Michigan played great games throughout the tournament. They finished the tournament as the highest scoring team this year. They averaged over 90 points per game throughout the entire tournament. Their “Fabulous Five” transfers for Michigan really showed out down the stretch of this year to propel them to the top of college basketball. 

Although they only made two 3-pointers all night, they were able to earn a 69-63 victory in a game that ultimately could have gone either way down to the end. The final four’s most outstanding player, Elliot Cadeau, led the scoring in the game with 19 points. UConn’s Alex Karaban and Tarris Reed Jr. had 17 and 13 points apiece, which kept them in the game until the end. Yaxel Lendeborg also had a big game for the Wolverines with 13 points by himself.

In his second year with the Wolverines, Michigan’s Dusty May broke through and led them to the title. May spent years as an assistant coach at Eastern Michigan, UAB, and Florida before being hired by Florida Atlantic as head coach in 2018. He led the Owls to a historic final four run in 2023, before getting hired by Michigan in 2024. He has gained a lot of respect quickly due to his coaching style and offensive game planning. 

UConn’s coach, Dan Hurley, led them to a championship game appearance for the third time in four years. After a controversial headbutt of the ref after a game-winning shot against Duke, they took down Illinois in the final four. Ultimately, they couldn’t finish the job and get three championships in four years. But look for them to be back in the coming years, making more runs at the title.