INDIANAPOLIS — The Big Ten had waited 26 long years to win a national championship in men’s basketball.
To put things in perspective, that was even longer than the wait list for tickets to Bozo’s Circus.
But that legendary drought finally ended Monday at Lucas Oil Stadium when Michigan held off UConn 69-63 in the NCAA Tournament championship game for its first title since 1989.
As confetti fell and the partisan, maize-and-blue crowd sang its theme song, “Mr. Brightside,” it became quite obvious that destiny was calling.
Chicago-born guard Nimari Burnett, who won an Illinois state title in his freshman year at Morgan Park, now has bookends for his trophy case when he decides to build one.
“I’m going to have to take this moment over winning state,” Burnett told me afterward. “There were so many emotions. I was sobbing. Knew I was going to cry. Even at shootaround today I was getting emotional.
“But being in the moment with my guys, I feel so blessed, so grateful. Just soaking up the moment.”
A game marred by poor 3-point shooting all around ended with UConn making a belated comeback in the final minutes, only to fall short and miss a chance at a third title in four years. Trailing 67-63, Huskies star Alex Karaban, who was 18-1 in tournament games, had a chance to pull his team within one.
But Karaban missed a 3-pointer with 17 seconds left, and Michigan guard Trey McKenney hit a pair of free throws on the other end to seal it as the Wolverines’ celebration began.
Guard Elliott Cadeau led Michigan with 19 points and was named Most Outstanding Player, while Thornton grad and former Illinois forward Morez Johnson Jr. added 12 points and 10 rebounds.
The Wolverines overcame 13% 3-point shooting (2-for-15) to win a slugfest that looked more like a slogfest at times.
No matter.
More Top Picks Best Premium Magnifiers For Low Vision Seniors
Not-so-pure Michigan, perhaps, but enough to get the job done.
“We’ve been finding ways to win like this all year,” forward Yaxel Lendeborg said. “We started off really, really bad offensively, and our defense was the reason we won most of those games. Today was the same thing. We had a big lead and started getting more defensive rebounds and making tougher plays.”
Thus ended a Big Ten saga that a generation of alumni from several schools endured. The Big Ten, a power conference with arguably more power than any of its peers, had sent eight teams to the title game since Tom Izzo’s 2000 champions from Michigan State, and all eight came away empty-handed, sometimes in heartbreaking fashion and other times in a rout.
There was Illinois losing to North Carolina in 2005 to end its dream season and Purdue falling to UConn in 2024 in the Boilermakers’ bid for their first title. Both great teams but just not good enough when it mattered most.
Enter Michigan, which failed to finish the job in title games against Louisville and Villanova in 2013 and 2018, respectively. This Wolverines team was supposed to be a different animal, a truly dominant team that was ready to make a statement.
The Wolverines (37-3) came into Monday’s game on a mission to prove they weren’t just great but the best in Michigan’s history and perhaps one of the best teams in tournament history. They were the first team to score 90 or more points in their first five tournament games and had pummeled another top seed, Arizona, by 18 points in the semifinals. They went 19-1 in the Big Ten, and their only nonconference loss was to Duke.
After an offensive struggle Monday, coach Dusty May’s team might not be able to claim “best team ever” status, especially after the unbeaten Indiana team from 1976 was honored during the game. But it still can claim the fictional Michigan crown, or at least make an argument.
“I think we are (the best),” Lendeborg said. “I’m waiting for the Fab Five to give us their approval, but if they do, let it be said we’re the best team ever.”
Burnett wasn’t quite ready to push the Fabs out of the picture yet. As a student of history, he knew how important they were to changing the culture in basketball and America in the 1990s.
“The national championship in 1989 and ours in 2026 solidifies itself,” Burnett said. “But the Fab Five set the way for us. They set the path for us to achieve greatness like we did together today, so shout out to them.”
It almost ended badly for Michigan. The Huskies established the tempo early, and with Michigan starting out cold from the outside, it was obvious this wasn’t going to be another 90-point performance by the Wolverines.
Michigan missed all eight 3-point attempts in the first half, and the injured Lendeborg wasn’t contributing offensively, scoring only four points and going without a field goal until a layup with three minutes left in the half.
But the Wolverines held UConn to 33% shooting and went into the locker room with a 33-29 lead, then began to meld together at the outset of the second half. When Cadeau nailed their first 3-pointer in 12 attempts seven minutes into the half, Michigan suddenly had an 11-point lead and was in control for the first time.
Why is Bill Murray, who loves Illinois basketball, rooting for UConn in the Final Four?
UConn tossed up brick after brick, missing 11 straight 3-point attempts in the second half until Braylon Mullins sank back-to-back 3s on consecutive possessions, conjuring thoughts of the miracle ending against Duke in the Elite Eight.
Another 3 by Karaban cut the deficit to six with 2:30 left, but Huskies guard Solo Ball missed a layup and McKenney sank a 3 on the other end to switch the momentum back. While Roddy Gayle Jr. missed a pair of free throws to keep UConn’s hopes alive, the Wolverines overall were 25 of 28 from the line while UConn went 12 of 16.
UConn coach Dan Hurley spent most of the game making painful grimaces over foul calls he didn’t agree with, as is his MO. He was baited by a reporter to blame the refs, but to his credit, he mentioned the free-throw disparity only in passing. This was not going to be another Geno moment, like another UConn coach had last weekend.
“It’s such a physical game,” Hurley said. “I mean, Michigan is so physical. Again, it’s not the reason why we won or lost the game. (They were) plus-13 at the free throw line, plus-12 in attempts. I just felt the first-half foul trouble, we were positioned if we didn’t have that to potentially go into halftime with a lead.
More Top Picks Best Sandwich Makers
“You go in with a lead and they make a run, you’re down five instead of 11. But also, a problem for our team is undisciplined fouling at times. It’s hard to ref that game. We both played so hard.”
He then mentioned how great the refs were. No Geno here.
Lendeborg, a grad transfer from UAB, played despite a left knee strain and a bone bruise from the Arizona game. He wasn’t his usual self, scoring 13 points and missing all five 3-point attempts. He said afterward he was only 50% but tried to save his strength to make a push at the end.
UCLA women storm past South Carolina 79-51 to claim its 1st national championship
“I tried my best,” he said. “We got the win, so I’m just glad I got it done.”
Earlier in the postseason, Lendeborg told a reporter he was offered somewhere between $7 million and $9 million to play for Kentucky. While Kentucky coach Mark Pope denied the claim, it was obvious Michigan emptied its piggy bank to sign the transfer. Lendeborg, who only started playing basketball near the end of high school, was worth every cent.
“I say it all the time — I don’t belong on the court with these guys that have been doing this their whole lives,” he said. “But we’re champions. I don’t care what they say about my body. I’ve sacrificed so much to get here. I came here because of my mom’s spirit, her will, and continuing to believe in me. Eventually I got support from more people and I started believing in myself a little more.
“Today was one of those days I had to dig deep inside and find out who I really was.”
On a day when not everything worked the way they would’ve liked, the Wolverines dug deep and found out who they really were — national champions.
Even the Fabs never could say those words.