Where Michigan stands in final college basketball coaches poll
Michigan Wolverines basketball won 19 games for the second time in three years under head coach Juwan Howard, and despite having a somewhat disappointing regular season, the Maize and Blue finished strong. Michigan reached the Sweet 16 for a Big Ten record fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament and was one of two Big Ten teams to advance to the second weekend of the Big Dance.
The Wolverines began the season ranked No. 6 nationally in the preseason coaches poll, but after three early-season losses to Seton Hall, Arizona and North Carolina, they fell out of the rankings completely and never found themselves back in the top 25.
That is, until now. The coaches poll was updated one final time after the national championship game between Kansas and North Carolina, and Michigan slotted 25th. Michigan won 10 of its final 16 regular-season games, which helped it reach the NCAA Tournament for a sixth straight event. It fell to Indiana in the Big Ten Tournament, but the five Quadrant 1 wins it picked up were enough to earn a No. 11 seed.
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Michigan was down 15 points to No. 6 seed Colorado State in the first half of the first round game in Indianapolis, but outscored the Rams by 27 points in the game’s final 25 minutes to win by double digits, 75-63. No. 3 seed Tennessee awaited in round two, and Michigan pulled off the upset over the Volunteers, who had won 13 of their previous 14 games entering the night. Behind 27 points from sophomore center Hunter Dickinson and 23 points from fifth-year senior guard Eli Brooks in the 15th NCAA Tournament game he’d been a part of, Michigan won by eight points, 76-68, and advanced to the South Regional semifinal against No. 2 seed Villanova.
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The Wolverines’ season ended on a poor shooting night. Michigan shot 34.9 percent on two-pointers and 6-of-18 from long range. Despite holding Villanova’s top-10 offense to 1.02 points per possession, the Maize and Blue fell, 63-55.
The run was still enough for Michigan to find itself ranked at the end of the season. The Wolverines didn’t hang any banners or accomplish their three main goals — winning the Big Ten regular season, taking home the Big Ten Tournament championship trophy and collecting their second-ever national title — but they showed strides and found success during the most important time of the year in the sport.
Michigan is one of five Big Ten teams to appear in the final coaches poll, joining No. 10 Purdue, which made the Sweet 16 but lost to St. Peter’s, No. 18 Wisconsin, No. 19 Illinois and No. 21 Iowa.
Final College Basketball Coaches Poll
- Kansas
- North Carolina
- Duke
- Villanova
- Gonzaga
- Arizona
- Houston
- Arkansas
- Baylor
- Purdue
- UCLA
- Texas Tech
- Providence
- Auburn
- Tennessee
- Miami
- Kentucky
- Wisconsin
- Illinois
- St. Mary’s
- Iowa
- Murray State
- Iowa State
- Saint Peter’s
- Michigan
