After a dominant win over UCLA on Saturday, the Michigan basketball team is poised to take over the No. 1 ranking just two years after the worst season in program history.
It's sometimes hard to remember that the Wolverines won just eight games two years ago. As Mick Cronin, the UCLA head coach, said after Michigan's win that Dusty May's team has the most talented roster in college basketball.
Second-ranked Michigan improved to 24-1 with the 30-point win over UCLA. The Wolverines are 14-1 in the Big Ten with just three wins needed, in five conference games, to wrap up a share of the Big Ten title.
The magic number for the outright championship is 4, with Illinois, Nebraska, and Purdue the three teams with the best chance to catch Michigan. Purdue, which should be back in the top 10, will host a newly-minted No. 1 team, in the Wolverines, who will ascend the top spot after Arizona suffered a loss to Kansas earlier this week, followed by another against Texas Tech on Saturday.
With just one loss, Michigan basketball has been ranked No. 1 in the Coaches Poll. but should be a consensus for the No. 1 team in the new polls. How long will it stay there?
Tough road ahead for Michigan basketball
The Wolverines will play a likely top-10 opponent on the road (Purdue). The Boilermakers just knocked off seventh-ranked Nebraska on the road. Michigan will play Purdue on the road Tuesday, in a game that could tighten up the Big Ten race considerably.
After Purdue, the Wolverines play Duke, another team likely in the top five, next Saturday in Washington, D.C. So if Michigan basketball is going to hold onto the No. 1 ranking, after it gets it on Monday, it will have to earn it.