Michigan
Houston (ex)
10/22/2026 9:45:00 AM | Men's Basketball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The defending national champion and No. 16-ranked University of Michigan men's basketball team will close its three-game exhibition schedule Sunday (Oct. 25), facing No. 10 Houston in The Battleground 2k26 at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Mich. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m., with the game streamed live on B1G+.
Notes
• Michigan heads to West Michigan for The Battleground 2k26, a neutral-site exhibition matchup against Houston at Van Andel Arena. The event includes a charitable component supporting children in the Grand Rapids area while giving Wolverine fans an opportunity to see the defending national champions in action.
• Sunday's exhibition will be played at Van Andel Arena, which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. The downtown Grand Rapids venue opened Oct. 8, 1996, and is home to the American Hockey League's Grand Rapids Griffins and the NBA G League's Grand Rapids Gold.
• Michigan enters its exhibition finale with a 2-0 record following home victories over Eastern Michigan (87-62, Oct. 11) and Oregon State (98-93, Oct. 16). The Wolverines have scored 185 points through two exhibitions, averaging 92.5 points per game.
• Elliot Cadeau led Michigan's win over Oregon State with a game-high 27 points, including 26 in the second half, and added eight assists. Moustapha Thiam recorded a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds, along with five assists, while Trey McKenney added 18 points. Against Eastern Michigan, McKenney paced the Wolverines with 21 points, while freshman Quinn Costello scored 16 points off the bench, including four three-pointers.
• Michigan holds a 3-1 advantage in the all-time series with Houston. The Wolverines won the first two meetings in 1962 and 1966 before the Cougars claimed a 91-65 victory in 1968. The teams last met in the second round of the 2018 NCAA Tournament, when Michigan earned a 64-63 victory.
• In that 2018 NCAA Tournament matchup in Wichita, Kan., Jordan Poole hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer to lift Michigan past Houston and into the Sweet 16 during its run to the national championship game.
• Under head coach Kelvin Sampson, Houston has advanced to eight consecutive NCAA Tournaments and reached the Final Four in 2021 and 2025. The Cougars finished 30-7 in 2025-26, reached their seventh straight Sweet 16 and recorded their fifth consecutive 30-win season, tying the NCAA Division I record. Houston also advanced to the 2025 national championship game, falling to Florida, 65-63.
• Following Sunday's exhibition, Michigan will have eight days before opening the regular season against Oakland on Monday (Nov. 2) at Crisler Center. The Wolverines begin their first season under David and Meredith Kaplan Men's Basketball Head Coach Mike Boynton Jr., who was elevated to the position following Michigan's 2026 national championship season.
