Wolverines’ magical run ended by Ducks
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Michigan’s wild postseason ride, which began with the team’s charter jet sliding off a runway before the Big Ten tournament, finally came to an end after six straight victories and elevated status as an NCAA Tournament darling.
Tyler Dorsey scored 20 points and made the goahead layup with 1:08 left, and Oregon ousted the Wolverines with a 69-68 victory in a Midwest Regional semifinal on Thursday night.
“The kids fought their hearts out this whole season,” Michigan coach John Beilein said, “but particularly this last six weeks to be more than a story. It was a great team. They were becoming a great team before the story. We weren’t sharp as we would have liked to have been today, but you have to credit Oregon with that.”
Dorsey, the man the Ducks call “Mr. March,” had his sixth game in a row scoring 20 points or more, and third-seeded Oregon
(32-5) set a school record for wins and advanced to their second straight Elite Eight to play No. 1 Kansas (31-4) on Saturday in the regional final.
The seventh-seeded Wolverines (27-11) had one last chance to extend their run after Dylan Ennis missed a free throw with 15 seconds left.
But Derrick Walton, who had carried the Wolverines the last three weeks, was off with his long jumper just before the buzzer.
Jordan Bell had a doubledouble for the Ducks with 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Pac-12 player of the year Dillon Brooks added 12 points.
Walton led the Wolverines with 20 points, eight assists and five rebounds. Zak Irvin had 14 of his 19 points in the second half.
Oregon’s biggest play came after Walton had made a jumper to give Michigan a 68-65 lead.
Ennis was fouled and went to the line for a 1-and-1. He missed, but Bell swooped in for the offensive rebound and put it in to make it a one-point game.
After Walton missed a layup, Dorsey gave the Ducks the lead.
Following Ennis’ missed free throw with 15 seconds left, Oregon had fouls to give but failed to get a hand on anyone, allowing Walton to put up one last shot.
The Wolverines got on a roll late in the season, and they became a tournament favorite after their plane skidded off a runway in Michigan as they attempted to take off for the Big Ten tournament in Washington, D.C.
They ended up winning four games in four days to claim the conference tournament title and two more in the NCAA Tournament.
Ultimately, fatigue might have caught up to them; they shot just 39.3 percent against the Ducks.