INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Michigan Wolverines basketball is without perhaps its best player in senior forward Isaiah Livers, but the Maize and Blue are fortunate enough to have a role player as experienced and talented as junior Brandon Johns to step into the starting lineup.

Johns, who averages 4.4 points and 2.2 rebounds per game on the season, has upped his production to 8.3 points and 3.3 boards per outing over his last three as his role expanded. The East Lansing, Mich., native has long discussed confidence as a key aspect in his game, and he has grown immensely in that area since stepping foot on campus back in 2018. He's taken even bigger strides over the last week, now that he's being asked to do more.

"Honestly, I just felt a different type of confidence in myself, because I had been in this position before and it’s something that I’ve worked for the whole time I’ve been here," Johns said on the 'Defend The Block' podcast with Brian Boesch of his added responsibility, also referring back to his 11 starts last season while Livers was out. "I just want to embrace the opportunity and never be scared of it. I just was more confident in myself than I think I’ve ever been. I just wanted to take on that role and at least try to bring my teammates up with me."

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With the added confidence has come a boost of aggressiveness. Johns has been more of a force down low since becoming a starter. He's going to the rim more and is being rewarded for it in the form of free throw attempts — 16 over the last two games. He's cashed in on 13 of those opportunities.

"I’ve been working on it a ton, and it's the only thing that’s going to take me far in life, is confidence," Johns said. "I need to bring that with me every single day. The more confident I am, the better I feel I’m going to play, the most aggressive I’m going to be on the court and the more I’m going to be able to trust in myself."

In Michigan's 82-66 win over Texas Southern in the NCAA Tournament's first round, Johns notched his second double-figure game of the season, scoring 11 points. The Wolverines are set to take on No. 8 seed LSU Monday night in what should be an exciting contest.

Michigan head coach Juwan Howard, while he has a lot of tournament experience as a player, is amidst his first time preparing for a NCAA Tournament game with just two days to prepare. Johns is confident with the way the team has been getting ready over the last 48 hours or so.

"We just strictly try to focus on every little detail that we possibly can," Johns said. "Coach emphasizes details a lot, I don’t know if anybody else has heard him, but I know he really emphasizes details to our team. The more we stick to the details, the basics, the more successful we are. Just never get bored with the basics that we always talk about in practice — that’s always worked for us, so we just gotta stay the course."

Michigan was actually outscored by Texas Southern in the second half on Saturday, giving up 42 points after the halftime break. Some of the defensive lapses, and offensive lulls, have fans concerned. Those struggles have been addressed within the team.

"We can’t be a second half team or a first half team, it’s gotta be the full game," Johns said. "We just gotta be consistent the whole game, be solid, focus on the details. That’s how we’ll be successful. We can’t let up at any point in the game, because that gives team another route back in the game and an opportunity to beat us."

That will be even more important in the round two against LSU.

The Tigers have one of the country's best offenses, ranking fifth nationally in Kenpom's offensive efficiency ratings. They run a five-out offense that is predicated largely on ball screens and isolation situations. Needless to say, they pose a huge threat to the Wolverines, one Johns and Co. will have to tackle head on if they want to advance to the Sweet 16.

"One thing that really stands out to us is just how efficient they can be on the offensive end, so we gotta find a way to just shut that water off," Johns said. "We gotta be solid on defense at all times, and they’re a big offensive rebounding team as well. We’ll try to keep them off the boards and just do our best on the defensive end to keep them from scoring."

On the flip side, Johns, sophomore wing Franz Wagner and freshman center Hunter Dickinson have the size advantage down low and will look to use it offensively.

"Just staying solid and going up strong," Johns said of what the key will be when the Wolverines have the ball. "We have to be the most physical team out there and the most connected team as well. I think the more physical we are, the more aggressive we are, the more successful we are on the court.

"I don’t think a lot of teams can handle when we’re more aggressive than them. We just need to come out and make the first punch."

Tip time is set for 7:10 p.m. ET at Lucas Oil Stadium, with the contest being broadcast live on CBS.

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