It was clear early in the season that this Michigan team was different.
The Wolverines have had plenty of good teams in recent years. Over the past fifteen seasons, they’ve reached the Sweet Sixteen nine times, advanced to two Final Fours (2013 and 2018), and captured multiple Big Ten titles. But this team, with its combination of talent, size, depth, and cohesiveness, set itself apart from previous Michigan teams.
Now, after steamrolling through the first five games of the NCAA tournament, it’s one
win away from college basketball’s ultimate prize. And it got here by doing something even the most ardent Wolverines fans didn’t see coming: By blowing the doors off a powerful Arizona team in the national semifinals.
Saturday’s semifinal clash between Michigan and Arizona was one of the most anticipated Final Four games in recent memory. The de facto national championship game, many said.
And for good reason.
Both teams spent the season near the top of the polls and finished No. 1 and No. 2 in the KenPom rankings. Just how dominant were Michigan and Arizona? Their combined record was 71-5. Arizona lost just two games all season – by a combined seven points.
Not only were Michigan and Arizona two of the nation’s best teams, they seemed to be built using the same blueprint – emphasizing size and prowess in the paint.
Arizona’s frontline would be the envy of many NBA teams, and it powered their success all season. In an era dominated by three-point shooting, the Wildcats are something of a throwback, ranking 199th nationally in three-point attempts. Not because they can’t shoot (they connected on a solid 37% from beyond the arc, good for 36th nationally), but because they prefer to bludgeon opponents inside with their size and physicality.
Something they did with great success – and something Michigan can relate to.
With both teams relying on their size and inside game, Saturday’s semifinal looked to be a battle of strength-vs-strength. A true heavyweight fight – literally as well as figuratively. Most pundits viewed the game as a toss-up. A last possession type of game.
In fact, many thought Arizona’s physicality would prove too much for Michigan, and that the ‘Cats presented a difficult match-up for the Wolverines.
Michigan head coach Dusty May was not among them.
“A lot of basketball comes down to matchups,” May said afterward. “And I think we matched up well with Arizona, better than we have some other teams this year.”
“We felt like if a team relies on scoring 15 feet and in, with our size and length, it’s going to be tough to score enough points there to beat us.”
May proved prescient, as Michigan controlled both the paint and the game.
That’s not to say there weren’t any nervous moments. Big Ten Player of the Year and first-team All-American Yaxel Lendeborg picked up his second foul and headed to the bench less than 90 seconds into the game. Not the way May or the Wolverines hoped to begin the game.
Michigan didn’t flinch, however, and with Roddy Gayle replacing Lendeborg, the Wolverines quickly built a double-digit lead.
“Having a guy like Roddy, who we can always rely on, means everything,” Michigan’s Eliot Cadeau said after the game. “No matter if he’s hitting shots or not hitting shots, we can always rely on him to do what he does.”
As valuable as Gayle was, Michigan’s most important player was Cadeau. The junior might have finished just five-of-17 from the field, but was still the best player on the floor, controlling the action and finishing 13 points, ten assists and six steals. As a team, Michigan had 20 assists to Arizona’s four.
“The coaches were talking before the game,” May said, “And we felt Eliot was going to have a big game. Because of the way Arizona defends, but also just because of the stage. He’s fearless. We knew he’d play well.”
That he did. Behind Cadeau, Michigan surged to a 16-point halftime lead, and when the Wolverines connected on seven of their first nine three-point attempts in the second half, the rout was on.
Even playing without its best player for long stretches (Lendeborg was on the bench for much of the first half with foul trouble and much of the second half with an injury), Michigan was the decidedly better team from wire-to-wire.
Cadeau led the Wolverine attack, but he got plenty of help. Michigan also got strong interior play from Aday Mara (26 points, 9 rebounds) and Morez Johnson Jr. (10 points, 7 rebounds) and key contributions from Gayle and Trey McKenney (16 points, four-of-six from three) off the bench. As a result, the Wolverines rolled to a convincing victory.
“They were outstanding tonight,” Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd said of Michigan. “They really had us on our heels. No one’s been able to do that to us all year. So, it was an impressive performance.”
That it was. And because of it, May and Michigan find themselves on the doorstep of history.
Michigan will be favored in Monday night’s final against UConn, but that means little. UConn is talented, well-coached and as many have pointed out, possesses “championship DNA.”
But if you’ve spent much time around this Michigan team, you get the sense that none of that matters. Michigan is a confident, focused group, and one that knows its work isn’t finished.
“We’ve said our job was to play Monday night,” May told his team after dispatching Arizona. “We didn’t talk about winning Monday night … now it’s time.”
Now it’s time.
