ANN ARBOR — Michigan’s Fred Richard and Paul Juda finished first and second in the all-around and Wolverines team total of 332.224 edged them past five-time defending champion Stanford (332.961) on Saturday to win their first NCAA men’s gymnastics title since 2014.

Juda, the individual champion on the parallel bars with a score of 14.200 and host Michigan’s last competitor of the day, scored a 13.966 on the vault to clinch the program’s seventh national title. The Wolverines finished second, 5.635 points behind Stanford, at the 2024 championships.

Oklahoma finished third with 327.891, ahead of Nebraska (326.222), Penn State (317.258) and Illinois was sixth with 316.293. Penn State and Oklahoma each hold a record 12 national titles.

Stanford’s Asher Hong took home the individual title in the floor exercise (14.600) and defended his crown with a score of 14.433 on the rings. Patrick Hoopes of Air Force scored a 14.833 to win the horse championship, Ohio State’s Kameron Nelson (14.633) won the vault title and Emre Dodanli claimed the high bar championship for Oklahoma with a score of (13.833).

Richard and Juda won bronze medals for Team USA at the Paris Olympics.

The very best thing about high school sports is making memories that last for years, and the very best games are the ones that come up in conversation, over and over again down the road.

The 2019 season opener between then-No. 1 West Bloomfield and No. 3 Oak Park was one of the latter: It may have been sloppy at times, and mistake-filled as openers often are, but it was also a classic defensive slugfest between two behemoths, one where the difference might have been a star play made by one of the star players.

West Bloomfield’s Donovan Edwards broke free for an early 60-yard touchdown run on his third touch of the game — using the breakaway speed that the world would see over and over again in later years, during his years at the University of Michigan — setting up an eventual 20-14 win by the Lakers.

But he was hardly the only star in a game chock full of them.

And, five years on, a ton of those players — coveted by college recruiters and scouts back then, and NFL personnel nowadays — will be some of the same names called during next week’s NFL Draft.

“I was just talking about that game the other day … (Tyrone) ‘Rudy’ Broden has been home, working out in the weight room almost every day, you know, getting ready for the Draft and stuff. And I was talking to him about that game, and he said, ‘No, coach, I was gone that year,’” said Zach Hilbers, then an offensive assistant for the Lakers, and now the head coach at his alma mater.

“I guess, like, if you think back to that game, we knew they were really good. And you know, a lot of our attention went to (Justin) Rodgers, but they had some other D-linemen that were really good, too. … We just knew it’d be a battle, and it was a really close, low-scoring, just back-and-forth battle. If I remember right, Maliq Carr caught like a third-and-15 plus — we blew a coverage and he caught like a 85-yard touchdown, and we got lucky. It got called back because they had an alignment penalty or something that had nothing to do with the play, you know, and that was kind of like a springboard for us to take the lead after we got the ball back after that. But it was just, it was a good game, like, a really high level, good game.”

Broden (No. 49 in Michigan’s class of 2019 per 247Sports, signed with Bowling Green) is indeed one of the top-level recruits who missed that game by a smidge — along with Oak Park’s D’Wan Mathis (No. 9, Georgia), and West Bloomfield’s Lance Dixon (No. 5, Penn State) and Tre Mosley (No. 14, Michigan St.) — graduating the year before.

But there was still a megaton of talent left on the field for that Aug. 30 meeting, a lot of which helped the Lakers to the 2020 Division 1 state title a year later, a ton of which made impacts at the college level.

And a ton who you could quite conceivably hear announced as draft picks next week, or see in training camps as undrafted free agents.

“Surreal. It’s more than cool. And it’s l surreal because it’s why you get into teaching and coaching is to see kids reach their dreams. And in this case, as we’re talking football, this is the pinnacle, the ultimate of it,” Hilbers said. “I don’t know, it’s almost overwhelming. So I’ve been trying to reach out to all of them and talk to them. And Rudy’s been to the school a ton, which is makes it easier. But like, you know, it’s nuts, it’s crazy, especially when you — I have a cool picture of Max (Hairston) and Donovan from middle school basketball that’s hilarious. It’s just hilarious how little they look.”

Rogers was the No. 1 player in the state’s 2019 recruiting class, landing at Kentucky before finishing his college career at Auburn, taken in the seventh round of last year’s NFL Draft by the Cowboys.

Oak Park’s Carr (Purdue) and corner Enzo Jennings (Penn State) were ranked Nos. 3-4 in the 2020 class, followed immediately by Lakers safety Makari Paige (Michigan). The Lakers also had linebacker Cornell Wheeler (No. 22, Michigan), DE Sterling Miles (No. 44, Cincinnati).

Edwards (Michigan) was the No. 1 player in the state’s 2021 class, while corner Maxwell Hairston (Kentucky) was No. 19. Oak Park countered with Rayshaun Benny (No. 7, Michigan), Davion Primm (No. 26, Michigan State), Jaylin Mines (No. 30, Toledo) and Marlon Dawson (No. 39, Miami, Ohio) in the 2021 class.

All of them played in that 2019 opener.

Now most of them are preparing for a shot at the NFL.

—————

2019 Oak Park-West Bloomfield game

(All rankings from 247Sports)

WEST BLOOMFIELD

Maxwell Hairston (No. 19 player in MI in class of 2021) — CB — Kentucky (2025 draft eligible)

Donovan Edwards (No. 1 player in MI in c/o 2021) — RB — Michigan (2025 draft eligible)

Makari Paige (No. 5 player in MI in c/o 2020) — S — Michigan (2025 draft eligible)

Cornell Wheeler (No. 22 player in MI in c/o 2020) — ILB — Michigan/Kansas (2025 draft eligible)

Sterling Miles (No. 44 player in MI in c/o 2020) — DE — Cincinnati/EMU

CJ Harris (No. 50 player in MI in c/o 2020) — QB — Ohio/California

Beau Davis (No. 87 player in MI in c/o 2020) — DE — Southeast Louisiana

Jordan Hoskins (No. 80 player in MI in c/o 2021) — LB — Missouri St./E. Tennessee St./Lincoln University

Gavin Hardeman (No. 89 player in MI in c/o 2021) — S — Air Force

Travis Reece (No. 92 player in MI in c/o 2021) — LB — Davenport/Central State

 

OAK PARK

Justin Rogers (No. 1 player in MI in c/o 2020) — DT — Kentucky/Auburn (2024 draft, Cowboys, pick 244)

Maliq Carr (No. 3 player in MI in c/o 2020) — TE — Purdue (2025 draft eligible)

Enzo Jennings (No. 4 player in MI in c/o 2020) — S — Penn State

Tremayne Oliver (No. 65 player in MI in c/o 2020) — DE — Northwood

Rayshaun Benny (No. 7 player in MI in c/o 2021) — DL — Michigan

Davion Primm (No. 26 player in MI in c/o 2021) — RB — MSU/Morehead St.

Jaylin Mines (No. 30 player in MI in c/o 2021) — S — Toledo/Iowa Central CC

Marlon Dawson (No. 39 player in MI in c/o 2021) — LB — Miami (Ohio)/Iowa Central CC

Former Central Michigan head football coach, Michigan offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Mike DeBord died Tuesday from complications due to a stroke he suffered in 2021.

DeBord was 69.

His son, Tyler DeBord, announced his father’s death in a post on Facebook.

“The world lost a great man today,” Tyler DeBord wrote. “He taught me so much in life, I am so grateful the good Lord blessed me with the best dad! He was a man of faith, an unbelievable dad, husband, grandpa, and man! For all his successes in life, he always stuck to his small town roots and never forgot where he came from. He had a great sense of faith, work ethic, love for family, football, and life. His loss will be felt by many because of the impact he had on everyone he touched. He loved fiercely, and we loved him!”

DeBord, a native of Muncie, Ind., started four years on the offensive line at Manchester College where he was a captain in 1977. His coaching career began in 1982.

He made stops at Eastern Illinois, Ball State, Colorado State and Northwestern before joining Lloyd Carr’s staff at Michigan. DeBord was the Wolverines’ offensive line coach from 1993-1996, then became the offensive coordinator from 1997, when he helped lead the program to an unbeaten season and the AP national championship, through 1999. He left Michigan to become head coach of Central Michigan from 2000-2003.

“It is with deep sadness that we learned of the passing of Mike DeBord, a respected leader and valued figure in Central Michigan football history,” Central Michigan head football coach Matt Drinkall said in a statement to The Detroit News. “You still hear stories from his former players about the impact he made on their lives and our community. His legacy as a coach, person and mentor will forever be remembered.”

DeBord returned to Michigan in 2004 and was on the staff through 2007 when Carr retired.

Jon Jansen, a two-time captain and integral part of the national title team, was close with DeBord, who coached him at Michigan. Jansen, now the analyst on Michigan football radio broadcasts and a radio host in Detroit on The Ticket 97.1 FM, also was a frequent visitor at CMU when DeBord was head coach and would speak to the team.

“Mike was one of the great leaders,” Jansen told The Detroit News on Tuesday. “He cared about you as a player and 100% attribute a ton of my success and my life to the energy he put into me. He was just like everybody on Lloyd’s staff — he was such a good man and cared about you as an individual, whether it was going to class, making the right decisions. He was somebody that was always there no matter the situation.

“He was one of the best men I have ever known.”

After Carr’s retirement, DeBord then coached in the NFL at Seattle and Chicago and in 2013 returned to Michigan as sports administrator for Michigan’s Olympic teams. He went back to college coaching at Tennessee in 2015 and then Indiana in 2017 where he was associate head coach and offensive coordinator. He retired briefly from coaching and returned to help coach the San Diego Fleet.

In 2020, he was hired by former Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh as an offensive analyst at Michigan.

“Football, to me, coaching football’s an addiction,” DeBord told The Detroit News in 2020. “You’ve got to be addicted to it.”

He was explaining why he couldn’t stay retired and away from the game.

“I always loved the meetings and the coaching on the field — that’s why you coach,” DeBord said as he discussed why he returned to be an analyst. “I would say this is taking care of a part of me. I told Jim when I came to talk to him, ‘I love Michigan. I love Michigan football.’”

After a year as a Michigan analyst, DeBord was named offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at Kansas in the February 2021. He suffered the stroke later that year. Deb DeBord, his wife, died last June from cancer.

Tyler DeBord said in his post that funeral arrangements are pending.

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Houston’s suffocating defense wiped away a 14-point deficit over the final eight minutes and erased Cooper Flagg and Duke’s title hopes Saturday night in a 70-67 stunner over the Blue Devils at the Final Four.

Duke made a grand total of one field goal over the last 10 1/2 minutes of this game. The second-to-last attempt during its game-ending 1-for-9 stretch was a step-back jumper in the lane by Flagg that J’Wan Roberts disrupted. The last was a desperation heave by Tyrese Proctor that caught nothing at the buzzer.

It was Roberts’ two free throws with 19.6 seconds left that gave the Cougars their first lead since 6-5. LJ Cryer, who led Houston with 26 points, made two more to push the lead to three. It was Houston’s biggest lead of the night.

“No one ever loses at anything as long as you don’t quit,” coach Kelvin Sampson said. “If you quit, you’ve lost.”

The Cougars (35-4), who have never won a title, not even in the days of Phi Slama Jamma, will play Florida on Monday night for the championship.

Florida’s 79-73 win over Auburn in the early game was a free-flowing hoopsfest. This one would’ve looked perfect on a cracked blacktop and a court with chain-link nets.

That’s just how Houston likes it. It closed the game on a 9-0 run over the final 74 seconds, and though Flagg finished with 27 points, he did it on 8-for-19 shooting and never got a good look after his 3 at the 3:02 mark put the Blue Devils (35-4) up by nine.

It looked over at that point. Houston was just getting started.

“We had a feeling that we could still win this game,” Roberts said.

A team that prides itself on getting three stops in a row — calling the third one the “kill stop” — allowed a measly three free throws down the stretch. One came when Joseph Tugler got a technical for batting the ball from a Duke player’s hand as he was trying to throw an inbounds pass.

That didn’t make it any better for Duke.

On the possession following the technical, Tugler rejected Kon Knueppel (16 points), then Emanuel Sharp (16 points) made a 3 to cut the deficit to three.

Mylik Wilson stole the next inbounds pass and missed a game-tying 3, but Tugler tipped it in to cut the deficit to one.

Proctor missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 20 seconds left to set the stage for the Roberts free throws.

Duke’s slow walk off the court came through a phalanx of Houston fans who waved goodbye to Flagg, who will likely be off to the NBA as the first pick in the draft.

Houston finished with six steals and six blocked shots, including four from Tugler, who might be the best shot blocker this program has seen since Hakeem Olajuwon, who was on hand at the Alamodome to see the program’s first trip to the final since 1984.

Big win for AI

The huge comeback also netted a $1 million win for artificial intelligence. An AI disruptor bet a professional gambler that his program could do a better March Madness bracket, and it all came down to the Duke-Houston game.

Even if the Houston loses in the final, the AI bracket will get more points in the contest and the disruptor, Alan Levy, will pocket the million.

— By EDDIE PELLS, Associated Press

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Walter Clayton Jr. scored 34 points and Florida beat Southeastern Conference rival Auburn 79-73 in the Final Four on Saturday night, sending the Gators to the national championship game for the first time since their titles in 2006 and 2007.

The All-America guard for the Gators (35-4) had a driving layup with 2:24 left, on the possession right after Australian big man Alex Condon drew a charge against Johni Broome, the other All-America player in this national semifinal — and who was dealing with an injured right elbow.

After a record 14 SEC teams made this NCAA Tournament, seven got to the Sweet 16 before the league made up half the Elite Eight and then this Final Four filled with No. 1 seeds.

The Gators will have the chance Monday night to win the SEC’s first title since Kentucky in 2012, the only one since they won in back-to-back seasons. Florida takes an 11-game winning streak into the title championship game in the Alamodome against either Duke or Houston.

“We’re just all together, on the court and off the court,” Clayton said.

Even at the end of the first SEC matchup in a Final Four, Clayton chased a loose rebound and tipped it back inbounds to keep the clock running out on the win. When he started to walk back on the court, teammate Alijah Martin was standing watching him at the end line nodding with a smile to greet him.

The Tigers (32-6), in their second Final Four with coach Bruce Pearl, were the top overall seed and had an eight-point halftime lead.

“Auburn had us on our heels in the first half but we came out with a great start and we didn’t look back,” said 39-year-old Florida coach Todd Golden, who joined Pearl’s first staff at Auburn in 2014.

Clayton became the first player with consecutive 30-point games in the Elite Eight and semifinals since Larry Bird for Indiana State in 1979, according to ESPN Stats. Clayton got over 30 with his three-point play with 1:33 left, scoring on a layup while being fouled and adding the free throw.

Martin, who played in the Final Four with FAU two years ago, added 17 points for the Gators. Thomas Haugh had 12.

Florida opened the second half with a 13-3 run, with Clayton capping an 11-0 run with a layup after Rueben Chinyelu’s steal. That put the Gators up 51-49 with 15 1/2 minutes left.

Chad Baker-Mazara, with his left hand partially wrapped because of a thumb issue, led Auburn with 18 points, including four 3-pointers. Broome finished with 15 points on 6-of-14 shooting and had seven rebounds — he had only three points after halftime.

Even before the final buzzer sounded, Broome was hunched over and then was surrounded by cameras to capture his reaction. He eventually stood up to shake hands, then walked off the court with his eyes red from crying — pulling up his jersey to wipe his face as cameras continued to follow his exit.

Broome and Baker-Mazara both were injured in the win over Michigan State last Sunday that sent the Tigers to the Final Four. Broome’s right elbow bent awkwardly during a hard fall in the second half, and in the Final Four he wore some kind of brace on his arm covered by a sleeve.

— By STEPHEN HAWKINS, Associated Press

If Yaxel Lendeborg returns to college for next season, he’ll play for coach Dusty May and the Wolverines.

Lendeborg, the UAB star big man who’s regarded as the top player in the transfer portal, shared the news of his commitment on his social media accounts Saturday.

Lendeborg has declared for the NBA Draft and is expected to go through the predraft process while maintaining his college eligibility. The 6-foot-9, 240-pound forward is projected to be a late first-round pick by Bleacher Report (No. 26) and The Athletic (No. 28) and a second-rounder by ESPN (No. 53).

“I’m focused on the draft process and making the NBA right now,” Lendeborg told ESPN. “I want a guaranteed contract. That’s the biggest thing. Make sure I am in a good spot. I would prefer to play college basketball in Ann Arbor than be in and out of the G League on a two-way (contract). I want to find a safe spot.”

CBS Sports, On3 and 247Sports all rank Lendeborg as the top transfer in the class, while The Athletic and ESPN have him ranked second and third, respectively. Based on his numbers and production, it’s easy to see why.

Lendeborg averaged 17.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.7 steals per game at UAB last season, his second year with the program. He shot 35.7% from 3-point range (25-for-70), 55.2% on 2-pointers and 75.7% at the free-throw line.

He was named the American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year and was a first-team All-AAC selection each of the past two seasons. Before joining UAB, Lendeborg spent two years at Arizona Western, a junior college, and was a two-time juco All-American.

May has firsthand experience with Lendeborg and faced him twice during his final season at Florida Atlantic in 2023-24. Lendeborg had eight points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals in the first meeting and a 17-point, 21-rebound outing in the second encounter.

The NCAA deadline to withdraw from the draft is 10 days after the NBA combine, which will take place May 11-18 in Chicago. That means Lendeborg will have to decide where he’ll play next season by May 28.

“Honestly, I’m stuck,” Lendeborg told The Birmingham Banner of his decision. “Obviously, I want to be in the NBA. I want to be a pro, but one more year college does sound fun. It does sound like I get to prepare myself a little bit more. … Ultimately, I can’t even say (for sure), but I would say like 80-20 NBA to college.”

Lendeborg is the third transfer to commit to Michigan, along with North Carolina point guard Elliot Cadeau and Illinois big man Morez Johnson Jr.

ANN ARBOR — If it’s true a positive performance in a bowl game can be a springboard into the next season, then Michigan’s defensive players must be feeling pretty good.

Defensive coordinator Wink Martindale, entering his second season with the Wolverines, certainly is upbeat about his group as the team opened spring practice Tuesday. Michigan finished last season, highlighted by strong defensive performances, with three straight wins. They included a 13-10 upset at Ohio State and then a 19-13 upset of Alabama in the bowl game in which starters Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant, Josaiah Stewart, Makari Paige and Will Johnson did not play.

In the final four games, starting at Indiana, Michigan allowed an average 48.7 yards rushing, 172.5 passing and 221.2 total yards. The Wolverines gave up an average 12.2 points. For the season, the defense ranked No. 5 against the run (90.7), 10th in total defense (307.0), 19th in scoring (19.9) and 63rd against the pass (216.3).

“It gave people excitement,” Martindale said Monday of Michigan’s late-season defensive surge and what it means for this fall. “There wasn’t anybody banging on the door saying they wanted to transfer. They’re excited about this season and where we’re going with it.”

Michigan will be without defensive standouts like Graham and Johnson, projected first-round NFL Draft picks next month, and Martindale and his staff are tasked with replacing that talent. The bowl game offered some evidence what this defense could look like this fall — the Michigan players at the recent NFL Scouting Combine all pointed to edge Derrick Moore as the one they think will be a standout — but the Wolverines made some significant additions in the offseason. They signed tackles Tre Williams and Damon Payne from the transfer portal, and Martindale likes the experiene they bring to the room.

Still, he cautioned that while the outlook is good, this is a work in progress, and the work begins during spring football practices.

“It’s just not like something that happens overnight,” Martindale said. “We’ve been trying to replace them through recruiting and the development of the other guys. We did a nice job in the portal with the two veteran tackles that we got in here, so it’s gonna be interesting to see how it all works out. But also, I feel really confident in the depth that we have in that room. I feel more confident now than I did last year at this time with the depth, just starting off initially.”

Martindale several times mentioned how pleased he is with the depth on defense. It also will benefit from the consistency of having him back for a second straight season. Martindale came to Michigan before the 2024 season after 20 seasons in the NFL, and he did interview for two NFL coordinator positions this offseason.

He’s ready for a second season at Michigan, though, and said he feels more comfortable and is used to life in Ann Arbor. Martindale also said having the same coordinator for a second straight season should not be undervalued. He is the architect of the defense from the Baltimore Ravens that Mike Macdonald installed at Michigan in 2021 and Jesse Minter built on in 2022 and 2023. Macdonald and Minter were on the Ravens staff with Martindale, so there is continuity on defense.

“These kids are more resilient than anybody realizes, the way this thing goes with people going in the portal and coming out of the portal and all the other movement in college football and the NFL,” Martindale said. “Every year is a new year, and they’re excited and ready to go. There is comfort that I was here last year and all the staff’s back, so it’ll help us.”

What hasn’t changed is Martindale’s feistiness when he’s asked about the perception that he blitzes too much. That has been a criticism that followed him from the NFL, and it irks him.

“It’s like big-time wrestling. You throw something out there and it catches on social media,” Martindale said. “I know that you guys (in the media) all have a job to do, and everybody has an opinion. It was just like when we played Ohio State compared to Alabama, it was two different game plans. That’s what I was proud of. Not that it was two different game plans was I proud of it, but the execution of the two different game plans. Ohio State, the guys executed the game plan and they played physical with it.

“And so, the scheme is the scheme. It’s the same scheme for the last three years. Do I take pride in it? Did I let both Jesse and Mike know that we held Ohio State to 10 points and they didn’t? Yes, of course I did. But we’ll see what we can do with what we have. It’s new people. It’s a new year. It’s the same thing I said before last year — it’s going to be different. Don’t know how it’s going to be different, but it’s going to be different, and we’ll see how we adjust during the season and starting with spring ball here. I’m really excited about that, seeing the guys compete.”

One of the first encouraging signs came midway through the first half in Michigan’s first game at the Big Ten tournament.

That’s when big man Danny Wolf and point guard Tre Donaldson ran pick-and-roll action from the top of the key. Wolf got the ball, shot-faked, drew two Purdue defenders and threw a pass over to Donaldson for a deep 3-pointer.

Donaldson’s reaction said it all.

“Tre hit that first 3, I just saw a big smile on his face, and I knew he was going to keep going,” Wolf said after Friday’s 86-68 win over Purdue, the first of three victories on the way to capturing the conference tournament title.

“I saw more smiles from my teammates than I’ve seen in a while, which is awesome.”

Things didn’t just look different for the Wolverines, who had limped into the postseason on a three-game skid. Things felt different before they ever stepped on the Gainbridge Fieldhouse court.

During the four-day gap between Michigan’s regular-season finale and Big Ten tournament opener, the team had two of its best practices in months. The sessions were as competitive and as physical as they’ve been this season. The mood shifted and the spirits went up.

“The energy in the locker room — I feel like everybody is much more connected and confident in each other,” guard Roddy Gayle Jr. said. “I feel like we’re rolling right now.”

And now is the best time for that to be happening, with Michigan riding its tournament title run into Thursday’s March Madness matchup against UC San Diego in Denver.

For the Wolverines to be at their best, they need every player to be at his best. After relying on 7-footers Vlad Goldin and Wolf to carry the load much of the past month, Michigan’s backcourt stepped up and raised their level of play.

For starters, there’s Donaldson, who wasn’t pleased with his performance the past couple of weeks. He bounced back by scoring in double figures in all three Big Ten tournament wins. He came away with several 50-50 balls and had a hot stretch against Purdue. He dished out a season-best nine assists against Maryland. He did much of the damage in the decisive 11-2 run in the closing minutes against Wisconsin.

Most notably and importantly, he delivered in crunch time. He scored two clutch baskets in the final 28 seconds against Maryland, including the game-winner on a last-second layup. He drilled a lead-changing 3-pointer with 1:54 to go and made two critical free throws after grabbing a key defensive rebound late against Wisconsin.

“He took control when he needed to take control. That’s what point guards do,” guard Rubin Jones said of Donaldson. “I’ve been telling him you’ve got to get back to yourself. Tre’s best way is when he’s playing with energy, kind of talking to the (other) team, talking crazy. That’s what fuels him to get going.

“I told him to try to get back to that. I’m on him if I don’t see that. If he makes a wide-open layup and he doesn’t say nothing, I’m like, ‘Bro, come on. Get back to you.’ That’s who Tre is. He got back to that.”

Gayle snapped a 13-game, 0-for-18 drought from beyond the arc against Maryland, knocking down his first 3-pointer since Jan. 24. He joked that he didn’t know how to react when he made that shot because it had been so long since he’d seen one drop.

While Michigan coach Dusty May said the best part is seeing Gayle “having fun hooping again,” that deep ball wasn’t the play that stood out to him. Rather, it was when Gayle got into what May described as a “rugby scrum” and helped strip the ball away from the Terrapins.

Gayle, who suffered a hamstring injury against Wisconsin, brushed off the stress and pressure he put on himself worrying about his shooting numbers and “let that burden go.” He put an emphasis on making the little plays that make a big difference, like the one May referenced.

“Conversations with coaches and the respect I got from my teammates goes a long way to where I know that they’re confident in me, and I give all I have and lose myself in the game,” Gayle said.

“Coach came to me and said he needed me to play hard. He kind of questioned if I do play hard. I had to prove him wrong. … I feel like I needed to give a lot more, whether that’s on the glass or running in transition.”

Then there’s Jones and freshman LJ Cason, who both entered the postseason shooting below 25% from 3-point range. Against Purdue, Jones stepped into and drained two 3-pointers. For the first time in a long time, he simply let it fly and shot without thinking twice.

With freshman Justin Pippen in concussion protocol and not making the trip to Indianapolis, Michigan needed more from Cason. He answered with a season-high five assists against Purdue and a season-high five boards against Wisconsin. He was aggressive on offense. And when the Badgers started to pull away in the second half of Sunday’s low-scoring title game, Cason hit two 3-pointers that kept the Wolverines in it.

“Me, Roddy, LJ, we haven’t been shooting the best, but we came into this tournament like it’s a new season for us and we’re going to shoot the ball with confidence,” Jones said. “Going into March Madness, that’s perfect for us.”

Confidence is key, and it’s a word that came up frequently in the postgame locker room. It’s also something that grew and reached an “all-time high,” according to guard Nimari Burnett, as Michigan ripped off three wins in different ways against strong competition in the Big Ten tournament.

It was quite the quick reversal, going from a disappointing finish in the regular season to a thrilling start in the postseason.

“We got knocked down a notch. Then our guys showed up the last week with a reinvigorated mindset,” May said. “When you put in the work and believe in yourself and you have teammates and a staff that believes in you, I think good things typically happen more times than not.

“It’s a group that didn’t waver with their conviction to work and stand together. … For them to have the renewed energy, it just shows what type of guys they are.”

But the Wolverines didn’t necessarily find anything new in Indianapolis. They recaptured their swagger and mentality that Donaldson described as “we’re going to be the biggest dogs, not the small dogs” on the court.

As Wolf put it, the Wolverines know what they’re capable of. They showed it earlier in the season. They simply “got back to our old form.”

That’s a positive sign as they ride a wave of momentum into the NCAA Tournament and the most exciting time of the year.

“We re-found our sense of unselfishness, our sense of playing hard, a little bit of our sense of pace and our sense of physicality most importantly,” forward Will Tschetter said.

“We needed to get back and rediscover our identity. That’s exactly what we did, and we need to continue to stay true to that.”

By LARRY LAGE
The Associated Press

EAST LANSING — Michigan State has joined some rare air in college basketball history over the last half-century with coaching longevity and NCAA titles.

Since 1976, the Spartans have had just two coaches and both won a national championship.

Hall of Famer Tom Izzo cut down the nets in 2000 and Jud Heathcote won it all in 1979.

Kentucky, North Carolina and Michigan State are the three programs to have two basketball coaches in a span of at least four decades with each winning a national championship that was not vacated due to violating NCAA rules.

“That means the world to me because I don’t think Jud got the credit he deserved,” Izzo said in an interview with The Associated Press.

The Spartans, seeded No. 2 in the South Region, will open the NCAA Tournament against 15th-seeded Bryant on Friday night in Cleveland.

Izzo has become synonymous with March Madness, earning a spot in college basketball’s annual showcase 27 straight times in the longest streak by a coach.

He trails just Kansas’ record of 28 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, a run that the governing body ended in its record books in 2017 due to sanctions, and is tied with North Carolina’s stretch of success from 1975 to 2001.

The 70-year-old Izzo is in his 30th season in charge of a program he began working for as a part-time assistant under Heathcote in 1983.

He has been around long enough to coach a father and son, Jason and Jase Richardson, and to recruit a high school basketball player who has become a coaching peer.

When Izzo broke former Indiana coach Bob Knight’s record for Big Ten wins with his 354th conference victory, 54-year-old Purdue coach Matt Painter compared his ability to consistently win while enduring the test of time to Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak in 1941 that still stands.

“It’s unbelievable,” Painter said.

When Izzo took over a solid program, following Heathcote’s retirement, no one would have believed the Spartans would be in a conversation with college basketball bluebloods.

The Tar Heels were led by coaches Frank McGuire (1952-61) and Dean Smith (1961-1997) for 40-plus seasons, winning three NCAA titles while combining to advance to 12 Final Fours.

The Wildcats had Adolph Rupp (1930-72) and Joe B. Hall (1972-85) on the bench for more than a half-century, winning five national titles and playing in a combined nine Final Fours.

Heathcote was hired by Michigan State nearly 50 years ago, winning a national title with Magic Johnson against Larry Bird-led Michigan State, and pushed for the school to give Izzo a shot in 1995.

Izzo proved it was a good move, winning an NCAA championship in 2000 with a team led by Mateen Cleaves. His eight appearances in the Final Four trail the total of just four coaches: Mike Krzyzewski, John Wooden, Smith and Roy Williams.

The old-school coach showed he can still win in the new era this season, winning an 11th Big Ten title to tie the record set in 1940 by Purdue’s Ward “Piggy” Lambert and Knight equaled in 1993.

The Big Ten Coach of the Year for a fourth time, Izzo led a team that started the season unranked and went into the tournament ranked No. 8 in the AP Top 25 after winning the conference by three games without a first- or second-team All-Big Ten player.

“I think he has maybe dialed it back a little bit, it’s a different era as far as kids, but the passion and the care he has for the players, that’s still the same,” Cleaves said. “It’s such a joy to watch.”

By turning down opportunities to leave the school and lead the Cleveland Cavaliers and Kentucky among other teams in the NBA and college, Izzo has helped the Spartans say they’ve done what just the Wildcats and Tar Heels have in college basketball history.

“That is really an honor to be in that group with that group of coaches,” Izzo told the AP. “Especially my mentor because without him, I’m not here.”

Heathcote created a culture in which former players, including Johnson, wanted to come back to campus. Izzo took it to another level, welcoming professional players such as Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green to return to mentor current Spartans on and off the court in what’s called “Grind Week” each summer.

“Grant Hill talks about the culture, and he comes from an unbelievable culture (at Duke),” said former Michigan State and NBA great Steve Smith, who was recruited by Izzo and played for Heathcote. “This is second to none. The guys come back. You don’t have to be asked or emailed to come back.

“It’s just a part of our DNA.”

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Danny Wolf had 18 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, and No. 22 Michigan snapped a three-game losing streak with a 86-68 win over No. 20 Purdue Friday in a Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal.

The second-seeded Wolverines (23-9) allowed the game’s initial six points, then led for the final 37 minutes in an impressive bounce-back win to advance to a semifinal against No. 11 Maryland (25-7) on Saturday.

Eight Michigan players scored at least six points. Vladislav Goldin added 15 points and eight rebounds. Tre Donaldson had 13 points and Roddy Gayle Jr. scored 11.

Trey Kaufman-Renn led sixth-seeded Purdue (22-11) with 24 points and nine rebounds. Big Ten player of the year Braden Smith, who averaged 24 points and 8.5 assists in two regular-season meetings vs. Michigan, finished with 12 points on 5-of-18 shooting, 2 of 10 from 3-point range. He had six assists.

Takeaways

Purdue: The Boilermakers have a strong 1-2 offensive punch in Kaufman-Renn and Smith, but NCAA Tournament survival likely hinges on the supporting cast, which is capable but often inconsistent.

Michigan: A much-needed confidence boost for the Wolverines after a lackluster regular-season finish. When this team shares the ball (25 assists) and limits turnovers (six), it’s a tough out.

Key moment

Michigan opened the second half with a 12-5 spurt to build a 52-41 lead after a Donaldson 3-pointer.

Key stat

Despite Smith being the league leader in assists, Michigan had a 25-11 edge in the category.

Up next

Purdue awaits an NCAA Tournament bid. Michigan faces Maryland in the semifinals on Saturday.

— By PHILLIP B. WILSON, Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS — It only took warmups for Michigan State coach Tom Izzo to get a feeling about Friday’s Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal against Oregon. Against an eight seed Ducks team riding an eight-game win streak, he expected his first-seed Spartans to have their hands full. He even went back to the locker room and told assistant coach Doug Wojcik, “we’re in trouble.”

“They don’t miss a shot,” Izzo said. “They’re big, they’re strong.”

Now, they’re eliminated from the Big Ten Tournament. Because as much as Izzo’s warning came to fruition at times Friday afternoon at Indianapolis’ Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Michigan State stayed in front of Oregon in a decisive 74-64 win to open up its Big Ten Tournament run. Paced by four players scoring in double digits and strong work on defense and the glass, the Spartans opened one-and-done play with a win.

Michigan State will play Wisconsin in the Big Ten semifinal 1 p.m. Saturday (CBS). Friday’s win over Oregon is its 12th Quad 1 win of the season, boosting its case for a 1-seed on Selection Sunday.

Izzo’s warning about Oregon made sense. One only had to look back to the last time these teams played to see why. In the win Feb. 8 when Izzo tied Indiana great Bob Knight’s career Big Ten wins record, Michigan State (27-5) trailed by 14 at halftime before mounting a major comeback. Oregon (24-9) hadn’t lost since.

This time, Michigan State got off to a better start. It scored the first eight points to take control before a 9-2 Oregon run brought the game right back. The first half proved a war of attrition, with each team grinding out offense in the halfcourt and battling for defensive stops. The shot clock bled down on many possessions.

Jeremy Fears Jr. — who watched the last meeting with Oregon from his couch because he was sick — played a big role with his playmaking, but also his defense on Oregon guard Jackson Shelstad. The same could be said for center Carson Cooper off the bench, who heard a friendly crowd shout “Coop” when he drew a first-half charge on the baseline. Michigan State guards Jaden Akins, Tre Holloman and Jase Richardson all found ways to score from midrange, finding space in Oregon’s coverage.

“We knew they were going to be really aggressive, pressing us and denying us,” Akins said. “So we got a couple back doors to happen, which led to Coen (Carr)’s dunk at the end. … I feel like they were playing drop coverage, so we just tried to do our best to do damage in the midrange.”

It took until the final three minutes for Michigan State to pull away. After a corner 3 from Carr, his team outscored Oregon 18-7 in the final six minutes of the half to take a 42-32 lead.

Michigan State wasn’t so crisp to start the second half. An overshot 3 from Fears turned over the first possession with a shot-clock violation. A travel from Fears turned over the next. Szymon Zapala fouled away the third possession before Kohler turned over the fifth. As Oregon’s TJ Bamba scored on the break as part of 15 points off turnovers, Michigan State’s lead fell to just four points.

Just as the game got out of control, Michigan State seized control. Frankie Fidler drew first blood of a 15-0 run off the bench, adding a 3 later in the sequence. Richardson nailed a 3 to take a 57-43 lead at 10:47 before scoring a midrange off one leg right after.

Richardson led Michigan State with 17 points on 4-for-13 shooting. It’s the most he’s ever shot the ball in the game, a milestone for a player whose first start came 10 games ago against Oregon. Such an upgrade in role came with hiccups, however, as he shot well below his season average.

“He’s just very efficient, very intelligent,” Izzo said. “And I think he knows he’s gotta do some things when we get stagnant and talks to me about moving the ball more. I talked to him tonight when he said, ‘I’m not shooting well.’ I said, ‘Let me worry about that. You just keep doing your job.”

Richardson left the game with 51 seconds to play after Bamba’s knee collided with his head and neck, knocking him to the ground. He split his free throws before subbing out, but said after the game he’ll play in Saturday’s semifinal.

As much as Richardson, Coen Carr factored in heavily during this run — not only for his putback dunk early in it, but especially his strong rebounding and defensive play. Carr tied a career-high with eight rebounds, including five during the run.

“Coen grew up today,” Izzo said. “I mean, in a lot of ways. It wasn’t just hitting a 3. Some of those rebounds he got. Some of the defensive stops, guarding guards. … He proved what I believe about Coen Carr: that as that shot keeps coming, he’s gonna be a special player.”

As much as any dunk or defensive stop, Carr’s rebounds secured possessions that kept Oregon from mounting a comeback.

“That’s one thing that they want me to do is go in there and rebound like an animal,” Carr said.  “So when I go in and do that, I get extra opportunities for my team.”

The offense cooled after the run, but Michigan State’s defensive play didn’t wane. After going nearly six minutes without a bucket during the Spartans’ run, Oregon went 3:32 without a field goal right after. Bittle broke the slump with a jumper, part of a 22-point performance that led the game. And though Shelstad found his groove in the final five minutes, Oregon never drew within eight points down the stretch.

When Illinois coach Brad Underwood met with reporters Friday night at the State Farm Center, he was asked where his confidence level stood after the Illini closed the regular season with an 88-80 victory over then-No. 18 Purdue.

“It grew a lot tonight,” Underwood said at his postgame news conference. “Just simply the confidence to win a close game when things are really, really hard against an unbelievably good opponent and a team that has the best offense in the league, to get stops when you need them. To find enough moxie when you’re down four or five and to make plays, man, my confidence is really high.”

After a bumpy patch in mid-February, the Illini finished the regular season with three straight convincing victories: against Iowa, at then-No. 15 Michigan and the finale at home against the Boilermakers, who had won five straight in the rivalry.

The Illini — who reentered the AP rankings at No. 24 on Monday — hope that confidence and momentum will carry over this week to the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis, where they are the No. 7 seed and will take on the Iowa-Ohio State winner at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.

A team that dealt with injuries and illness for several weeks in January and February has been healthier, though freshman center Morez Johnson Jr. remained out with a broken wrist Friday.

Underwood credited the leadership of junior guards Kylan Boswell and Tre White with helping pull the Illini out of their funk following a 110-67 loss to then-No. 3 Duke on Feb. 22 at Madison Square Garden.

White had 20 points and nine rebounds against Purdue, and Boswell added 15 points and five assists. Their improved play has helped supplement the Illini’s best player, freshman guard Kasparas Jakučionis, who’s averaging 15.2 points.

“It’s just a matter of some guys stepping up,” Underwood said. “After the New York game (against Duke), they didn’t want to pitch a tent and say we’re done. They decided to fight, and that’s who we are. That’s what we’re about, being an everyday guy.”

Here’s a look at what else to watch in the new-look Big Ten Tournament field, which consists of the top 15 of the conference’s 18 teams.

The favorite

Michigan State already had clinched the Big Ten regular-season championship when it took the floor against Michigan on Sunday at the Breslin Center. But that didn’t stop the Spartans from putting on a show on senior day, cruising to a 79-62 victory to punctuate coach Tom Izzo’s 11th Big Ten title.

At 26-5 overall and 17-3 in the conference, Michigan State is the No. 1 seed this week and the Big Ten’s clear favorite to make noise in March. The Spartans have a double bye and don’t begin tournament play until Friday’s quarterfinals.

They went through a rough patch of three losses in four games to USC, UCLA and Indiana earlier in conference play. But starting with a Feb. 15 victory over Illinois in Champaign, the Spartans won seven straight to end the regular season.

Freshman guard Jase Richardson has scored 15 or more points in four of the last five games to lead Michigan State’s surge. Izzo made a case to reporters before the Michigan game that Richardson should be considered for Big Ten freshman of the year, especially given his play over nine starts to end the season.

“There can’t be many guys that I’ve coached that are as efficient and confident — not cocky, not arrogant, but believing in himself,” Izzo said. “It’s hard to find that happy medium.”

Next in line

No. 2 seed Maryland, No. 3 Michigan and No. 4 UCLA also earned double byes into the quarterfinals.

Maryland would await the Illini should they win their second-round game. The teams’ lone meeting this season didn’t go well for Illinois, which lost 91-70 in Champaign.

Like Michigan State, Maryland has been on a hot streak, finishing the regular season with seven wins in eight games — the only loss coming to the Spartans — and 11 wins in 13 games.

Maryland’s starting lineup of Derik Queen, Julian Reese, Ja’Kobi Gillespie, Rodney Rice and Selton Miguel — each averaging more than 12 points — has earned the moniker “The Crab Five.” The group’s scoring average of 69.5 points is the highest among major-conference programs. Queen leads the way with 15.7 points per game.

Northwestern squeaks in

Northwestern lost its final two regular-season games to UCLA and Maryland but did enough during a three-game winning streak before that to nab the No. 13 seed.

The Wildcats will face 12th-seeded Minnesota in the first round at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. Northwestern  beat the Gophers 75-63 on Feb. 25 in Minneapolis.

Junior forward Nick Martinelli scored 28 points in the loss to Maryland, shooting 8-for-19 from the field and 11-for-11 from the free-throw line. That helped him finish the regular season as the Big Ten scoring leader with 20.2 points per game.

He has scored 15 or more points in 16 straight games to help keep Northwestern competitive despite season-ending injuries to veteran leaders Brooks Barnhizer and Jalen Leach.

“If you don’t see that Nick Martinelli is one of the very best players in this league, then I don’t know what you’re watching,” coach Chris Collins told reporters after the Maryland game. “What’s happened to him this year with his two running mates going down — Brooks Barnhizer, 18 (points) a game; Jalen Leach, 15 a game — for him to come out and lead us to four wins in the last 10 with a bunch of young guys that really weren’t even in our rotation, to me that’s a sign of a heck of a player.

“He’s a warrior, man. I love that he’s on my team.”

Other player to watch

Purdue’s Braden Smith was the Big Ten preseason player of the year in October, and he has lived up to the billing. The 6-foot guard, who will be playing in the tournament not far from his hometown of Westfield, Ind., is averaging 16.3 points, 8.8 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 2.3 steals.

Smith was one rebound shy of a triple-double against Illinois with 18 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds, and Purdue coach Matt Painter sang his praises after the game.

“In my opinion, he’s the best player in this league,” Painter said. “They call it the most valuable player, right? He’s pretty valuable. Like, who rebounds like him? Who gets assists like him? Who scores like him? You know, he leads the league in steals.

“Like, he’s pretty good. For a guy that had one high-major offer, he’s damn good.”

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Big Ten Tournament

Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis

Wednesday’s games

• (12) Minnesota vs. (13) Northwestern, 2:30 p.m., Peacock
• (10) Ohio State vs. (15) Iowa, 5 p.m., Peacock
• (11) Rutgers vs. (14) USC, 7:30 p.m., Peacock

Thursday’s games

• (8) Oregon vs. (9) Indiana, 11 a.m., BTN
• (5) Wisconsin vs. Minnesota/Northwestern, 1:30 p.m., BTN
• (7) Illinois vs. Ohio State/Iowa, 5:30 p.m., BTN
• (6) Purdue vs. Rutgers/USC, 8 p.m. BTN

Friday’s quarterfinals

• (1) Michigan State vs. Oregon/Indiana, 11 a.m., BTN
• (4) UCLA vs. Wisconsin/Minnesota/Northwestern, 1:30 p.m., BTN
• (2) Maryland vs. Illinois/Ohio State/Iowa, 5:30 p.m., BTN
• (3) Michigan vs. Purdue/Rutgers/USC, 8 p.m., BTN

Saturday’s semifinals

• Noon and 2:30 p.m., CBS-2

Sunday’s final

• 2:30 p.m., CBS-2