ANN ARBOR >> It’s time to buckle up because Michigan basketball has a tough road ahead.

As the No. 21 Wolverines near the halfway point of the 20-game Big Ten slate and enter the thick of conference play, they’re about to embark on a stretch that features 10 Quad 1 opportunities in their final 13 contests. It all starts with a Top 25 matchup at No. 11 Purdue, the two-time reigning conference champion that was picked to three-peat in the Big Ten preseason poll.

“It’ll be a good barometer for us to see where we are,” Michigan coach Dusty May said.

The Boilermakers are more than just a measuring stick. If Michigan wants to stake its claim as a serious contender and maintain its place near the top of the conference standings, this is the type of game that can make a big difference in how the 18-team race shakes out.

Don’t expect the Boilermakers to be in a good mood when the Wolverines come to town. Purdue had its 26-game win streak at Mackey Arena — a stretch that dates to February 2023 — snapped in a 73-70 loss to Ohio State on Tuesday. No team wants to lose consecutive games at home. Assistant coach Mike Boynton Jr. expects the “highly motivated” Boilermakers to give the Wolverines their best shot.

May’s memories of going to Mackey Arena during his days as a student manager and staff member at Indiana are “all bad.” The same could be said for plenty of other programs, including Michigan. The Wolverines’ trip to Purdue last season resulted in a 32-point blowout loss.

“We better have our hand signals ready,” May said. “We better meet every pass. We better have our fakes and footwork on point. It’s as tough as an environment as there is in the country to play in. Anyone who’s played there, competed there knows that. We’ve got our work cut out for us, but we’re anxious to see where we are.”

As it stands, Michigan is one of two teams in the Big Ten without multiple conference losses, along with rival Michigan State. The Wolverines are 6-1 and trail the unbeaten Spartans (7-0). Right behind them are the Boilermakers (7-2), who are led by several key pieces from last season’s national runner-up team.

There’s guard Braden Smith, the preseason Big Ten player of the year who Boynton described as a “wizard with the basketball” that has “very few flaws” in his game. There’s forward Trey Kaufman-Renn, who has made a major jump in production and May called “one of the most efficient bigs in the country.” There’s guard Fletcher Loyer, who May said is a “more complete” player than he was a year ago.

Then there’s the fact the Wolverines will be walking into a hornet’s nest with a hostile and raucous crowd that will be buzzing from start to finish.

“The gym is going to be loud. They’re going to go on their run. We’re going to go on our run,” center Vlad Goldin said. “It’s going to be a matter of who’s going to stay poised and who’s going to be able to not get scared of the moment.”

It won’t be easy, and many nights in the Big Ten rarely are. Waiting after Purdue — a team that’s ranked No. 10 on KenPom and No. 13 in the NET rankings — are five more contests against foes that are currently ranked, including a rematch against the Boilermakers in Ann Arbor, home games against No. 15 Oregon and No. 17 Illinois, and a home-and-away tilt with No. 8 Michigan State.

On top of that are matchups against five more Big Ten opponents who are ranked in the top 65 by KenPom and in the NET rankings entering play Thursday: Maryland, Ohio State, Penn State, Nebraska and Indiana.

The only league member left on the schedule who doesn’t meet those criteria is Rutgers, who Michigan will face twice.

“It’s exciting on one hand. The other side is our physical health, our mental health, our stamina,” May said. “From a coaching standpoint, it’s not to get too high, too low. From a player standpoint, it’s to not be consumed with a good game or a bad game. (If we) just continue to work, keep one foot in front of the other, good things are going to happen for us.

“But if we get too low because of the way we performed individually and collectively, then that will turn into two to three to four or five losses if you’re not careful. I think we have to have a real consistent approach to what we’re doing, and just make sure that we’re not beating ourselves.”

To do that, May listed several things the Wolverines need to fix to be at their best. They need to be more disruptive on defense and force more turnovers that can lead to easy baskets. They need to screen better and cut better on offense. They need to “be the aggressor when it comes to playing with physicality.”

Boynton added that the Wolverines need to continue to improve in taking care of the basketball — there’s been “small victories” in that area, he noted — rebound better, and get back to shooting the ball the way they’re capable of.

“I try not to look at the standings till February. You don’t have a real gauge and start to see some separation around February,” Boynton said. “We haven’t played all the top teams, the teams that are at the top (of the Big Ten standings) currently. Time will come for that quickly, starting (Friday). But I like our team and our ability to be able to compete with the best teams.”

Michigan will have plenty of chances to prove itself as the real gauntlet begins, starting with a Purdue team that isn’t planning on giving up the throne.

“They’ve climbed the mountain and now they’re managing to stay at the top of the mountain pretty consistently,” May said. “We look forward to going in there and seeing what we’re made of.”