The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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finishes. On the occasions their cutters were grabbed, the primarily Pac-12 crew actually blew their whistles, putting the Wolverines in the bonus with plenty of time to spare. McGary proved his first game performance was no fluke. He scored 21 points and grabbed 14 rebounds en route to being Michigan's MVP for the contest. It was little-used backup point guard Spike Albrecht who stood on a chair and led the Wolverines in "The Victors" following his performance, though. Albrecht scored only three points — U-M's only bench points, on a three-pointer — but he was outstanding against the press, earning praise from Smart in the postgame. It would be a sign of things to come. The regional in Arlington, Texas, however, would belong to a few others. The Shot Heard 'Round The World Many liked Michigan to beat No. 1 seed Kansas in the Sweet 16 following the Wolver- ines' blowout of VCU. But the Jayhawks led by 14 with six minutes remaining and Burke had been silent much of the night, even scoreless at the half. Burke's teammates followed his lead when he told them in the huddle they weren't out of it, and fought through exhaustion to scrap for loose balls and defended like they hadn't all game to get to overtime. They got there on one of the more memorable shots in NCAA Tournament history. Following a missed front end of a one-and-one by Kansas' Elijah Johnson, Burke fired from 28 feet and tied it with four seconds remaining, bringing down the house. In overtime, Michigan opened an 87-82 lead and held on for an improbable, 87-85 win. Down 10 with just more than a minute remaining, the Wolverines were a 99.4 percent bet to lose according to KenPom.com. "Trey and their players, they made great plays," Kansas head coach Bill Self said. "They've got a ter- rific team and are well coached. They didn't give up. All we had to do was make one play, and we just didn't do it." McGary was a monster once again. He took it right at Kansas big man Jeff Withey — the same Jeff Withey who had vowed to dominate McGary in the paint, having called him "smaller than I thought." The tale of the tape — McGary 25 points and 14 rebounds in 35 minutes, Withey 12 and 8 in 39. The win set up an Elite Eight showdown with Florida, with the Final Four on the line. The Gators' game plan seemed like a logical one based on Michigan's Sweet 16 win over Kansas — try to take away the inside, concentrate on sophomore Trey Burke and let the supporting cast attempt to beat them. Hardaway didn't take advantage of his looks, but freshman Nik Stauskas certainly did. Burke, playing with back spasms, finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and seven as-