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DENVER − When the brackets got made, everybody looked ahead and saw the potential, but first there was work to be done.
MIchigan basketball had to beat UC San Diego, which it did on Thursday, 68-65. Then, it had to beat Texas A&M, which it did on Saturday, 91-79, to advance to the program's first Sweet 16 since 2022 and its sixth in the past eight years.
Now that it's happened, everybody knows the next team on the docket is Auburn: Michigan will play the No. 1 overall seed Friday at State Farm Center in Atlanta at a to-be-determined time. However, should it win that game, there is a decent chance that a familiar foe is waiting for them with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
Michigan State, led by Tom Izzo, will play New Mexico in the round of 32 on Sunday in Cleveland. Should the Spartans win, they too would advance to the Sweet 16 and play the winner of Iowa State-Ole Miss game. If MSU won that game and U-M pulled off the upset over the Tigers, then the rivals would play for the chance to go to a Final Four.
"Rematch against Michigan State, what is that Elite Eight?," Roddy Gayle Jr. said. "Possibly would be one of the greatest games ever, especially with what we've been through recently. I can't wait for that (if it happens)."
Michigan State got the better of Michigan in the regular season, first by winning in Ann Arbor 75-62 in late February, then again trounced the Wolverines 79-62 on senior day in East Lansing.
The Spartans led the latter from start to finish, but the real dust up came at the end of the game when L.J. Cason and Phat Phat Brooks were standing on the Spartan head at center court as Izzo's team was trying to do its senior day tradition of kissing the logo.
It led to pushing and shoving − and of course fans on both sides calling themselves the victims and the other the perpetrator − but not much beyond that.
There was thought of a potential third meeting in the Big Ten tournament, but MSU fell to Wisconsin in the semifinal to end any chance of that. Now, it's back as a possibility and, for what it's worth, the coaches seem to be leaning into it.
On Saturday, Izzo told reporters he was rooting for Michigan to keep the Big Ten winning streak going (prior to Wisconsin's loss to BYU, the league was a perfect 9-0 in the NCAA Tournament) which was a sentiment May also shared.
"Rooting for Michigan State, rooting for UCLA tonight against Tennessee," May said in the locker room. "The coaches, and obviously I'm new to this league, but especially the Hall-of-Famers, they made this league and have done it through all these different eras.
"So yes, I'm rooting for coach Izzo, as I'm a fan of coaches."
There's of course work to be done on both sides. The Wolverines have the nation's top ranked team waiting for them not far from their home state, while the Spartans have to get past two teams to make the date a reality.
But for what it's worth, while the fanbases might not want to see the opposition there, the coaches welcome it.
"I'm going to root for them, hopefully we can see them, that means we've both advanced and things are going well," May said. "But there's going to be a lot of Michiganders headed south to Hotlanta this week."
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 welcomes potential Michigan State rematch in NCAAs
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MIchigan basketball had to beat UC San Diego, which it did on Thursday, 68-65. Then, it had to beat Texas A&M, which it did on Saturday, 91-79, to advance to the program's first Sweet 16 since 2022 and its sixth in the past eight years.
Now that it's happened, everybody knows the next team on the docket is Auburn: Michigan will play the No. 1 overall seed Friday at State Farm Center in Atlanta at a to-be-determined time. However, should it win that game, there is a decent chance that a familiar foe is waiting for them with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
Michigan State, led by Tom Izzo, will play New Mexico in the round of 32 on Sunday in Cleveland. Should the Spartans win, they too would advance to the Sweet 16 and play the winner of Iowa State-Ole Miss game. If MSU won that game and U-M pulled off the upset over the Tigers, then the rivals would play for the chance to go to a Final Four.
"Rematch against Michigan State, what is that Elite Eight?," Roddy Gayle Jr. said. "Possibly would be one of the greatest games ever, especially with what we've been through recently. I can't wait for that (if it happens)."
Michigan State got the better of Michigan in the regular season, first by winning in Ann Arbor 75-62 in late February, then again trounced the Wolverines 79-62 on senior day in East Lansing.
The Spartans led the latter from start to finish, but the real dust up came at the end of the game when L.J. Cason and Phat Phat Brooks were standing on the Spartan head at center court as Izzo's team was trying to do its senior day tradition of kissing the logo.
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It led to pushing and shoving − and of course fans on both sides calling themselves the victims and the other the perpetrator − but not much beyond that.
There was thought of a potential third meeting in the Big Ten tournament, but MSU fell to Wisconsin in the semifinal to end any chance of that. Now, it's back as a possibility and, for what it's worth, the coaches seem to be leaning into it.
On Saturday, Izzo told reporters he was rooting for Michigan to keep the Big Ten winning streak going (prior to Wisconsin's loss to BYU, the league was a perfect 9-0 in the NCAA Tournament) which was a sentiment May also shared.
You must be registered for see images attach
"Rooting for Michigan State, rooting for UCLA tonight against Tennessee," May said in the locker room. "The coaches, and obviously I'm new to this league, but especially the Hall-of-Famers, they made this league and have done it through all these different eras.
"So yes, I'm rooting for coach Izzo, as I'm a fan of coaches."
There's of course work to be done on both sides. The Wolverines have the nation's top ranked team waiting for them not far from their home state, while the Spartans have to get past two teams to make the date a reality.
You must be registered for see images attach
But for what it's worth, while the fanbases might not want to see the opposition there, the coaches welcome it.
"I'm going to root for them, hopefully we can see them, that means we've both advanced and things are going well," May said. "But there's going to be a lot of Michiganders headed south to Hotlanta this week."
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 welcomes potential Michigan State rematch in NCAAs
Continue reading...
