Houston Christian @ Michigan preview

Houston Baptist at Michigan

Last Meeting ( Dec 5, 2015 ) Houston Baptist 57, Michigan 82

Michigan looks to continue its upward trajectory under first-year coach Juwan Howard when it hosts Houston Baptist in the mainland portion of the Battle 4 Atlantis on Friday. The Wolverines have won three consecutive games to open the season, including a 70-50 victory against Elon on Nov. 15, and they hope to continue making strides in Howard's new NBA-style offense by improving to 4-0 all-time against the Huskies.

The Wolverines have won the previous three meetings with Houston Baptist by an average margin of 39.5 points and were 82-57 victors in their most recent matchup on Dec. 5, 2015. Michigan has won 24 consecutive non-conference home games, including 18 by double digits, and aims to improve to 17-2 in the month of November since the start of the 2017-18 season. "There are never supposed to be easy games and you're always supposed to respect your opponent," Howard told reporters. "We respect every team we play, but we don't fear anyone." The Huskies are still searching for their first win of the season after a 103-74 loss to No. 12 Texas Tech on Nov. 13, and hope to turn their fortunes around by knocking off a major conference opponent on the road for the second straight season, following a 93-91 victory against Wake Forest on Nov. 23, 2018.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, No TV

ABOUT HOUSTON BAPTIST (0-3): Jalon Gates drained five 3-pointers en route to a team-high 21 points against the Red Raiders to give him 14 triples in his first three games of the season. Ian DuBose added 20 points, five rebounds and a pair of steals, but the Huskies were held to 39 percent shooting from the floor while losing the battle of the boards 48-28. Ty Dalton finished with nine points and three assists while Qon Murphy had six points, but went 2-of-10 from the field after setting a new career high with 14 points in his previous outing against Oral Roberts.

ABOUT MICHIGAN (3-0): Jon Teske produced 16 points, seven rebounds and a pair of blocked shots while Zavier Simpson added 11 points and seven assists as the Wolverines overcame a sluggish start to beat Elon. Eli Brooks continues to be one of the most pleasant surprises for Michigan as he scored 10 points while David DeJulius scored a career-high 10 points to go along with eight rebounds against the Phoenix after playing sparingly last season. "I know I have to play a role because I'm at a much different level," DeJulius told reporters. "Coach Howard told me he got me and I really had faith in him that he did."

TIP-INS

1. Michigan has won 27 of its last 29 home games in the month of November.

2. Simpson has dished out 16 assists over his last two games.

3. Houston Baptist has been held below 39 percent shooting in all three games this season.

PREDICTION: Michigan 86, Houston Baptist 61