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ATLANTA − Not a single player could look up, the only sounds were shoes unlacing and the occasional sniffle.
Michigan basketball's season ended with a 75-62 loss to Auburn Friday in the regional semifinal and as media entered the silence of the postgame locker room, the sadness in the air was palpable. The Wolverines' (27-10, 14-6 Big Ten) campaign came to a close one weekend short of San Antonio.
While it was certainly later than anybody expected at the outset of the year, it was also abrupt given how U-M had been humming.
Michigan had not only won five straight, but led the No. 1 overall seed by nine points midway through the second half. Instead of putting its foot on the Tigers' throat, U-M let up momentarily, which led to a 20-2 blitz the other way.
More: Michigan's March Madness run comes to crashing halt with tough loss to 1-seed Auburn
"Mostly just the group of guys," senior forward Will Tschetter said through tears about what he was thinking about.
It took a few minutes for Tschetter to gather himself, before he eventually stood up walked across the room and dapped up Jace Howard. Even in the middle of their sadness, the two longest tenured players in the program (Howard for five years, Tschetter for four), couldn't help but smile.
Perhaps that's because of the perspective. At this time last year when the season ended, there were fewer than 30% of the wins of this year. Beyond that, Howard's father was fired just days after the year's conclusion and the program felt like it was stuck in a downward spiral.
Though the disappointment is evident once more, the vibes couldn't feel more different as the 2024-25 season ends in the first year of the Dusty May era in Ann Arbor.
"Good (expletive) man," Tschetter said to Howard. "They'll never know what we went through to get here. Never."
May was hired in late March of 2024 and in approximately six weeks was able to bring in five transfers, sign three freshman and put together an entire 10-man coaching staff from every corner of the country.
From the jump, May promised Michigan would play an exciting brand of basketball and it did. U-M finished top 41 in both offense and defense on KenPom, shot the ball well and played team defense. While for some players it was too soon to think about those sorts of things, Tschetter said the head man did remind the team there was much to be proud of.
"One hundred percent and that's something coach May said to the guys," Tschetter said. "Obviously the loss (expletive) hurts, but when you take a step back and look at what we were able to accomplish − Sweet 16, great regular season, hung a banner − you know this group of dudes has a bond for the rest of life.
"We're up in the rafters, but obviously it's tough to take a step back right now."
There are now only eight teams still playing in the big dance and U-M looked like it could have been one of them. Up 48-39 in the second half, the Wolverines had a rash of turnovers and made just four of their final 15 shot attempts.
So many times Michigan has had a response, but not this one. Tre Donaldson, playing his former team, made just 2-of-9 shots. Roddy Gayle Jr., the hero vs. Texas A&M, was just 2-of-7 as no U-M player shot better than 50%. But unless U-M won it all, this feeling was going to happen at some point, which is why the junior wing who'd never made it this far in his career said he's trying to look at the season with the glass half full.
"Yes, it sucks we lost, nobody wants to have this feeling,” Gayle began. “But to accomplish everything we had this season, coming from different place, coach being a first year guy … I’m proud of the way our guys fought and came together throughout the year."
It's another massive offseason ahead for May and company.
Michigan will have to replace at minimum three starters with Vlad Goldin, Rubin Jones and Nimari Burnett all out of eligibility. But there's also a chance it has to replace a fourth, in junior Danny Wolf, who appears to have an NBA future.
Of course, it's not quite a done deal, and there's no doubt Wolf (a lifelong U-M fan) enjoyed his taste of Ann Arbor.
"It was arguably the greatest year of my life. I made so many amazing relationships," he said. "It sucks to see it cut short, but yeah, this last year has been the greatest in my life.
"I have to thank the coaches and my teammates for that."
As far as Tschetter and Gayle, both told the Free Press than are "absolutely" returning for next season. Donaldson, still processing what had just taken place, didn't indicate whether he had made his mind up about the future.
"I'm not really in the mental space to reflect right now," he said. "We just took a tough loss."
While it's not certain what next year's group will look like, it feels a certainty that the expectations will be high. Michigan won 19 more games this season than the year prior, the biggest one-season turnaround in Big Ten history.
That's largely May's doing, which is why Tschetter said the fan base should have "a lot of faith" in him moving forward, but it also is a credit to the players in the locker room this season.
"In this day and age with the transfer portal and everything, for us to come together and have this special of a group, this much buy in, this much resiliency, this much fun — it’s really special," Tschetter said. "I don’t think you see that everywhere."
He's right. That's far from the norm everywhere. But it's exactly what happened in Ann Arbor in the first year under May. The players showed they won't quit on any day, or their teammates. That even when outsiders write them off, they refuse to do so until the final buzzer has sounded.
Gayle Jr. said he feels the group just laid a foundation for the program as it re-established the culture. May agreed, but said he didn't focus on proving anything to the country, just to the guys in the locker room.
Take it from Tschetter − who's now been a part of multiple Sweet 16 runs in Ann Arbor as well as been a part of the program's worst year in history − to have the final word about where Michigan hoops is headed from here.
“One hundred percent we’re back,” he said. “And we’re not going anywhere.”
Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan basketball's season ends in March Madness heartbreak, optimism
Continue reading...
Michigan basketball's season ended with a 75-62 loss to Auburn Friday in the regional semifinal and as media entered the silence of the postgame locker room, the sadness in the air was palpable. The Wolverines' (27-10, 14-6 Big Ten) campaign came to a close one weekend short of San Antonio.
While it was certainly later than anybody expected at the outset of the year, it was also abrupt given how U-M had been humming.
Michigan had not only won five straight, but led the No. 1 overall seed by nine points midway through the second half. Instead of putting its foot on the Tigers' throat, U-M let up momentarily, which led to a 20-2 blitz the other way.
More: Michigan's March Madness run comes to crashing halt with tough loss to 1-seed Auburn
"Mostly just the group of guys," senior forward Will Tschetter said through tears about what he was thinking about.
It took a few minutes for Tschetter to gather himself, before he eventually stood up walked across the room and dapped up Jace Howard. Even in the middle of their sadness, the two longest tenured players in the program (Howard for five years, Tschetter for four), couldn't help but smile.
Perhaps that's because of the perspective. At this time last year when the season ended, there were fewer than 30% of the wins of this year. Beyond that, Howard's father was fired just days after the year's conclusion and the program felt like it was stuck in a downward spiral.
Though the disappointment is evident once more, the vibes couldn't feel more different as the 2024-25 season ends in the first year of the Dusty May era in Ann Arbor.
"Good (expletive) man," Tschetter said to Howard. "They'll never know what we went through to get here. Never."
'We're up in the rafters'
May was hired in late March of 2024 and in approximately six weeks was able to bring in five transfers, sign three freshman and put together an entire 10-man coaching staff from every corner of the country.
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From the jump, May promised Michigan would play an exciting brand of basketball and it did. U-M finished top 41 in both offense and defense on KenPom, shot the ball well and played team defense. While for some players it was too soon to think about those sorts of things, Tschetter said the head man did remind the team there was much to be proud of.
"One hundred percent and that's something coach May said to the guys," Tschetter said. "Obviously the loss (expletive) hurts, but when you take a step back and look at what we were able to accomplish − Sweet 16, great regular season, hung a banner − you know this group of dudes has a bond for the rest of life.
"We're up in the rafters, but obviously it's tough to take a step back right now."
There are now only eight teams still playing in the big dance and U-M looked like it could have been one of them. Up 48-39 in the second half, the Wolverines had a rash of turnovers and made just four of their final 15 shot attempts.
So many times Michigan has had a response, but not this one. Tre Donaldson, playing his former team, made just 2-of-9 shots. Roddy Gayle Jr., the hero vs. Texas A&M, was just 2-of-7 as no U-M player shot better than 50%. But unless U-M won it all, this feeling was going to happen at some point, which is why the junior wing who'd never made it this far in his career said he's trying to look at the season with the glass half full.
"Yes, it sucks we lost, nobody wants to have this feeling,” Gayle began. “But to accomplish everything we had this season, coming from different place, coach being a first year guy … I’m proud of the way our guys fought and came together throughout the year."
You must be registered for see images
Questions ahead
It's another massive offseason ahead for May and company.
Michigan will have to replace at minimum three starters with Vlad Goldin, Rubin Jones and Nimari Burnett all out of eligibility. But there's also a chance it has to replace a fourth, in junior Danny Wolf, who appears to have an NBA future.
Of course, it's not quite a done deal, and there's no doubt Wolf (a lifelong U-M fan) enjoyed his taste of Ann Arbor.
"It was arguably the greatest year of my life. I made so many amazing relationships," he said. "It sucks to see it cut short, but yeah, this last year has been the greatest in my life.
"I have to thank the coaches and my teammates for that."
As far as Tschetter and Gayle, both told the Free Press than are "absolutely" returning for next season. Donaldson, still processing what had just taken place, didn't indicate whether he had made his mind up about the future.
You must be registered for see images attach
"I'm not really in the mental space to reflect right now," he said. "We just took a tough loss."
While it's not certain what next year's group will look like, it feels a certainty that the expectations will be high. Michigan won 19 more games this season than the year prior, the biggest one-season turnaround in Big Ten history.
That's largely May's doing, which is why Tschetter said the fan base should have "a lot of faith" in him moving forward, but it also is a credit to the players in the locker room this season.
"In this day and age with the transfer portal and everything, for us to come together and have this special of a group, this much buy in, this much resiliency, this much fun — it’s really special," Tschetter said. "I don’t think you see that everywhere."
You must be registered for see images attach
He's right. That's far from the norm everywhere. But it's exactly what happened in Ann Arbor in the first year under May. The players showed they won't quit on any day, or their teammates. That even when outsiders write them off, they refuse to do so until the final buzzer has sounded.
Gayle Jr. said he feels the group just laid a foundation for the program as it re-established the culture. May agreed, but said he didn't focus on proving anything to the country, just to the guys in the locker room.
Take it from Tschetter − who's now been a part of multiple Sweet 16 runs in Ann Arbor as well as been a part of the program's worst year in history − to have the final word about where Michigan hoops is headed from here.
“One hundred percent we’re back,” he said. “And we’re not going anywhere.”
Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan basketball's season ends in March Madness heartbreak, optimism
Continue reading...
