Michigan
31-2,19-1Big Ten
Wisconsin
24-10,14-6Big Ten
Lendeborg's Late Three Sends Michigan to Big Ten Title Game
3/14/2026 4:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball
CHICAGO, Ill. -- Big Ten Player of the Year Yaxel Lendeborg knocked down a three-pointer with 0.3 seconds remaining to lift the third-ranked and top-seeded University of Michigan men's basketball team to a 68-65 win over No. 23 and fifth-seeded Wisconsin on Saturday afternoon (March 14) at the United Center. After building a 15-point second-half lead, Michigan held off a late Wisconsin rally to advance to the Big Ten title game.
Leaders and Best
For the second game in as many days, Aday Mara led U-M in scoring with 16 points on seven field goals, adding eight rebounds and five blocks. Elliot Cadeau added 15 points, including 12 in the second half, with three three-pointers.
Lendeborg contributed 12 points and five rebounds, while Trey McKenney added 10 points, two triples and three assists.
Second Half
Mara gave U-M (31-2, 19-1 B1G) the lead for the first time in 14 minutes with a free throw on the opening possession of the half. Baskets from Mara, Nimari Burnett and Cadeau capped a 6-0 run before Wisconsin (24-10, 14-6 B1G) recorded its first field goal of the half.
Michigan followed with another 7-0 run in just 90 seconds, five points coming from Cadeau, to build its first double-digit lead of the afternoon at 14:20.
Wisconsin countered with five points in 24 seconds, but Michigan responded with five of its own over the next 46 seconds. McKenney's second three-pointer pushed the Wolverines to the 50-point mark and an 11-point lead with 10:39 remaining, and Lendeborg added a two-handed slam out of the timeout.
Michigan eventually built a 15-point lead, but Wisconsin responded with a 17-2 run fueled by five three-pointers in a three-and-a-half-minute stretch, tying the game at 56-56 with 5:29 to play.
Out of a timeout, Wisconsin briefly reclaimed the lead with back-to-back threes. All five Badger field goals between 6:51 and 3:50 came from beyond the arc. Mara kept Michigan within striking distance during the stretch before Cadeau buried a three-pointer with 43.3 seconds remaining to put Michigan back in front.
Wisconsin answered with its 16th three-pointer of the game to tie the score once more, setting up Michigan's final possession. Cadeau brought the ball up the floor and set the offense with 15.6 seconds remaining. After starting the possession on the low block, Lendeborg drifted behind the arc, caught the pass and knocked down the game-winner.
First Half
Both teams struggled offensively early, but Michigan struck first when Morez Johnson Jr. powered in a layup. Wisconsin answered two possessions later and held a 3-2 lead through the under-16 timeout, as the teams combined to shoot 2-for-14 with five turnovers in the opening four minutes.
McKenney ended a four-minute scoreless stretch with a step-back jumper, and Burnett added two free throws. Wisconsin then connected on three three-pointers in two minutes to take a 12-9 lead with 11:53 remaining.
The Badgers extended the margin with a 9-2 run, highlighted by their first two-point field goal of the game at 9:43.
Will Tschetter knocked down a three-pointer, and Roddy Gayle Jr. added two free throws to pull Michigan within two. However, the Wolverines went through a stretch of eight consecutive missed field goals, allowing Wisconsin to build an eight-point lead with 3:52 remaining.
McKenney snapped the drought with a three-pointer off a Tschetter steal, and Lendeborg followed with a corner three-pointer with 11 seconds remaining to tie the game 28-28 at halftime.
What's Next
Michigan advances to its seventh Big Ten Tournament championship game in program history and its fifth in the last 10 seasons. The Wolverines will face either No. 20 and seventh-seeded Purdue or sixth-seeded UCLA on Sunday (March 15) at 2:30 p.m. CT at the United Center. The game will be televised on CBS.
Game Notes
• Sunday's game will mark the second time Michigan competes for a Big Ten title in back-to-back seasons. Previously, Michigan reached the championship game in 2017, 2018 and 2019, winning the title in the first of those seasons.
• Michigan's 28 first-half points were its lowest first-half total this season. The next lowest (30) came three games ago at Iowa (Mar. 5), which is also the only other game this season that was tied at halftime. Despite the season-low total, all eight Wolverines scored in the first half. The 2024-25 team, the first led by coach Dusty May, scored fewer than 30 points in seven halves, five during the regular season and one in the Big Ten Tournament.
• This afternoon's win is Michigan's ninth victory this season against AP Top 25 opponents.
• Today marked Mara's fourth game with five or more blocks this season and his first since recording six at home against Penn State (Feb. 5).
• Mara's five blocks are the most by a Wolverine in a Big Ten Tournament game. Three Wolverines have previously recorded four blocks in a game, most recently in the 2005 tournament.
• Wisconsin made 16 three-pointers, the most ever by a Michigan opponent in a Big Ten Tournament game and tied for the second most by any Big Ten team in tournament history. The record is 19, set by Iowa in the 2022 tournament. Wisconsin's 16 threes surpassed its previous mark against Michigan this season, when the Badgers made 15 in the teams' first meeting on Jan. 10, Michigan's only conference loss.
