Key events
UConn 25-23 Michigan, 3:58 left, first half: Note to self – check to see when Michigan scored away from the free throw line.
Reed shoots, and Mara gets up for the block but catches it on the way down. Easy goaltending call.
Michigan has completely fallen apart on offense. It’s as if they think they get extra points if they score while surrounded by defenders.
Illegal screen on UConn, and we get to the TV timeout.
UConn 23-23 Michigan, 4:52 left, first half: McKenney adds another to the pile of missed 3-pointers. Hurley has to be beside himself that Michigan has been this cold and is still keeping it close. Gayle makes two free throws, and it’s tied again.
UConn 23-21 Michigan, 5:05 left, first half: The game is flowing like a tractor with transmission problems.
Lendeborg hits two free throws.
Michigan’s press is again fearsome, but Mullins waits patiently for someone to get him the ball, and the dead-eye shooter hits a three.
The Wolverines rush things on offense. They’re now 0-for-6 on 3-point attempts.
UConn 20-19 Michigan, 6:17 left, first half: Michigan unleashes a full-court press, UConn barely gets it across.
The towering Mara sends a Karaban shot back to midcourt, but Cadeau is called for a foul – his second. That’s not good. He has carried the Wolverines so far.
Karaban hits the free throws.
UConn 18-19 Michigan, 6:47 left, first half: The officials’ microphone isn’t working, but they get it working long enough to explain that they have figured out the shot clock. It’s 15 seconds.
How old am I? I remember when Dan Hurley played in college. His remaining hair is now gray.
Foul called on Mullins, and Burnett gets the 1-and-1 free throws. Makes the first. Makes the second. Michigan back in front.
Question: Do you know any UConn fans? I think I’ve met one my entire life. And I’m old. And I’ve spent my whole life in the USA.
Michigan fans are everywhere.
UConn 18-17 Michigan, 7:00 left, first half: Cadeau and Johnson are the only Michigan players who have scored so far. Mara has been brutally ineffective in the post, and they’ve yet to hit a 3-pointer.
McKenney drives and misses. Michigan has gone completely cold. (Its climate is indeed a bit chilly.)
Mara gets a big block at one end, and then he finally gets a big bucket, catching the ball up high and not bringing it back down.
A wild sequence sees a few wrestling holds uncalled. The officiating crew isn’t sure whether the clock should’ve reset, and it’s time for the TV timeout, anyway.
UConn 18-15 Michigan, 8:53 left, first half: Good ball movement for Michigan to get a 3-point shot for McKenney, but it won’t go. The Wolverines have not yet hit a three. The Huskies have made three.
Smith threads his way through the lane for a layup.
UConn 16-15 Michigan, 9:49 left, first half: Michigan coach Dusty May says he wants to see his team get more successful inside.
Jayden Ross hits the first of two free throws but misses a chance to give UConn the lead.
Johnson pump-fakes about 30 times. It works, and he makes the shot.
A friendly bounce for Malachi Smith ties it.
Johnson travels, well defended by Riebe.
Smith misses, but UConn works the ball around to Karaban for the three.
Johnson gets a tip-in, and Dan Hurley walks several feet out onto the court to communicate something.
UConn 10-11 Michigan, 11:57 left, first half: Cadeau misses a three, and the rebound clangs out into the backcourt. Ross comes up with it and is off to the races, but Cadeau races back to stop his layup attempt. Cadeau is called for a foul, though, and that’s the last act before the second TV timeout.
Question: If women’s basketball can have TV timeouts every five minutes, one in each quarter, why does men’s basketball have to have one every four minutes? The game generally flows a bit better with halves instead of quarters, but the TV timeouts negate that advantage.
UConn 10-11 Michigan, 12:07 left, first half: McKenney enters the fray for Michigan and clanks a 3-point attempt off the rim. Ball takes aim from behind the arc and easily drains it to whittle the lead to two.
Cadeau with a highlight-reel layup! With the shot clock running down, he dribbles under the basket and flings up a reverse, drawing another foul from Demary and getting the shot to foul. He misses the free throw.
UConn is very lucky to avoid a 10-second call in the backcourt, but they fail to score anyway as bodies go flying under the basket.
Michigan again goes inside to Mara, who just looks clumsy in the post.
Karaban makes a nifty move to set up an open look for 3, and he converts to cut the lead to one.
UConn 4-9 Michigan, 14:46 left, first half: UConn didn’t seem aware of the shot clock. The lights go red before they shoot.
Michigan goes inside to Mara, but he once again has trouble scoring in the post against Reed’s defense.
UConn 4-9 Michigan, 15:42 left, first half: Solo Ball works inside to get two for UConn, but then he gets called for blocking at the other end. Questionable call, to be honest. He seemed set.
Cadeau misses a three, but Michigan get a second and third chance. Johnson converts the tip-in.
Demary drives for UConn, but Gayle emphatically swats the ball away.
TV timeout, and Dan Hurley is surely glad to have a chance to reset the Huskies.
UConn 2-7 Michigan, 16:43 left, first half: Smart play from Cadeau. Demary reaches towards him while he holds the ball at the arc, and Cadeau swings up into a shooting motion to draw the foul. He makes all three free throws. Excellent start for the North Carolina transfer.
UConn 2-4 Michigan, 17:30 left, first half: Both teams come up short on their first possessions. Michigan takes advantage of a mismatch inside to score first. UConn answers. Cadeau zips through the lane to put the Wolverines back in front.
Tipoff
Away we go …
Starting lineups
Announced after a couple of montages …
UConn: Alex Karaban, Tarris Reed Jr., Solo Ball, Silas Demary Jr., Braylon Mullins
Michigan: Morez Johnson Jr., Yaxel Lendeborg, Aday Mara, Elliot Cadeau, Nimari Burnett
Draft scouting
Looking for players for your NBA fantasy team next year?
One mock draft has two lottery picks from Michigan – Mara and Yaxel Lendeborg, while Morez Johnson is rated as a first-round pick.
From UConn – Mullins is projected as a lottery pick, while Reed is a late first-rounder.
Global game
Three German players are on the rosters for tonight’s game. UConn has Eric Reibe and the well-traveled Dwayne Koroma, who went from German club basketball to US high school basketball to Iona to junior college to Texas-Arlington to LeMoyne to UConn.
UConn’s bench includes Australian Jacob Furphy, while Michigan has Oscar Goodman from New Zealand.
The player from overseas who’ll play the biggest role tonight is Aday Mara, who spent two years at UCLA after moving across the ocean from Spain.
Who needs top recruits?
Michigan’s freshman class includes two players from ESPN’s Top 100: No. 20 Trey McKenney and No. 90 Winters Grady. Other than McKenney, the Wolverines’ highest-rated recruit of the last few years was 2022 No. 34 Tarris Reed Jr., who now plays for UConn.
UConn also has two freshmen from last year’s Top 100: No. 17 Braylon Mullins, the shooting star of this tournament, and No. 23 Eric Reibe.
The top four scorers for this Michigan team are transfers – leading scorer Yaxel Lendeborg (UAB), point guard Elliot Cadeau (North Carolina), Morez Johnson (Illinois) and Aday Mara (UCLA).
And then there were two …
Will UConn’s Alex Karaban finish his college career with three championships in four years?
Will Michigan spoil the championship ambitions of former Wolverine Tarris Reed Jr.?
Will anyone hop in the transfer portal tomorrow morning?
A compelling college basketball season wraps up in the next couple of hours. Let’s see what happens …
Beau will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s what Bryan Armen Graham and Nicholas Levine think each team need to do to cut down the nets in Indianapolis.
What do UConn need to do to win?
The Huskies must lean on discipline and patience to avoid getting dragged into a high-possession shootout. They have to execute their off-ball actions cleanly, force Michigan to defend across the full shot clock and get efficient production from star center Tarris Reed Jr inside. If they can limit the Wolverines’ second-chance points and drill timely threes, the upset is there for the taking. BAG
Hit shots. UConn run a diverse offense that forces opponents to guard the entire floor, from catch-and-shoot threes to deep post touches. They are unlikely to score consistently over Michigan’s size, so perimeter shooting becomes critical. Their off-ball movement will make Michigan chase, but it ultimately comes down to shot-making. NL
What do Michigan need to do to win?
Impose their physicality and depth from the outset. Michigan must turn their size advantage into second-chance points, push the pace when possible and protect the paint through 7ft 3in Spaniard Aday Mara while letting playmaker Elliot Cadeau cook. If they defend UConn’s motion for full possessions and get production from across the roster, their balance and athleticism should win out over 40 minutes. BAG
Michigan can beat opponents in multiple ways. In Saturday’s win over Arizona, they scored 26 points off turnovers and dominated the paint. They should hold a similar frontcourt edge here. If Mara, Lendeborg and Johnson control the paint on both ends, Dusty May’s team will be well placed to cut down the nets. NL
