Tommy Dempsey does not beat around the bush. If something is true, he knows and says so.

No one — perhaps with the exception of the Bearcats themselves — thinks Binghamton University can upset University of Michigan tonight at the Crisler Center. The Wolverines, ranked No. 3 in the latest AP Top 25 poll, are legitimate national title contenders, and, let’s face it, the Bearcats’ chances of even having a Cinderella run through the America East remain bleak at this point.

So when Dempsey discussed tonight’s game, he essentially said he hoped his team would not find itself on the wrong side of a rout.

“Our best doesn’t mean we’re winning, but we’ll need to do our best to even be competitive,” he said.

I’m sure some Binghamton faithful won’t like those comments from their coach, steadfastly maintaining the idea that a coach should always say his team can win — whether the opponent is Broome Community College or Michigan.

But that’s what makes Dempsey so great. He’s the polar opposite of Mark Macon, who would frequently give convoluted answers in a circuitous manner.

And what one has to realize is that Dempsey hasn’t waved the white flag — that’s an item he will never possess. He still has his players prepared with the mindset that they can learn and benefit from playing a team with such national cachet, a Michigan team that was a trendy Final Four pick in the preseason.

“You’re playing against a team that has a chance to win a national championship, so you’re playing against one of the true elite teams in the country, if not the best team in the country,” Dempsey said. “So I think you just get yourselves prepared, you go out there and you compete.”

Michigan head coach John Beilein plays just seven players for more than 10 minutes per game, but he has one of the nation’s best cores. Known commodities Trey Burke, a preseason AP All-American, and Tim Hardaway Jr. are off to torrid starts. Jordan Morgan has been productive, and freshmen Glenn Robinson III, Mitch McGary and Nik Stauskas have been as good as — if not better than — advertised.

Stauskas, perhaps, has been the most impressive. Robinson has the athleticism and McGary has the motor, but Stauskas, the least heralded of the bunch, has the pure jumper. He has converted 60.5 percent of his 4.2 3-point attempts per game and ranks third on the team with 13.7 points per game.

Dempsey has said he wants to play more zone in response to his team’s lack of depth, but as we saw on Saturday, a hot shooter can thrive against such a defense. If the Bearcats show their 2-3 zone tonight, they’ll essentially dare one of the country’s hottest shooters to shoot — a lot. And, making matters more unfavorable, Burke, Hardaway and Robinson can also capably bury shots from deep.

But the Bearcats would still face many mismatches in their man-to-man defense. Burke is quicker than any Binghamton guard, Hardaway is longer than any Binghamton guard and McGary is more of a bull than any Binghamton forward.

Those are facts. After all, there has to be a reason that Michigan is ranked No. 3 and Binghamton isn’t.

But those facts won’t keep the Bearcats from competing tonight. Dempsey will never wave a white flag, and as we’ve seen early on, his players have espoused his every demand. They’ll take the floor ready to compete.

The Bearcats won’t beat Michigan — if they do, mark it down as the national upset of the year — but they won’t roll over either.