Dusty May declares Michigan fans have not seen 'the real Rubin Jones'

Rubin Jones earned his third start of the season for No. 20 Michigan during Tuesday’s 75-73 win over No. 7 Purdue. He logged six points and three rebounds during 28 minutes on the court for the Wolverines.

Head coach Dusty May was high on Jones’ performance, noting that he did most of his work off of the stat sheet.

“I thought he was everywhere,” May said of his veteran guard. “His quickness, his anticipation. I don’t want to say I feel bad for Michigan fans, but we haven’t seen the real Rubin Jones.

“I mean, he’s an irritant, he’s a pest on defense, and he’s a really good shooter. And tonight, I thought he had two open looks that once again, they’re in the air, they’re lined up perfectly, and they just hit the back of the rim. It’s just kind of how it unfolds sometimes, but he’s really, really finding his way.”

Jones has made three starts in 22 appearances for Michigan this season. He transferred into the program after spending four seasons with North Texas. He averaged a career-high 12.1 points and 3.7 assists per game during the 2023-24 season, starting all 23 games he suiited up for.

He wasn’t the only player that May was impressed with during the two-point win.

Same thing with Roddy Galye, extremely proud of Roddy,” May continued. “I thought first half he kept us within striking distance. He made, I don’t even want to, I don’t want to talk about his offense because his defense was equally as good, and he was active just like Rubin was. And then LJ Cason, for him to come in and give us the jolt that he got, he got us a couple free throws when we were struggling to score.

“His activity in the zone, he had several deflections. I thought he played like a veteran player. So just hats off to the staff and our entire roster. They played a heck of a game today, tonight.”

Gayle ignited for 14 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Meanwhile, Cason played the least of the trio May name-dropped. He played eight minutes and scored two points, both of which came at the charity stripe.

Michigan will move on to face Ohio State on the road this Sunday. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. ET and will air live on CBS as the Wolverines look to win their sixth consecutive game.