March Madness will begin this week, and 68 Division I men’s basketball teams will vie to become national champion. The University of Michigan men’s team has made it to the championship game seven times since the NCAA Tournament began in 1939, winning it all in 1989.
That year, the Wolverines topped Seton Hall in a thrilling 80-79 overtime victory.
Their road to the championship was not without obstacles. Just days prior to the tournament, U-M’s head coach Bill Frieder announced he was leaving Ann Arbor to become the head coach at Arizona State. Rather than allow Frieder to stay on through the tournament, Michigan’s athletic director Bo Schembechler stated, “A Michigan man will coach Michigan,” and elevated assistant coach Steve Fisher to interim head coach.
Two days later, the No. 3 seeded Wolverines beat No. 14 seed Xavier, 92-87, in the first round of the tournament. They topped South Alabama, 91-82, in the second round to make it to the Sweet Sixteen.
There they faced North Carolina, a team that had become a tournament nemesis for the Wolverines. The Tar Heels had knocked U-M out in their two previous NCAA Tournament appearances: in the second round in 1987 and in the Sweet Sixteen in 1988. But the third matchup proved to be the charm for U-M, who eliminated UNC, 92-87.
In their Elite Eight game, U-M blew out No. 3 seed Virginia, 102-65, which sent the Wolverines to the Final Four to face top seed Illinois, a team Michigan had lost to twice during the regular season. Like their game against UNC, however, U-M would not suffer a third straight loss and made a last-second bucket to defeat the Illini, 83-81.
The final game against Seton Hall was a nail biter. After trading leads throughout the game, the two teams headed to overtime tied at 71-71. With less than a minute to play in overtime, the Wolverines trailed 79-76, when U-M center Terry Mills made a basket and cut the lead to 79-78. Shortly after, guard Rumeal Robinson was fouled and sank both free throws to give U-M an 80-79 lead.
With time winding down, Seton Hall missed a late shot — and U-M claimed its first and, so far, only national championship.
