Midterm for Cowboys

Published 10:40 am Friday, December 26, 2025

Michigan is big test for McNeese

When the Cowboys return to Michigan’s Crisler Arena Monday night, so much will have changed, but so much will be the same.

McNeese will have a first-year head coach again, hold a 10-2 record again, and the date will be December 29. The Cowboys won two years ago, 87-76, announcing their presence as an up-and-coming mid-major.

But this is not the same type of Michigan team. 

These Wolverines are 11-0 and ranked No. 1 in the country in the Coaches Poll and second by the Associated Press. The game will mark the first time McNeese has played a top-ranked team in either of the two major polls.

The Cowboys have lost three times to the No. 2 team previously, including early last season at Alabama. 

“They are a great team,” said McNeese head coach Bill Armstrong. “It is going to be a great challenge for us.”

Only two players from each team are back from the first meeting: DJ Richards and Javohn Garcia for McNeese, and Nimari Burnett and Will Tschetter for the Wolverines. 

Burnett started in the game against McNeese and has started every game this season, averaging 8.4 points while making 41 percent from three-point range. Tschetter came off the bench last time and scored 11 points.

Richards had 15 points for McNeese while Garcia, the reigning Southland Conference Player of the Year, finished with five.

“We look forward to playing the big programs,” said Richards. “It is a time when we get to go against the best in the country.”

Since upsetting the Wolverines, McNeese has been a mid-major power. The Cowboys are No. 17 in the CollegeInsider.com poll, 14th in the Mid-Major Basketball Power 25, and No. 6 in the T3 One-Bid League Mid-Major Top 32 poll.

The game will be the first for McNeese in the last two weeks, as they return from Christmas break riding a four-game win streak, three of those coming on the road.

The Wolverines, however, are a different animal, one that the Cowboys are looking forward to playing. 

“You want to play in these games to see how you stack up against them,” said Cowboy guard Larry Johnson. “You want to play against the best and beat the best.”

Johnson leads the Cowboys in scoring and dunks after transferring from Creighton. The redshirt freshman averages 16.6 points per game, joining Tyshawn Archie (13.5) and Garcia (12.7) in double figures.

As for Michigan, they are a power team with one of the best inside games in the country under second-year head coach Dusty May. He said his crew isn’t worried about their ranking.

“There are a lot of deserving teams out there right now, we don’t think about that,” May said. “If we are ranked No. 1 in April, then we will be content with that.

“We’re continuing to reinforce our pillars and daily habits, and work on getting better. We’ve played well, but this team still has another gear we can shift into and take to a new level. There’s no doubt.”

Six-foot, nine-inch forward Yaxel Lendenborg leads a balanced Michigan attack at 15.6. He is one of six Wolverines who average scoring in double figures.

He is also one of five Michigan players making better than 40 percent of their 3-pointers.

The game will be televised on the Big Ten Plus Network, with tipoff at 6 p.m. Lake Charles time.