No. 2 Michigan posts convincing win over USC in top-25 matchup

James Hawkins, The Detroit News on Jan 2, 2026

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — New year, same Wolverines.

No. 2 Michigan rang in 2026 and resumed Big Ten play on Friday by riding a career game from Morez Johnson Jr. and a strong defensive effort past No. 24 USC, 96-66, at Crisler Center.

Johnson scored a career-high 29 points and Roddy Gayle Jr. added 12 points for Michigan (13-0, 3-0 Big Ten), which led wire-to-wire and held USC to a season-low 34.5% shooting.

In a top-25 matchup between the two highest-scoring teams in the Big Ten, neither team shot well from 3-point range and neither side could get into an offensive groove until Michigan put together a late run to build an 18-point halftime lead.

After the break, the Trojans and Wolverines combined to make one shot in their first 14 attempts, which came on a play where Yaxel Lendeborg grabbed a rebound and threw an outlet pass to Aday Mara, who then delivered a touch pass to Gayle for a fast-break layup that gave Michigan a 55-32 lead with 16:57 to play.

Michigan, though, never let USC get on track. The Trojans struggled to get anything to drop or anything easy, especially with leading scorer Chad Baker-Mazara limited after picking up four first-half fouls.

Johnson, who shot 10-for-12 from the field, had no issues making shots inside or outside the arc. He canned a 3-pointer – his third of the season – to top his previous career high of 24 points and give Michigan a 63-39 advantage at the 13:18 mark.

The Wolverines took their largest lead when Gayle splashed a 3-pointer to make 78-49 with 7:53 to play. The Trojans never came close to putting a serious dent in the deficit, as the Wolverines improved to 3-0 against ranked teams this season.

Will Tschetter added 10 points off the bench for Michigan, which scored 24 points off 21 USC turnovers and had 12 steals to overcome an off night from 3-point range (6-for-30) and from Lendeborg, who was limping at times.

Jaden Brownell scored 16, Ezra Ausar added 15 and Baker-Mazara, who ranked third in the Big Ten at 21 points per game, finished with 12 for USC (12-2, 1-2). The Trojans, who make and take more free throws than any team in the nation, finished 20-for-30 at the stripe, 5-for-23 from deep and 20-for-58 from the floor.

Terrance Williams II, a former Wolverine who played four seasons in Ann Arbor, came off the bench in his return to Crisler Center and finished with five points and four rebounds.

Michigan’s defense was dialed in from the jump. The Wolverines forced turnovers on USC’s first three possessions, including two steals by Mara. One of Mara’s came out on the perimeter when he stripped the ball away from Baker-Mazara that led to a fast-break dunk for Lendeborg.

Mara broke up a pass into the post for another steal. USC airballed a 3-point attempt. Baker-Mazara missed a wild layup while falling backwards that led to USC coach Eric Musselman receiving a technical foul for arguing with an official. Elliot Cadeau took a charge to end a fast-break opportunity for the Trojans.

It all led to Michigan scoring the first 11 points, a lead that would’ve been greater had the Wolverines not had their own offensive struggles during a 3-for-11 shooting start.

USC missed its first seven shots and had six turnovers before it scored its first basket on an and-1 layup by Ausar with 13:19 left in the first half. That briefly broke the seal for the Trojans, as Baker-Mazara knocked down back-to-back 3s, including one where he was fouled by L.J. Cason, to climb right back into it, 15-10.

The Wolverines regained a double-digit advantage when rattled off a 15-5 spurt that was keyed by Cadeau and Johnson and came after Baker-Mazara head to the bench with his third foul. During one sequence, Cadeau came away with a steal and found Johnson for an open dunk. On the ensuing possession, Johnson recorded a steal, gave the ball up to Cadeau and got it back for an alley-oop dunk to make it 43-26 with 1:15 left in the half.

Michigan went on to score the final six points before halftime, including a sequence where Cason poked the ball away from Baker-Mazara, who then picked up his fourth foul when contesting a fast-break layup by Nimari Burnett. Despite shooting 2-for-14 from deep and having some defensive rebounding issues, the Wolverines took a 49-31 lead into the break.

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