Michigan advances to Final Four: Wolverines trounce Tennessee, set up showdown with Arizona

CHICAGO — No. 1 seed Michigan stomped No. 6 seed Tennessee 95-62 in emphatic fashion to set up an epic Final Four clash with No. 1 seed Arizona. It’s the first time since the 2008 national championship game tilt between Kansas and Memphis where two teams that have at least a +650 points differential will meet, per CBS Sports research.

Michigan had every single answer to the test on Sunday. The Wolverines used a 21-0 run — tied for its biggest spurt of the season — to send Tennessee to the shadow realm using transition dominance, a vicious defense and just an avalanche of passes to slice Tennessee to its core.

Yaxel Lendeborg sealed his Most Outstanding Player from the Midwest Regional with a 27-point, seven-rebound, four-assist masterpiece, and every single Michigan rotation player brought something to the table. Morez Johnson (12 points, five rebounds) was up to the task physically against Tennessee’s enormous frontcourt. Elliot Cadeau dished 10 dimes.

It’s the third-straight season that Rick Barnes will exit stage left in the Elite Eight. It’s tied for the largest loss of the Barnes era, but nobody was beating Michigan on a day like this. 

Selection Sunday feels like a lifetime ago. In reality, it’s been just two weeks since the field of 68 was unveiled, but since the reveal, Arizona and Michigan seemed to be hurtling toward a Final Four collision —  a basketball cornucopia of brawn, muscle and exorbitant talent. Visions of what it would look like between the Big 12’s best and the Big Ten’s best aren’t a dream anymore. 

Michigan’s dominance by the numbers …

• The 33-point drubbing is tied for the worst loss in Rick Barnes’ career.

• Largest loss in an NCAA Tournament game for Tennessee in school history.

• Largest win by any team in Elite 8 since … Michigan defeated Virginia by 37 in 1989.

• Michigan just registered the biggest win in a Elite Eight or regional final since 1989.

Read on below for more takeaways from Michigan’s dominant win on Sunday.