At The Buzzer: Michigan 69, UConn 63

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Rapid reaction to Michigan’s 69-63 win over UConn to win the 2025-26 National Championship.

THE MOMENT

Michigan had only made one 3-pointer all game — and was chasing its tail in transition after allowing one from UConn — when Trey McKenney found himself beyond the arc with the ball in his hands.

It hadn’t been the night the freshman guard had wanted up to that point, with less than two minutes left in the second half. McKenney was 1-for-8 from the field, making only a midrange shot, and was playing without the rhythm or poise he’d possessed throughout the tournament.

But none of that mattered when he pulled up from deep, draining the 3-pointer and putting the Wolverines up by nine points. It was Michigan’s first field goal in over three minutes, and sunk the final dagger in the Huskies.

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THE TAKEAWAY

For the first time since 1989, Michigan won the National Championship. And, with a 69-63 win, the Wolverines did it playing far from their best basketball.

Michigan succumbed to UConn’s game in the first half, playing the game at a pace far below its preference and battling its way through one long possession after another.

Then Dusty May and the Wolverines — as they have all season long — figured things out. It was yet another edition of May solving the puzzle his opponent presented in real-time, on the biggest stage the sport has to offer. Michigan ran in transition, drew contact like it was a heavyweight bout, and muscled its way to a chip.

It wasn’t pretty, nor was it your usual Michigan win. Some of that was due to Yaxel Lendeborg’s health; the superstar was far from his regular self, going 4-for-13 from the floor and playing at a noticeably slower speed. Some of that was due to the Wolverines going cold as a Michigan winter from three. Some of that was due to Michigan’s frontcourt never quite getting in rhythm.

Nevertheless, none of that will come to mind in five, ten, twenty years when thinking back on this title. You’ll remember the vaunted frontcourt, the end-to-end dominance, the suffocating defense.

It’s a testament to the depth, talent and overall toughness on this team that the Wolverines won a National Championship playing the way they did. A team this good didn’t need its best stuff. As the confetti fell from the rafters of Lucas Oil, that’s all that mattered.

THE STAR

Elliot Cadeau spearheaded Michigan’s claim for a National Championship. Everyone knows what they say about guards in March — Cadeau justified it all on Monday night.

Scoring 17 points with one of Michigan’s two 3-pointers in 28 minutes, the Wolverines’ starting point guard was their most consistent offensive option all night long. Against a defense like UConn’s, Michigan needed a point guard with poise, patience and, inevitably, an ability to go get a bucket.

Cadeau had all of that. He sliced through the Huskies and rolled it in, he scored with baseline drives and he made one of Wolverines’ two 3-pointers of the night. He was solid on defense, too, and never let the intensity and emotions of a National Championship boil over.

His performance capped a tournament run that was as impressive as it was satisfying, for all the talk of Michigan’s backcourt being a potential weakness heading into March. In leading the Wolverines to the top of the sport, Cadeau silenced any doubts.

THE STAT

Michigan didn’t make a single shot away from the basket, or the free-throw line, in the first half.

In the first 20 minutes, the Wolverines shot eight threes and didn’t make a single one. Michigan’s missed 3-pointers were a mixed bag; some felt a little too rushed, some were wide open, some rattled in and out. They shot seven field-goals from the midrange and none of those went in, either.

But the Wolverines were 11-for-15 on dunks and layups, including some Mara floaters and Johnson putbacks. Factor in Michigan going 11-for-12 on the line along with some excellent first-shot defense, and the Wolverines jogged off the court after 20 minutes with a 33-29 lead.

Michigan ended the game 2-for-15 from the perimeter.

If you would’ve told Michigan fans the Wolverines would be up despite those numbers, it would sound impossible. But Michigan kept up its end of the deal on the other end of the floor, played UConn at its own game, and edged out the Huskies in a slugfest.

FOUR FACTORS