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Michigan-Arizona was supposed to be game of the year. What happened?

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Michigan-Arizona was supposed to be game of the year. What happened?

INDIANAPOLIS — We thought it would be the game of the year.

No. 1 seed Michigan vs. No. 1 seed Arizona. Two of the most dominant teams of the season meeting in the Final Four. Unstoppable force vs. immovable object. A box office attraction that billed heavyweights duking it out in what could be one of the all-time games in tournament history.

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Instead, it was atomic bomb vs. ant.

An expected thriller ended up being a 40 minute snoozer, with Michigan soundly beating Arizona in dominant fashion to deliver an absolute statement in the semifinal.

“No one’s been able to do that to us all year,” said Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd. “It was an impressive performance.”

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Arizona vs Michigan, Final Four championship stakes. See photos

Morez Johnson Jr. #21 of the Michigan Wolverines dunks the ball against the Arizona Wildcats during the first half in the Final Four of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium on April 04, 2026 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

It wasn’t one of the largest blowouts in Final Four history, but the 18-point differential doesn’t fully grasp how much of a beatdown this was. The Wolverines blitzed Arizona out of the game with a 10-1 run to open the game and never looked back in the wire-to-wire win.

“We came out, and we really knew how high the stakes were,” said Michigan guard Trey McKenney.

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It took just less than 10 minutes for Michigan to hand Arizona its largest deficit of the season at 14 points, stunning the Wildcats. When Yaxel Lendeborg suffered an injury, Arizona cut the deficit and it felt like we had a game. Then the depth of Michigan flexed its muscle to show it’s far more than the Big Ten player of the year.

For as ugly as the first half was for Arizona, it had a knack for being a second half team. Before Saturday, the Wildcats were 6-0 when they trailed at halftime. Sure, the 16-point deficit was quite large, but Arizona had shown all season it was never out of games. Plus, Michigan didn’t shoot the ball that great. There was a chance to come back.

Instead, it only got worse.

Michigan gave a dose of deja vu out of the break, once again unleashing a full assault while Arizona was already clinging onto the ropes. The only drama left was how much more Lendeborg would play.

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The lead only ballooned from there, with the Wolverines up by as much as 29 points. The Maize and Blue inside Lucas Oil Stadium were already celebrating by singing “Mr. Brightside” midway through the second half. It made the final 10 minutes just a formality, the game already well decided and Arizona just trying to not make it as ugly as it was.

In the end, it was a disastrous showing for Arizona.

“Michigan just did a great job, and we weren’t able to kind of catch up,” said Arizona guard Jaden Bradley.

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Iowa State Cyclones fans cheer against the Kentucky Wildcats during the first half in the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Enterprise Center on March 22, 2026 in St Louis, Missouri.

So how did it happen? Despite the physicality and size Arizona brought to Indianapolis, Michigan coach Dusty May felt his team matched up extremely well to the Wildcats. The interior battle was going to be a key point, and the size of Michigan’s bigs made it tough for Arizona to drive downhill in the paint.

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If Michigan could establish a hold inside early and make some perimeter shots, it was going to quickly force Arizona into an uncomfortable position, and the plan unfolded to near perfection.

“Once they get on a good start, (May) kind of really knows how to control the game,” Lloyd said. “When you’re controlling the game and you’re running your actions and you’re getting some open shots or semi-open shots, you knock them down, it makes it really tough to come back, and that’s what they were able to do.”

The Wildcats were ninth in the country in shooting percentage, and it shot a season-worst 36.6% from the field. One of the best fast break teams just had two points on breakaways. Michigan’s 91 points was the most Arizona allowed this season, and the 47.8% shooting percentage was the third-best an opponent had against the Wildcats this season.

All of it resulted in a sudden end to one of the best seasons Arizona has had in decades. When it finally broke the spell that cast a 25-year Final Four drought, it felt like these weren’t the same old Wildcats, and this one had a real good shot of winning it all.

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Instead, their season ends in another March disappointment. It does sting to have another disappointing March Madness ending. It doesn’t take away it’s still a season worth celebrating in Tucson, and the game said a lot more about Michigan than it did Arizona, with the Wolverines becoming the first team to score at least 90 points in five straight NCAA Tournament games.

“Michigan gets all the credit today. I mean, it wasn’t our night, but it probably had a lot to do with them,” Lloyd said.

If anything, it showed Connecticut another weapon of mass destruction is on the way, and it better be prepared – or Michigan will drop it again.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Michigan-Arizona went from game of the year to blowout. What happened?

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