03/21/26 01:38:00
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03/21 13:36 CDT Lendeborg scores 25, and Midwest's top-seeded Michigan rolls to
a 95-72 win over Saint Louis
Lendeborg scores 25, and Midwest's top-seeded Michigan rolls to a 95-72 win
over Saint Louis
By JOHN WAWROW
AP Sports Writer
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) --- Yaxel Lendeborg punctuated his 25-point outing with a
massive dunk in transition, and the Midwest Region's top-seeded Michigan
advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 95-72 victory over Saint Louis in the second
round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday.
Morez Johnson Jr. had 15 and eight rebounds for Michigan (33-3), which matched
a program record for victories set during its seventh and most recent Final
Four appearance in 2018.
The Wolverines' 7-foot-3 center Aday Mara had 16 points, five rebounds and four
blocks to increase his season blocks total to 96, one short of matching
Michigan's single-season record set by Roy Tarpley in 1985-86.
The Wolverines advanced to the round of 16 for the second consecutive year and
seventh time since 2017. They'll play the winner of Texas Tech and Alabama at
Chicago on Friday.
Amari McCottry had 14 points and five rebounds for Saint Louis (29-6), which
saw its season end after setting a single-season record for wins with its
102-77 first-round win over Georgia.
The Wolverines' size and depth proved too much for the ninth-seeded Billikens,
who dropped to 0-6 in second-round games.
Michigan particularly took away the Billikens' primary strength, their outside
shooting game, limiting Saint Louis to 5 of 17 3-point attempts through the
first half, and 10 of 32 overall.
Billikens senior Robbie Avila, who entered ranking third among NCAA centers
with 211 career 3-point baskets, struggled to find his range, finishing 3 of 13
--- including 3 of 10 3-pointers.
After trading leads six times through the first 10 minutes, Michigan went ahead
for good on Trey McKenney's 3-pointer with 9:37 left in the first half. The
basket sparked a 9-0 run. And the Wolverines put the game away midway through
the second half with their transition game and a pressure defense.
Lendeborg had a highlight-reel dunk by bullying his way through two defenders
and finishing his transition drive with a dunk to put Michigan up 66-57. A
little over a minute later, Michigan's press cashed in, with Nimari Burnett
intercepting Brady Dunlap's pass and taking it the other way for a layup to
make it 73-58.
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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and
coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
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