NEW YORK, N.Y. — In what was billed as a preseason instant classic, the exhibition matchup between the seventh-ranked University of Michigan men’s basketball team and fifth-ranked St. John’s lived up to the hype, as overtime was needed to settle the battle in downtown New York City. In a back-and-forth show at the World’s Most Famous Arena — Madison Square Garden, the Wolverines used key stops and converted free throws to earn a 96-94 victory on Saturday (Oct. 25) in the Bad Boy Mowers Series: NYC.

Leaders and Best

Michigan was led by Yaxel Lendeborg‘s 25-point performance, as he went 10-for-15 from the field — including a pair of three-pointers — while adding 10 rebounds and four assists. In their Wolverine debuts, Aday Mara contributed 13 points, five rebounds and two blocks, while Morez Johnson Jr. came off the bench with 14 points, seven rebounds and two blocks. Elliot Cadeau added nine points and dished nine assists, and Roddy Gayle Jr. chipped in 10 points and five rebounds while battling foul trouble.

Overtime

Overtime opened with three Wolverine free throws — two from Johnson and one from Gayle — to give U-M an early three-point edge. After a St. John’s long-range attempt came up short, Will Tschetter buried a Lendeborg kick-out triple to extend the Maize and Blue lead to six early in the extra period.

Out of a timeout, Johnson blocked another Red Storm three-point attempt, secured the rebound, and powered home a dunk to push U-M’s lead to eight, 92-84. However, St. John’s quickly answered as Lefteris Liotopoulos caught fire, scoring eight straight points — knocking down two triples and adding a pair of free throws — to even the score once again.

Johnson’s offensive rebound and putback put the Wolverines back on top by two with under a minute remaining. With eight seconds left, St. John’s went to the line with a chance to tie, but Liotopoulos made just one of two. Lendeborg pulled down the rebound to secure a double-double. With U-M inbounding the ball, St. John’s fouled and Gayle knocked down a free throw to secure a 96-94 win.

Second Half

Focusing on its downhill attack, St. John’s — led by Dillon Mitchell’s seven early points — stayed in front out of the break despite Michigan’s steady offensive rhythm. Much like the first half, the two top-10 squads traded baskets before the Red Storm held a narrow 51-49 edge near the midway point.

Tschetter buried a three to tie it, but St. John’s quickly countered with a Ruben Prey layup and a putback dunk to push the margin to five. Lendeborg answered with four quick points, and Mara’s free throws again trimmed the deficit to one. With the Red Storm in the bonus, steady trips to the line kept them in front.

A Lendeborg dunk ignited the Wolverines, and a Gayle steal-and-score gave U-M its first lead of the half. As the tempo surged, both teams traded blows in a furious stretch, capped by Lendeborg’s finish through contact to reach 20 points heading into the media timeout.

L.J. Cason‘s deep triple flipped the momentum, putting Michigan up 72-67 with five minutes to play. But turnovers opened the door for a 5-0 St. John’s run to even the score. As the pace quickened again, a Mara dunk was matched by a Red Storm tip-slam, sending the game tied at 74 into the final media timeout.

Lendeborg’s driving layup briefly restored the Wolverine lead before Joson Sanon answered from deep. Mara’s hook shot swung the advantage back to Michigan, and two clutch free throws from Tschetter extended it to 80-77.

St. John’s rallied once more, erasing an 84-80 deficit to knot the score with 1:25 remaining. Both teams missed late opportunities, and despite a final-minute steal from Gayle, the horn sounded with the game deadlocked at 84 — sending the exhibition into overtime.

First Half

In a much sharper start than their exhibition opener against Cincinnati, the Wolverines used a pair of early three-pointers from Lendeborg to offset two quick St. John’s baskets and grab the early edge in the top-10 matchup. U-M maintained a five-point cushion through the first 10 minutes before the Red Storm found their rhythm, tying the game at 18-18 at the under-eight media timeout. The closing stretch of the half turned into a back-and-forth battle, with neither side able to gain separation.

A triple from Trey McKenney and two free throws from Mara gave the Wolverines a one-point advantage heading into the final media break. St. John’s reclaimed the lead after a pair of Bryce Hopkins free throws and built its largest margin — three points — when a Mara block was ruled goaltending. Despite three Wolverine free throws, U-M went nearly four minutes without a field goal as the Red Storm held its advantage. Breaking the drought with a layup and a buzzer-beating three-pointer from Cadeau, the Wolverines went into the locker room trailing, 35-34.

What’s Next

Michigan will raise its 2025 Big Ten Tournament championship banner prior to its regular-season opener against Oakland on Tuesday (Nov. 3) inside Crisler Center. Tipoff is set for 8:30 p.m., and the first 5,000 fans in attendance will receive a replica banner upon entry.