It didn't take long after Dusty May's hiring that we learned, Kyle Church would be in charge of Michigan men's basketball's non-conference schedule.

In the month of May, Church told reporters that the staff believes that they have an NCAA tournament roster, so they would, quote, schedule accordingly.

A few weeks later here on Defend the Block, Coach May mentioned that Michigan has a third-party

analytic company that, among other things, helps with non-conference scheduling.

And last week, that non-conference slate was officially finalized.

So let's talk about it with the scheduling guru, Kyle Church, this week.

There are many aspects to balance, securing challenging games that not only

test your team in the early going, but also help with the NCAA tournament resume, the location

of said games, and how that could potentially impact the net. You also want to lock in some

home games, taking into consideration the dates, the school schedule, and yeah,

even hoping to bring at least one big opponent in for your home fans outside of Big Ten play.

Your MTE or multiple team events, which in this year's case, was already locked in for Michigan

before Dusty May's hiring with the event down in Fort Myers.

It is a fascinating puzzle that not only has some twists and turns.

In fact, Michigan thought it had another game locked in that they had to replace because

the other team had to back out pretty late in the game.

Ultimately, Church's comments back in the spring referenced the most important aspect, scheduling with March in mind.

Don't think it matters much?

Well, remember the 11-seed to Sweet 16 run in 2022 for the Wolverines.

Michigan needed every data point, positive and negative, to secure the last buy out of the first four.

Not only did Michigan barely sneak into the dance,

but they also did not have to go to Dayton.

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