03/27/26 11:27:00
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03/27 23:26 CDT Yaxel Lendeborg stars as top-seeded Michigan beats Alabama
90-77 in Sweet 16
Yaxel Lendeborg stars as top-seeded Michigan beats Alabama 90-77 in Sweet 16
By JAY COHEN
AP Sports Writer
CHICAGO (AP) --- Yaxel Lendeborg had 23 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists
in a dazzling all-around performance, and Michigan beat Alabama 90-77 on Friday
night to advance to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the first time
in five years.
Trey McKenney and Elliot Cadeau each scored 17 points as top-seeded Michigan
set a school record with its 34th win of the season. Roddy Gayle Jr. finished
with 16 points.
Led by McKenney and Gayle, the Wolverines (34-3) enjoyed a 33-6 advantage in
bench points. But the versatile Lendeborg was the star of the show as his team
grabbed control in the second half.
Next up for the Wolverines is Sunday's Midwest Region final against the winner
of Tennessee-Iowa State.
"Overwhelmed with joy. This is pretty much a dream come true," Lendeborg said.
Labaron Philon Jr. scored 35 points for fourth-seeded Alabama, which reached
the Elite Eight each of the previous two years. Latrell Wrightsell Jr. had 15
points.
"It got a little bit away from us and we just couldn't get back into it,"
Wrightsell said. "I feel like just the edge from them was really good at the
start of the second half, and our edge, well, didn't start on with an edge for
the second half."
Alabama (25-10) was once again without star guard Aden Holloway, who missed the
school's tournament run after he was suspended indefinitely following a March
16 arrest on felony drug charges.
Philon also had a team-high seven rebounds and four assists in what might have
been his final game with the Crimson Tide. The dynamic guard could declare for
the NBA draft.
"I really just haven't thought about it really," Philon said. "Just been trying
to play basketball with Alabama for this little run."
Even without Holloway, the Crimson Tide stayed right with the Wolverines for
much of the up-tempo matchup of two of the tournament's highest-scoring teams.
But everything changed when Lendeborg, the Big Ten player of the year, started
to assert himself at the beginning of the second half.
"I mean, you got Yax playing like that, just the kind of competitiveness he had
today, like, I think he's the best player in the country without a doubt,"
Gayle said. "He's like that, we're the best team."
Lendeborg stepped in front of an Alabama pass along the baseline and threw the
ball ahead to Nimari Burnett for a fast-break dunk that gave Michigan a 54-51
lead with 17:04 left.
The 6-foot-9 Lendeborg then made a 3 and converted a driving layup to make it
62-54 with 14:50 remaining. Two foul shots by McKenney made it 75-60 with 9:22
to go, and it was too much for Alabama to overcome.
"Once we started slowing the game down, being a lot more physical and trying to
dominate the paint, we started finding more success," Lendeborg said. "Our
defense started coming alive, and that really helped us out. It helped our
confidence."
It was a sweet moment for Lendeborg, who was hoping for more interest from
Alabama when he entered the transfer portal last year after two seasons at UAB.
He ended up at Michigan, and the arrangement is working quite well for the
forward and his team.
Michigan coach Dusty May also got a win against Alabama's Nate Oats, a longtime
friend from the beginning of their coaching journeys.
"We came out in the second half, and Michigan just seemed like they imposed
their will on us," Oats said.
Right from the start, Michigan and Alabama pushed the ball up the court
whenever possible. The final few seconds of the shot clock were seldom seen as
the teams took aim from long range or attacked the rim shortly after gaining
possession.
Gayle's jumper started a 14-3 run for Michigan that made it 47-41 with 1:58
left in the first half. But Philon responded with eight straight points,
including two foul shots that gave Alabama a 49-47 lead at the break.
The teams combined for 74 shots in the first half alone, including 39 attempts
from behind the arc. The Crimson Tide went 9 for 24 from 3-point range, and the
Wolverines went 8 for 15.
"We were down on ourselves, and we came in, and we regrouped, and our guys had
a different level of focus and intensity in the second half," May said.
___
AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and
coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
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