The Michigan Wolverines took a close and physical game from the Penn State Nittany Lions on Monday night. It was a game that head coach Dusty May felt came down to Michigan’s defensive intensity in a game where they were allowed to play physically.

“We’ve got to fix some things,” May said. “We’ve got to find some solutions to the problems that we face.”

While Big Ten play is still in its early stages, the Wolverines and Spartans look to be on a collision course atop the conference

Point guard Tre Donaldson wouldn't call his game-winning final sequence a season-saver, but he did call it a morale "booster" for the team.

Michigan coach Dusty May said his team failed to match Purdue's level of physicality in the blowout loss at Mackey Arena.

Purdue forward Trey Kaufman-Renn (4) reaches for the ball between the legs of Michigan center Vladislav Goldin (50) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in West Lafayette, Ind., Friday, Jan. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy) AP

Tre Donaldson and Michigan will be back in action on Saturday as they will hit the road to take on Rutgers. The Wolverines and Scarlet Knights will tip at 3:30 ET from Jersey Mike's Arena in Piscataway, New Jersey, and the game will be airing on Fox.

Michigan basketball nearly let its hand off the wheel, but held on for a 76-72 lead over Penn State to stay perfect at home

Michigan junior guard Tre Donaldson's 7-0 individual run propelled the Wolverines to a come-from-behind Big Ten win against Penn State on Monday.

I've been on ranked teams, and I know how it goes," Michigan basketball's Tre Donaldson warned earlier. "People start to get complacent when ranked."

A busy week in the Big Ten created significant volatility in the conference standings. However, those results did lead to significant movement at the bottom of the rankings. Minnesota (2-0), USC (1-0) and Ohio State (1-0) each made big jumps,

While it may be easier for Michigan to simply erase the Purdue loss from its memory, head coach Dusty May won't allow the team to do that.