The 1-seed Michigan Wolverines beat the 1-seed Arizona Wildcats, 91-73, in the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday night in Indianapolis, Indiana. Even as Yaxel Lendeborg had to sit out for most of the first half with an injury, plus the entire front court getting into early foul trouble, Michigan sat in the driver’s seat from start to finish and will play on Monday night for a national championship.
Here are five takeaways from the game.
No Yaxel Lendeborg, no problem
Michigan came out with firepower in the Final Four
against Arizona, preventing the Wildcats from making a field goal through the first four minutes and taking a 22-10 lead into the under-12 timeout.
However, things took a drastic turn at the 8:51 mark, as First-Team All-American Yaxel Lendeborg slipped on Koa Peat’s foot as he came down from a layup attempt and immediately grabbed his ankle in pain. Lendeborg was forced to go to the locker room to treat the injury, and Arizona started grabbing the momentum back.
With Lendeborg out, the Wildcats went on a 9-0 run to cut the lead to five. However, Michigan’s supporting cast got into rhythm, sparked by a Roddy Gayle Jr. dunk, and it didn’t look back.
Seven players had five or more points in the first half, and the Wolverines were able to limit Arizona to 37 percent from the field, as Michigan took a 48-32 lead into halftime.
Two-point shooting proves to be a big differentiator
Coming into the Final Four, head coach Dusty May knew Arizona was not going to try to win via the three-point shot. The Wildcats attempted just 16 threes per game this season, which was 363rd out of 365 DI programs. Michigan, by contrast, took 25.2 per game. With this in mind, Michigan locked in defensively within the paint and limited Arizona to 36 percent shooting on two-point attempts in the first half while only giving up three triples.
The Wolverines also struggled from beyond the arc in the first half, but they were much more efficient shooting from close to the rim, converting 48 percent (12-for-25) from two, led by Aday Mara’s 15 first-half points.
Michigan took more threes in the second half, but that did not stop the two-point shooting from being even more efficient. The Wolverines converted more than 50 percent of their shots inside in the second half (9-for-17), with Mara taking the majority of the attempts. Meanwhile, Arizona had no answer for Michigan in either capacity, shooting 9-for-23 from two in the second half, allowing the Wolverines to run away with the game.
Aday Mara shakes off early foul trouble, dominates Arizona’s bigs
As Michigan’s First-Team All-American sat in the locker room, Michigan’s entire three-person starting front court got into foul trouble early on. Mara, Morez Johnson Jr. and Lendeborg all picked up two fouls within the first nine minutes of the game, and Trey McKenney also got called for two in the same time span. However, with Lendeborg in the locker room ailing his ankle, May had no choice but to play his frontcourt if he wanted to maintain the lead.
Mara started playing extremely disciplined, enforcing the paint while not getting overly aggressive. He was also smart on the offensive side, converting 6-of-8 shots while draining all three attempts from the free throw line. In just 13 minutes, Mara had 15 points, five rebounds and just one turnover.
He did not slow down in the second half, as Mara added 11 more points on 5-of-8 shooting, plus he notched two blocks. Mara was aggressive at the rim, he was perfect from the free throw line (4-for-4) and he fought for extra rebounds, even when leading by 20-plus. It cannot be overstated what kind of impact Mara had on both ends of the court, finishing with 26 points and 9 rebounds, while limiting Arizona center Motiejus Krivas to just 11 points (6 before garbage time).
With UConn on the horizon, Michigan will need another dominant game from Mara against former Michigan star Tarris Reed Jr.
Three-point shooting comes alive in the second half
The Wolverines were just 5-for-16 from three in the first half against Arizona…and they still led by 16 points. The doors were completely blown off in the second half, as Michigan started the first eight minutes going 6-for-8 from beyond the arc.
With Lendeborg back on the court (gingerly), he got right back into rhythm with two made threes in the first four minutes. Then, freshman Trey McKenney eclipsed double figures with back-to-back threes. To top it off, point guard Elliot Cadeau sank two more before the under-12 timeout, bouncing back well from a 2-for-14 start from the field. In that eight-minute span, the Wildcats took just three attempts from deep, converting once. Michigan made six on 75 percent shooting – and took a 74-47 lead into the stoppage.
The Wolverines finished the game with 12 three-pointers, with seven coming in the second half.
Michigan knew Arizona couldn’t hang if it started hitting the three-ball, and just as my bold predictions said, it was the key to the Wolverines winning this basketball game.
Michigan will play for its first national championship since 1989
The greatest Michigan basketball team to date doesn’t have a national championship on its resume. May made it to the Final Four in 2018, but he has never gotten to the final game. All that can change on Monday night against UConn.
The 2026 Michigan basketball team is looking to do something that no team from Ann Arbor has done in 37 years. And if Saturday is any indication, the Wolverines should be in the driver’s seat to make it happen.
