The remainder of the bracket is going to be tough for the Michigan Wolverines, including Sunday’s tilt against the Tennessee Volunteers, but of the two options for the Elite Eight, this was the preferrable opponent. Analytics believe this squad is underseeded (No. 11 overall per Kenpom), but compared to the swarming defense of Iowa State, the Wolverines have to feel great about their chances of advancing to the Final Four.
Michigan
How To Watch: Michigan Basketball vs Tennessee in the Elite 8
The Vols lost four of their last six games heading into the NCAA Tournament, though were impressive against Miami (OH), Virginia, and Iowa State. Their defense is solid (11th) while the offense is productive (31st), perhaps making their No. 6 seed a little misleading. Still, Michigan is the better overall team here, and unfortunately the odds of a third straight year of losing to a No. 1 seed in the Elite Eight are quite high for Rick Barnes and company.
Elite Eight: No. 1 Michigan (34-3) vs. No. 6 Tennessee (25-11)
Date & Time: Sunday, March 29, 2:15 p.m. ET
Location: United Center, Chicago, IL
TV/Streaming: CBS
Oddly, this is the fourth Tournament meeting between these schools since 2010-11, with the prior three favoring the maize and blue. That first contest was a 30-point First Round blowout, followed by a narrow Michigan win in the 2013-14 Sweet Sixteen. The most recent edition was also a close one, with Hunter Dickinson and Eli Brooks each topping 20 points as the No. 11 Wolverines upset No. 3 Tennessee in the Second Round in 2021-22.
Tennessee 2PT Defense: 49.0% (63rd)
The most obvious path to victory for Michigan over Alabama was using its huge size advantage in the paint, yet both Aday Mara and Morez Johnson had games to forget. The bigs will get their chance for redemption on Sunday against a Tennessee defense that is much better than its SEC rival’s, yet is beatable down low. Weak hands and poor finishing will not work against this frontcourt, but the Wolverines have proven they can win physical battles all year.
As fun as March Roddy (Gayle) is, or the rapid emergence of Trey McKenney, Michigan will not win a national championship if it does not get substantial production from the Mara-Johnson duo. Enough others contributed against the Tide to still claim the win, and perhaps that could be possible again in the Elite Eight, but it would give a lot more confidence heading into the final weekend if these two could bounce back in a big way. The Vols have had issues fouling too, so being aggressive at the rim is a must.
Tennessee Offensive Rebounding: 45.1% (1st)
Yes, that is correct — Tennessee grabs nearly half of its own misses. With an effective field goal rate around 140th, this is less extreme than the Texas A&M gameplan last year, but surely no one will be caught sleeping after witnessing the Vols collect 53.3% (!!) of their opportunities against the Cyclones on Friday. Without basically any outside shooting, second-chance points are the only way this offense scores enough to keep it close.
However, since the Duke and Illinois games, the Wolverines have been pretty solid on the defensive glass and should feel capable of at least reducing the impact of Tennessee’s rebounding. The Michigan frontcourt can match up body-to-body, and this is another way Mara and Johnson can make huge contributions. Like Saint Louis and Alabama hitting threes, there will be frustrating stretches of elongated possessions, but the key is just getting enough rebounds to stop any torrent.
Tennessee Defensive 3PT Rate: 44.7% (33oth)
Few teams see more opposing three-point attempts than the Vols do, yet this rarely seems to burn them, as opponents connect on just 30.3% of their shots, which is 11th-best nationally. This resilience is going to be really tested by a Michigan offense that is making 47.3% of its threes in the Tournament thus far after a cold Big Ten Tournament. The touch could certainly cool off on Sunday, but is that a bet Tennessee really wants to take?
If the Wolverines can stay disciplined and keep taking the high-percentage looks, this should be a huge factor on Sunday. While I still would like to see the offense attack the paint, there are too many good shooters on the roster to not take advantage when the defense is passive. Should Barnes choose to start closing out on shooters, there will be paths open to the hoop. Though the metrics consider this a strong defense, it feels like there is an easy way Michigan blows this game open.
Tennessee Adj. Offense: 31st
As a whole, the Tennessee offense appears fine, but the analytics are actually kind of sour on most of the parts. Bad free throw shooting (286th) on modest attempts (103rd), too many turnovers (233rd), limited three-point attempts (329th), and a slow tempo (290th) make me wonder how anything actually happens aside from getting good second-chance looks on offensive rebounds.
Clearly that strategy has worked this year — and over the past two weekends — but the 24-point loss to Florida (with a 17.1% OReb rate) might tell the story of what happens against defenses with size. The best actual shooter is Ja’Kobi Gillespie, who has improved since his combined 6-for-22 effort in two games against Michigan last season, but aside from him and Nate Ament, there is little outside threat.
I do think there will be enough offensive rebounds and tough makes to avoid an instant blowout (though not off the table for the final score), and maybe the Vols’ three-point defense is real, but the ways Michigan can win are so much more numerous than the ways it can lose. Trust the better team to take care of business and move on to Indianapolis next weekend.
Michigan’s 2027 class experienced a blow on Sunday when three-star Las Vegas (Nev.) Centennial safety Maxwell Miles announced he was flipping to Minnesota.
Miles’ decision to join the Wolverines took place in March during the program’s first commitment surge of the offseason. He took a visit during spring camp and quickly pledged.
Miles becomes the second safety this cycle this decommit from Michigan following Darrell Mattison flipping to Ole Miss a few weeks ago. Currently, U-M yields 14 commits in 2027 heading into June.
The news came once Miles took an official visit to Minnesota over the weekend, leading to him siding with the Golden Gophers. One of the schools that Miles picked Michigan over included Minnesota, along with Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, and San Diego State. Safeties coach Tyler Stockton was the leading figure in originally landing Miles.
“Me and Coach Stockton have a good relationship,” Miles told Maize n Brew. “He keeps it real with me and pushes me to be better, and I respect that a lot. Same with Coach (Kyle) Whittingham, it’s a strong relationship. He’s someone I can learn a lot from, and I appreciate how he approaches the game with his players.”
Two projected safeties make up Michigan’s 2027 class in four-star Tavares Harrington and three-star Charles Woodson Jr.
Rounding out the group are four-star tight end Colt Lumpris, four-star cornerback Darius Johnson, four-star defensive lineman Xavier Muhammad, four-star wide receiver Quentin Burrell, four-star running back Tyson Robinson, four-star edge rusher Jayce Brewer, four-star offensive lineman Jakari Lipsey, four-star edge rusher Recarder Kitchen, four-star quarterback Kamden Lopati, three-star linebacker Brayden Watson, three-star offensive lineman Sidney Rouleau, three-star running back Lundon Hampton and three-star offensive lineman Louis Esposito.
Rivals lists the class as the 10th-best in the FBS and fourth in the Big Ten.
The Oklahoma City Thunder’s season came to an end just short of reaching the NBA Finals.
After another strong campaign, OKC battled the San Antonio Spurs, but fell in a seven-game series, missing two key players for most of the matchup.
Even with Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell, though, the Thunder’s primary issue against San Antonio was defending superstar Victor Wembanyama. Oklahoma City managed to slow down the 22-year-old in a few matchups, but it ultimately wasn’t enough to win the series.
Mark Daigneault’s team will now head into the offseason with a few opportunites to find answers to this problem, however. In addition to Williams and Mitchell returning to full health, which will be key for OKC, Thomas Sorber, the Thunder’s first-round pick in 2025, should be healthy after missing his entire rookie season with a torn ACL.
Oklahoma City also has two picks in the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft, and could add more young pieces to the roster.
A pair of recent mock drafts slotted Michigan big man Aday Mara to OKC, who could be an interesting option to try and combat Wembanyama’s size and length. Mara measured at 7-foot-3 without shoes at the NBA Combine, recording a 7-foot-6 wingspan, 9-foot-9 standing reach and weighing 259 pounds.
Given Wembanyama’s abilities, it seems unlikely that any rookie can fully counteract the MVP Finalist and Defensive Player of the Year, but Mara’s size would give OKC another matchup to try against the Spurs’ standout.
After two seasons at UCLA, Mara had a breakout season with Michigan, averaging 12.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.6 blocks per game while shooting 66.8% from the field. Mara earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and All-Big Ten recognition for his efforts, helping the Wolverines with a national championship in his lone campaign with the team.
Bryan Kalbrosky of USA Today slotted Mara to OKC with the No. 12 overall pick in this summer’s draft, while Cameron Salerno of CBS Sports projected the Thunder to trade the No. 12 and No. 17 selections for the No. 9 overall pick to draft Mara.
Kalbrosky also paired Tennessee’s Nate Ament with Oklahoma City at No. 17 overall. Ament recently said in an interview with Kevin O’Connor that he completed a predraft workout with the Thunder.
Ament measured 6-foot-9-and-a-half without shoes and notched a 6-foot-11-and-a-half wingspan, weighing 210 and recording a standing reach of 9-foot-1-and-a-half at the NBA Combine.
As a freshman at Tennessee, the former five-star recuit averaged 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and a steal per game while shooting 39.9% from the field and 33.3% from 3-point range.
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Ex-NFL All-Pro unimpressed by Michigan QB Bryce Underwood — who could become backup: ‘Don’t understand’
Former All-Pro NFL safety Eric Weddle is not a believer in Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood.
During an appearance on the “Zero 2 Sixty” podcast, Weddle, who attended the Wolverines’ spring practices, said that it would not be surprising if Michigan’s backup quarterback is playing instead of Underwood come this fall.
“Mark my words, I was out there for spring ball,” Weddle said. “Don’t be surprised if the backup [is] playing early because that Underwood kid, you know, I don’t think he could throw or play quarterback, so we’ll see.”
Weddle, who spent 14 seasons in the NFL with the Chargers, Ravens and Rams, explained that quarterbacks should be taught to play their position first, and be an athlete second, adding that this is what he tells his son, Gaige Weddle, who is a 2028 four-star QB recruit.
“I don’t understand. I don’t understand, like it’s just quarterbacks in general, but I don’t understand how the position is not being taught like from the pocket,” Weddle said. “Like I try to coach Gaige that you are a quarterback first who can be an athlete.
“You’re not an athlete who plays quarterback…You get to the next level, everyone’s as fast as you, everyone’s as strong as you, like your mind, processing, pocket awareness, feel, and getting the ball out on time is what I’ve stressed to him most, as a quarterback.”
Weddle’s comments come after Underwood, the consensus No. 1-ranked 2025 QB recruit out of high school, had a somewhat underwhelming freshman campaign with Michigan.
Through 13 games with the Wolverines, Underwood, 18, threw for 2,428 yards with 11 touchdowns and nine interceptions while posting a 60.3 completion percentage, helping lead Michigan to a 9-4 record.
He added 392 rushing yards with six scores on the ground.
Underwood also had a disappointing performance for Michigan in a 41-27 Citrus Bowl loss against Texas, passing for 199 yards — going 23-for-42 — with two touchdowns and three interceptions.
Despite the poor showing, Underwood recently told reporters that he has high expectations for both himself and the Wolverines heading into the 2026 season.
“Just like the whole team, and everything that happened to us even after the season, I had to get over it,” Underwood said on May 21. “That was the only option we had. It’s the only option I had. We went through a lot, but I think we’re going to be more player-led this season.
“I feel like we are more of a team now.”
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