ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan’s new transfers made an early impression in Ann Arbor as the Wolverines opened exhibition play with an 87-62 win over Eastern Michigan on Sunday at Crisler Center.
Cincinnati transfer Moustapha Thiam won the opening tip and scored on a lob from Elliot Cadeau seconds later. Thiam finished with 11 points and five rebounds and showed mobility for a 7-foot-2 center who can handle the ball and shoot from outside.
Graduate forward J.P. Estrella started in the frontcourt, scored 14 points on nine shots and grabbed four offensive rebounds. Sophomore Trey McKenney led all scorers with 21 points, and Cadeau had 10 points, eight assists and seven rebounds.
Freshman forward Quinn Costello added 16 points. Five Wolverines reached double figures, including two freshmen, in the first of three October tuneups. First-year coach Mike Boynton Jr. said the Thiam-Cadeau pick-and-roll will be a gravity point of the offense.
Eight of the 11 players who saw the court did not play for Michigan last season, so the exhibition was an early look at a remade roster defending a national title with mostly new faces in Ann Arbor, Mich.
