The Michigan women's basketball team made Alcorn State look like no more than a church-league team in its season opener on Friday night.

But Alcorn State is a team with a 5-foot-8 average height, including a starting point guard who barely measured 5-foot-1. Although the Wolverines’ victory gives them their first ‘W’ of the season and proved the depth of their bench, they have something big, tall and fast coming at them on Monday — No. 5 Xavier.

Two 6-foot-6 threats — forward Amber Harris and center Ta’Shia Phillips — will lead Xavier into Ann Arbor Monday night for a matchup that promises to challenge the young Michigan squad.

“(Phillips) is big and she can move you wherever she wants,” Michigan coach Kevin Borseth said after Friday’s game. “And (Harris) is a first-round WNBA draft choice. She can put your legs behind your back, the ball in your face and take you off the dribble. She’s really good.”

Last season, the Wolverines pulled out an upset at then-No. 8 Xavier, 72-71. That Michigan team had the help of center Krista Phillips who graduated last Spring. Phillips, listed at 6-foot-6 and named Michigan’s top rebounder for the past three seasons, was capable of fending off these much taller teams. But without her, the Wolverines sport a significantly shorter squad.

It was freshman guard Dayeesha Hollins who carried Michigan offensively against the Musketeers last season in her hometown of Cincinnati, scoring 22 points, grabbing nine rebounds and making the game-winning layup with 17 seconds left on the clock. But the Wolverines lost their young all-star at the end of last season when Hollins transfered to Cincinnati.

“When things get tough for (Xavier) they just go right down to that block and get underneath the basket,” Borseth said. “And there’s not a whole lot you can do. They can impose their will on you any time they want.”

So Michigan will have to create a new strategy in order to keep Xavier at bay on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court.

Against Alcorn State, the Wolverines were flush from behind the arc, but the majority of shots were taken without any defensive pressure. The Muskateers will have their arms up and their hands in the faces of Michigan’s shooters at all times.

Offensively, Borseth said the game plan will be to attack the rim and try to draw fouls. He has repeatedly stressed that the Wolverines will focus on posting up first and foremost, only kicking it out if the long shot is open.

But on the defensive end, Michigan has struggled with rebounding. The Wolverines only beat Alcorn State 39-32 on the glass.

“We have to make sure we are 50-50 on the rebound chart,” Borseth said two weeks ago at Big Ten Media Day. “You’ve got to limit teams to one shot in this game, otherwise two shots will just kill you.

And that is especially true when those second shots are coming from 6-foot-6 All-Americans.

The Wolverines can use Friday’s game as an experience builder and even a little confidence booster. But they are going to have to really amp up their play — by a few rebounds, forced turnovers and shots — if they want to grab that underdog victory against Xavier again.