INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Michigan outplayed Arizona early and put the ‘Cats to shame all night, turning a Final Four game billed as the game of the year into a 91-73 highlight reel for the Wolverines on Saturday night.
Junior center Aday Mara scored a career-high 26 points and grabbed nine rebounds, out-of-form Axel Lundenburg scored 11 points in 14 minutes, and the Blues beat a March Madness opponent by double digits for the fifth consecutive time and became the first team to break 90 points five times in a single game.
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Next up is Monday’s championship showdown with UConn, which early in the semifinals beat Illinois 71-62 in what was erroneously billed as the undercard of the No. 1 seed battle.
Michigan and Arizona boast the nation’s top two defenses, two top five offenses and eight to a dozen NBA stars.
But the Wolverines (36-3) looked like pros, taking a double-digit lead just 5 minutes and 31 seconds into the game before pummeling Arizona into oblivion.
Koa Peat had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Big 12 champion Wildcats (36-3). They made 6 of 17 three-pointers, shooting 36% from the field, had 2 assists and 9 turnovers in the first half, and ultimately fell behind 48-32. Spark plug Jaden Bradley suffered his fourth foul 94 seconds into the second half and finished with 13 points, the highest score in extended garbage time.
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Arizona had just two losses before this, a four-game losing streak and a three-game losing streak in February. In this game, they trailed by 9 points in less than 2 minutes and 30 seconds.
University of Connecticut 71, Illinois 62
UConn’s Braylon Mullins hit another clutch 3-pointer and coach Dan Hurley’s Huskies will return to the national championship game, defeating Illinois in the Final Four in search of their third title in four seasons.
Tarris Reed Jr. had 17 points and 11 rebounds, while standout freshman Mullins scored 15 points for the Huskies (34-5), who relied on a strong interior offense and tough defense to win their 19th straight game in the Sweet 16 or later rounds of the NCAA tournament.
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UConn will face either Arizona or Michigan on Monday night, seeking its seventh title since 1999 and its third under Hurley, who will become the only active coach with more than two.
Mullins’ buzzer-beating 3-pointer helped the Huskies leapfrog Duke into the Final Four, and with 52 seconds left, he hit a 3-pointer to give UConn a 66-59 lead.
Freshman Keaton Wagler had 20 points and eight rebounds to lead the Fighting Illini (28-9), which reached the Final Four for the first time since losing to North Carolina in the 2005 championship game.
AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
