It’s the rollicking ride of their lives, a feel-good tale of a team that began the season overlooked and melded into something special. It’s a story of perseverance, selflessness and pit-bull defense, of a Michigan basketball team that scrapped its way to the Final Four.
It’s a fascinating story, yet it won’t be the most-lauded tale of fight and fortune Saturday in San Antonio. That will be Loyola-Chicago, one of the most-improbable Final Four teams in NCAA Tournament history, an 11 seed that twice pulled out games in the closing seconds. While bluebloods Villanova and Kansas meet in one semifinal, the Wolverines will face an opponent toting its own remarkable tale of fate and spirit, with an extra dose of spirituality.