At his press conference on Monday, head coach Dusty May had two pretty emphatic answers to questions.

One of them went viral. His comments about Jeremy Fears Jr.'s trip of Yaxel Lendaborg,

among other plays that he didn't like from Michigan's win the previous Friday against Michigan State.

The other one where he had an emphatic answer was when he was asked about the term mercenary being thrown around with some of the players who have transferred into the program.

And in particular, that's been discussed by what has been an incredible front court for Michigan.

Adi Mara, 7-3 after a couple of years at UCLA.

Mores Johnson Jr., a fellow Big Ten transfer who was playing in his home state at Illinois

before coming to Michigan, and then Yaxo Lendaborg, who considered the NBA before electing

to take his sixth and final collegiate season in Ann Arbor. Dusty May said that this is not a team

full of mercenaries, and it's tough to argue that comment from Dusty

based on the way these guys play.

And through 23 games, a program record start for Michigan, maybe no game showcased what

these three can do, how well they play with one another, then Sunday at Ohio State.

Ady Mara, obviously, the headliner in this. A career high 24, a career

high in three-point makes, two more than his previous. He had never made a collegiate three-pointer,

and he added six rebounds and two blocks in 26 outstanding minutes. Morris Johnson, Jr. didn't

have his best performance. He had some issues finishing,

yet he still posted a double double, 11, and 12. And how about Yaxel Lendaborg, a guy who will likely

be an All-American, and he's willing to let the game come to him, 14 points on nine field

goal attempts, and he scooped up 14 rebounds a season high.

There were always going to be questions about the how, but the what, the whether or not

this would work, was really all dependent on if there would be a mercenary approach from

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