Michigan's Big Ten Tournament weekend started with a major scare when the team's plan skidded off the runway. It ended with the Wolverines as the Big Ten champions.
Michigan, the No. 8 seed in the conference, capped off their Cinderella run with a 71-56 win over No. 2 seed Wisconsin thanks to 22 points and seven assists from point guard Derrick Walton Jr., who was named tournament MVP.
The Wolverines only trailed for a total of 18 seconds in the first half, and quickly built a double-digit lead. However, the Badgers got hot at the end of the half and reeled off a 12-3 run in the final five minutes of the opening frame to cut Michigan's lead to 33-32 at the break.
It didn't take long for Michigan to regain control of the game. They responded with a 11-2 run of their own to start the second half, pushing the lead back to double digits.
ajohnsonnba: Strong and-one for Zak Irvin. CBS Big Ten Basketball Tournament: The title game https://t.co/vsGL4VhExz pic.twitter.com/wGLTnzIS1z
— FanSportsClips (@FanSportsClips) March 12, 2017
Wisconsin managed to get back within six points, but would never get closer than that.
The Badgers were led by a double-double from Ethan Happ (14 points, 11 rebounds) and 15 points from Bronson Koenig, but didn't get a single point from their bench.
Michigan only got three points from their bench themselves, but Zak Irvin (15 points, seven rebounds, five assists) and D.J. Wilson (17 points, six rebounds) stepped up to help Walton carry the load.
The Wolverines are currently projected to be the No. 6 seed in the West Region in the NCAA Tournament by ESPN's Joe Lunardi, who has Wisconsin as the No. 6 seed in the Midwest Region.
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