The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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34 THE WOLVERINE ❱ MAY 2025 swing it, drive a long closeout, but the ball was sticking up top. "Part of the reason is they get in the passing lanes. They're very, very dis- ciplined. When they do get behind the ball, it's impressive how fast they are to get back and make plays with back tips or scrambling and rotating. "They press in the passing lanes, and you simply can't run your stuff. Every timeout they're running and jumping us, forcing us to play basketball." The Tritons cut it to 45-44 at 14:27 on another driving layup and finish. Mich- igan, meanwhile, missed free throws and continued to take shots from the perimeter. It made only one of its first 5 triples and continued to struggle, al- lowing UCSD to take its first lead. Junior guard Tre Donaldson, though, hit a clutch triple from the top at 2:14 to reclaim the lead for the Wolverines, and Goldin made two free throws with 19.3 seconds to provide the final margin in a 68-65 win. Donaldson finished with 12 points, and junior Roddy Gayle Jr. had 11 in victory. Gayle would prove to be the hero in a round of 32 win over Texas A&M, play- ing his best game in a Michigan uniform to lead the Wolverines into the Sweet 16. The U-M fan contingent chanted his name when the Wolverines rushed to meet them following a come-from- behind 91-79 win over the Aggies, one in which A&M led most of the first half and 39-35 at the break before extending the lead to as many as 10 points on five different occasions. Gayle, though, went on his own per- sonal run, his triple and driving layup cutting the score to 67-66 at the 9:14 mark. Michigan then went on a 15-2 spurt after an Aggies three to take con- trol, sparked by 10 straight points from the junior, and held off a late run to se- cure the victory. Gayle finished with 26 points and Goldin 23 in the win that sent the Wol- verines to the Sweet 16 for the sixth time in their past eight tournament ap- pearances. "I feel like I was due — due for this big moment — especially like this under the bright lights," Gayle said. "I'm so proud of Roddy Gayle," Don- aldson added. "We came in together on our recruiting visit to Michigan, so me and Roddy are probably the closest out of everybody. He deserves everything he had going for him tonight, and I'm just so proud of him." His team mobbed him while the band blasted "The Victors," and they did it again in the postgame locker room. "I'm most happy because he deserves it," May said. "His teammates never wa- vered. Obviously, he had a phenomenal game tonight, but when he just had a good, solid game they were extremely happy for him because of how much they believed in him and how much they knew we needed him if we were going to do something like this. "Credit to him for staying the course." A TOUGH ENDING, BUT A BRIGHT FUTURE The Wolverines headed to Atlanta to face No. 1 Auburn with momentum and high hopes to topple the top overall seed, and they were in good shape to do that in the second half. U-M led 48-39 with 12 minutes to go in front of a parti- san Tigers crowd … and that's when the wheels fell off. Auburn responded with a 20-2 scor- ing run, going from a 9-point deficit to a 9-point lead with 7:27 to go, and were never threatened again. Wolf had kept the Wolverines in con- tention with 20 points, but he didn't score in the last 12 minutes, his team- mates also struggling. U-M headed home after a 78-65 loss to wonder what might have been. Most acknowledged a Sweet 16 season was nothing short of outstanding after last year's 8-24 campaign under coach Juwan Howard. May, though, had a hard time deciding if Year 1 had met his ex- pectations. That's how high his stan- dards are and how he feels they should be at a place like Michigan. "I thought we could make the final weekend," he said, and it was clear he felt they'd missed an opportunity. Wolf, meanwhile, choked up at the Roddy Gayle Jr. played his best game in a Michigan uniform to help send the Wolverines to the Sweet 16. He finished with 26 points in U-M's come-from-behind win over Texas A&M. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETICS