Michigan madness: The Wolverines have been made for March in recent years
The regular season is winding down with only two games left, but Michigan Wolverines basketball has the chance to do something special as March begins. The Maize and Blue will play at Illinois March 2 and at Indiana March 5 ahead of the Big Ten Tournament in Chicago.
Since the 2013 season — when Michigan made the national title game but lost to Louisville — the Wolverines have been one of the best and most consistent forces in college basketball during the most important time of the year. During that span under former head coach John Beilein (2013-19) and current head man Juwan Howard (2019-current), the Maize and Blue have amassed a 51-23 record (.689) in the month of March, which includes games in the regular season, Big Ten Tournament and NCAA Tournament.
The Wolverines have compiled a 17-7 record in the Big Ten Tournament and a 23-8 mark in the NCAA Tournament over the 10-year stretch.
Michigan has advanced to the Big Ten Tournament championship game four times since 2013, with two tournament titles (2017 and 2018). The Maize and Blue have lost their first Big Ten Tournament game just once (to Indiana in 2022) since the 2006 campaign under former head man Tommy Amaker.
Michigan has also picked up key wins in the conference tournament to either boost their March Madness seeding or earn a bid to the Big Dance. The most memorable, of course, was Kameron Chatman‘s game-winning three-pointer to beat top-seeded Indiana at the buzzer in 2016. The shot punched Michigan’s ticket into the NCAA Tournament and advanced it to the semifinals.
With Michigan on the bubble with work to do, it may take some similar magic to make their seventh-straight NCAA Tournament this season. That six-tournament streak is the seventh-longest in the country, behind Kansas (32 years), Michigan State (24), Gonzaga (23), North Carolina (11), Villanova (9) and Purdue (7).
The Wolverines have advanced to the Sweet 16 or further in a Big Ten-record five straight NCAA Tournaments (and seven of the last nine NCAA Tournaments, including two national title game appearances). Before the current run, there had only been two previous occurrences where the program had even made three consecutive trips to the Sweet Sixteen — from 1964 to 1966 under Dave Strack and from 1992 to 1994 under Steve Fisher.
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Gonzaga is the only other program that is on a similar streak, with seven Sweet 16 appearances in a row. Since 1985 when the tournament expanded to 64 tams, there have been only six occurrences of a school making the Sweet 16 five straight times.
Since 2013, Michigan and North Carolina are tied with 23 NCAA Tournament wins — second to only Gonzaga (24). Duke (22), Villanova (22) and Kentucky (18) are close behind.
No other Big Ten program is relatively close, either. Michigan State is second among conference teams with 16 wins, and Wisconsin is third with 15. The Wolverines have five NCAA Tournament wins over the last two seasons, and no other team from the conference has more than two.
Michigan is one of four teams — joined by Gonzaga, North Carolina and Villanova — to appear in multiple national title games since 2013.
Michigan Basketball’s March Accolades Since 2013
Here’s a look at how Michigan has fared during the time of year that matters most.
| Season | March Record | Big Ten Tournament Result | NCAA Tournament Result |
| 2013 | 7-2 | Advanced to quarterfinals (lost to Wisconsin) | Advanced to national title game (lost to Louisville) |
| 2014 | 8-2 | Advanced to championship game (lost to MSU) | Advanced to Elite 8 (lost to Kentucky) |
| 2015 | 2-2 | Advanced to quarterfinals (lost to Wisconsin) | Did not receive bid |
| 2016 | 3-3 | Advanced to semifinals (lost to Purdue) | Advanced to round of 64 (beat Tulsa in the First Four, lost to Notre Dame in round of 64) |
| 2017 | 7-2 | Won Big Ten Tournament | Advanced to Sweet 16 (lost to Oregon) |
| 2018 | 9-0 | Won Big Ten Tournament | Advanced to national title game (lost to Villanova) |
| 2019 | 5-3 | Advanced to championship game (lost to Michigan State) | Advanced to Sweet 16 (lost to Texas Tech) |
| 2020 | 1-2 | N/A | N/A |
| 2021 | 5-4 | Advanced to semifinals (lost to Ohio State) | Advanced to Elite Eight (lost to UCLA) |
| 2022 | 4-3 | Lost in second round (to Indiana) | Advanced to Sweet 16 (lost to Villanova) |
