Lendeborg powers Michigan past Alabama into Elite Eight
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- Yaxel Lendeborg finished with 23 points, 12 rebounds, and 7 assists on 4-of-5 shooting from three-point range in Michigan's 90-77 Sweet 16 win over fourth-seeded Alabama on Friday in Chicago.
- Michigan trailed by nine early in the first half and by two at halftime, then opened the second half on a 15-point run over 11 minutes to take control of the game.
- The Wolverines shot 13-for-27 from three-point range and 50% from the field, while Alabama still connected on 14 three-pointers but lost by 13.
- Michigan advances to face sixth-seeded Tennessee in the Elite Eight, one win from the program's first Final Four appearance since 2018, when John Beilein's squad lost the national title game to Villanova.
- For the first time in conference history, four Big Ten teams reached the Elite Eight in the same year — Michigan, Purdue, Illinois, and Iowa — though the conference has not won a men's basketball national title since 2000.
- Nimari Burnett, an Alabama transfer, threw down a dunk off a 65-foot Lendeborg outlet pass in the second half, a play that drew a smiling comparison to quarterback Tom Brady's timing and anticipation.
- Michigan coach Dusty May said the best way to break the Big Ten's 26-year title drought would be to send all four conference teams to Indianapolis for the Final Four.
Why it matters: Michigan is one win from its first Final Four since 2018, and with four Big Ten teams now in the Elite Eight for the first time in conference history, the league has its deepest collective presence in decades. The flip side: the Big Ten still hasn't won a men's basketball national title since 2000, a 26-year drought that will hang over whichever conference school reaches Indianapolis this weekend.
