The Michigan Wolverines began their title defense on Monday night against the Oakland Golden Grizzlies of the Horizon League.

Michigan won by double-digits, securing an 84-68 victory in the first game of their title defense. Next up? A title game rematch with the Connecticut Huskies.

First, business had to be taken care of on Monday, so here are our studs and duds from Michigan’s season opener.

Stud Roddy Gayle Jr

Roddy Gayle was not even sure if he was going to be able to be part of this team after spending the summer in the NBA’s summer league.

Ultimately, after a summer of drama, the Wolverines were happy to welcome back one of their stars from last year’s national title team.

ELLIOT CADEAU ALLEY-OOP TO RODDY GAYLE pic.twitter.com/b6lnj4OVRG

— Nick Brandel (@MotorCityBanter) November 2, 2026

Gayle announced is presence with authority. He scored 17 points on 7-11 shooting, including an emphatic dunk to close out the first half.

Gayle added three rebounds, two assists, and one blocked shot to his total as well. Gayle was a key role player for last year’s team, but this year might be able to ascend into stardom.

Stud JP Estrella

Michigan’s front court was going to be missing Moustapha Thiam thanks to what Mike Boynton Jr. called a 48-hour bug.

That meant Estrella was given the task of carrying the burden in Michigan’s front court. Monday was Estrella’s debut with the Wolverines after spending last season with Tennessee.

Is he going to be as impactful as last year’s additions from the transfer portal? Probably not, but that’s a tall order.

He was excellent on Monday with a double-double. He scored 15 points on 7-9 shooting, and pulled down 12 rebounds. The one downside? He did foul out in just 21 minutes of game action. Michigan will need him to play better defense without fouling.

Stud Trey McKennney

Of Michigan’s star-studded backcourt that is expected to carry the scoring load this season, sophomore Trey McKenney was the one who showed up on Monday night. McKenney tied with Roddy Gayle as the team’s leading scorer.

He was 5-12 from the field with three 3-pointers as well. He did struggle with turnovers as he was credited with three. It wasn’t a perfect start for the sophomore guard, but it was a positive experience for the first game of the season.

Dud Elliot Cadeau

On the other side, Elliot Cadeau left a lot to be desired on Monday night. He did not shoot the ball well, scoring seven points on 1-5 shooting. Most of his points came from the free throw line, where he was 5-6. His only basket of the night came on a layup after he stole the ball.

Cadeau struggled with turnovers, giving the ball away five times to just six assists. He did add four steals on the defensive end for the Wolverines.

Nights like this are going to happen, but Cadeau is expected to be one of the team’s leading scorers this year. They got away with him struggling against Oakland, but will need more Friday against Connecticut.

Dud Game Flow

Welcome back to college basketball everyone. Did you miss the sound of the referee whistle?

This isn’t a complaint about Michigan being called for too many fouls, but too many whistles in general. The game was a slog, especially in the second half where the Golden Grizzlies were in the double bonus for most of the second half.

The flow of this game has been completely derailed. 19 whistles in 12:42 of game time. Teams are a combined 3-for-their-last-19 from the field.

Sweet product. https://t.co/MIWr3Jbaft

— Anthony Broome (@anthonytbroome) November 3, 2026

Basketball is supposed to be up-and-down by its nature. The officials inserted themselves into the game too often, which killed the flow of the game.

Dud Ricky Liburd

Ricky Liburd made his debut for the Wolverines after sitting last season as a redshirt.

Liburd gave a scouting report on what he can bring to the team in the offseason.

“I feel like I'm just like an athletic wing, like a three-and-D, I could shoot," Liburd said. "I can play defense, but I feel like my niche is like my defense and I do the intangibles. Like, I make the energy plays or if we need to stop, I'll go get that stop. If we need to rebound, I'll go get that rebound, you know, take a charge and maybe even setting a good screen just to get somebody else open. Like, I'm just all part of like impacting the game as like, as much as I can."

Liburd is going to have to wait until his next game to add that to the roster as his first night did not go well. He was held scoreless on 0-5 shooting. He had one rebound and two assists.