny Wolf, at a program coming off an eight-win season.
May admitted things “didn’t click right away,” pointing to a loss against Wake Forest in the second game of the season as a turning point. But his decision to stick with an unconventional lineup paid off when it mattered most.
No. 5 seed Michigan knocked off No. 4 Texas A&M 91-79 on Saturday in the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament, completing one of the most improbable turnarounds in college basketball history.
The Wolverines went 8-24 in Juwan Howard’s final season, their worst mark since the early 1980s. The program then moved on from one of its most beloved alumni and handed the reins to May, a 48-year-old with a reputation for fast rebuilds. Just two years after guiding Florida Atlantic to an improbable Final Four, May has now led Michigan to a Big Ten Tournament title and a trip to the Sweet 16.
No team in NCAA history (since the Sweet 16 was introduced in 1975) has ever lost as many games in one season and reached the second weekend of the tournament the next.
May’s quick rise at Michigan made him a top candidate to replace Mike Woodson at Indiana. May worked as a student manager for the Hoosiers under the legendary Bob Knight from 1996-2000 and naturally became a hot name in the IU search. May signed a multi-year contract extension with the Wolverines in February that runs through the spring of 2030. Indiana hired former West Virginia coach Darian DeVries to fill the vacancy earlier this month.
Michigan’s win over Texas A&M also pushed the Big Ten to a perfect 10-0 in the NCAA Tournament. The Wolverines became the conference’s second team to reach the Sweet 16, joining No. 4 seed Purdue, which beat No. 12 McNeese earlier in the day.
“We want the Big Ten to do well,” May said after the game. “I think we’re 10-0 right now, and all the coaches and players in our league knew this was possible — we battled tooth and nail every night. There are no nights off.”
The Wolverines trailed by as many as 10 points midway through the second half before clawing back by beating Texas A&M at its own game. The Aggies led the nation in offensive rebounds per game (13.5) but were edged 16-15 on the offensive glass — just the fourth time all season they were outworked in that category.
Winning close games has become Michigan’s calling card. The Wolverines are 14-4 this season in games decided by five points or fewer and have won 12 straight in that margin, including a 68-65 win over No. 12 seed UC San Diego in the first round.
Key transfer additions like Vlad Goldin, Danny Wolf, Tre Donaldson and Roddy Gayle Jr. have helped power the turnaround. Gayle, a former Ohio State guard, had his best performance in a Michigan uniform against the Aggies, scoring 21 of his 26 points in the second half to fuel the comeback.
The nucleus of this Michigan roster is built around its centers. As CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander pointed out earlier this season, Michigan is the only team in the country that plays two 7-footers in their lineup on a starting basis.
What makes Michigan’s frontcourt tandem unique is that Vlad Goldin and Danny Wolf don’t play like traditional 7-foot statues. Wolf operates as a point center, fluid with the ball in space and central to Michigan’s offense. Goldin is a double-double machine with NCAA Tournament experience.
They nearly became the first pair of 7-footers to each score 15 points in an NCAA Tournament game since 2008. Goldin finished with 23 points and 14 rebounds, while Wolf added 14 points.
“That’s why I’m here,” Goldin said of his relationship with May. “I’ve said it all season. I chose to be here because of the connection we built. That’s something I take pride in — I’m happy to be his player.”
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Michigan will face No. 1 seed Auburn in the Sweet 16, pitting National Player of the Year candidate Johni Broome, who struggled vs. Creighton (eight points on 4-for-13 shooting), against Michigan’s twin towers.
If May and Michigan stick with their unconventional formula, it might be a while before their tournament run ends. Either way, May has cemented his place as one of the sport’s fastest-rising coaches.
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