Villanova caps dominating NCAA Tournament run with 79-62 victory over Michigan for 2nd championship in 3 seasons

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Villanova caps dominating NCAA Tournament run with 79-62 victory over Michigan for 2nd championship in 3 seasons. </s> Villanova blows past Kansas 95-79 in Final Four with outburst of 3s to set up NCAA title game against Michigan

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Villanova blows past Kansas 95-79 in Final Four with outburst of 3s to set up NCAA title game against Michigan. </s> Behind huge game from DiVincenzo, Villanova tops Michigan 79-62 for title </s> SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Villanova bombed its way past a blueblood to reach the national title game. Michigan got there by taking away Cinderella’s slipper.

This end to March Madness should be good.

A wild NCAA Tournament of upsets comes down to this: Villanova and its squadron of long-range shooters against Michigan and its ultra-stingy defense, Monday night at the Alamodome.

The Wildcats (35-4) turned a Final Four showdown with fellow No. 1 seed Kansas into a laugher, dropping in 3-pointers like they were playing pop-a-shot in the 95-79 rout. Villanova made a Final Four-record 18 3s in a record-matching 40 attempts, its second trip to the title game in three seasons never in doubt.

The third-seeded Wolverines (33-7) had a bit more trouble against the bracket’s favorite underdogs, overcoming a frightful first half to send Loyola-Chicago and Sister Jean packing.

The Wolverines had trouble scoring in their Final Four game to trail Loyola-Chicago by seven at halftime, before finding the right gear in the second to run past the underdog Ramblers 69-57 into the title game.

Their next task: Find some way to slow Villanova’s 3-ball roll.

The Wildcats were one of the most proficient 3-point shooting teams during the regular season and upped the 3 ante in the NCAA Tournament, knocking down a record 65 and counting. Villanova literally shot the lights out by the second half, when some scoreboards and upper-level lights went out for a few minutes and darkened the upper decks.

Michigan may have a better answer than Kansas had.

The Wolverines have fixed the one thing holding them back in past seasons, developing a lockdown defense so they no longer have to simply outscore opponents.

Michigan had the nation’s No. 3 defense efficiency-wise and put Loyola on lockdown in the second half, holding the Ramblers to 1-of-7 shooting from 3 to send Sister Jean Delores Schmidt to the exits early.

The Wolverines are seeking their first national title since Glen Rice and Rumeal Robinson rumbled through the bracket in 1989. </s> SAN ANTONIO — Michigan has shored up the deficiency that always held it back, becoming one of the nation’s best defensive teams, not one of its worst. Out-shooting teams, no longer necessary.

This new-found stinginess has the Wolverines within reach of their first national title since Glen Rice and Rumeal Robinson rumbled through the bracket in 1989.

But their biggest test yet comes on college basketball’s brightest stage: Villanova and its squadron of long-range shooters with a national title on the line.

Michigan is good on D, but if the Wildcats shot like they did against Kansas in Saturday night’s Final Four nightcap, it may not matter what the Wolverines do.

“I feel bad for Kansas,” Villanova coach Jay Wright said. “They’re a great team, we just made every shot.”

Michigan (33-7) reached the title game by taking away Cinderella’s slipper, sending Loyola-Chicago and Sister Jean home a game short of completing their divine run.

Villanova bombed its way past a blueblood to get there.

The Wildcats (35-4) turned a Final Four showdown with fellow No. 1 seed Kansas into a laugher, dropping in 3-pointers like they were playing pop-a-shot in the 95-79 rout. Villanova made a Final Four-record 18 3s in a record-matching 40 attempts, its second trip to the title game in three seasons never in doubt.

That’s an NCAA record 442 from the arc this season — and they’re still counting.

“That’s as good a team as we’ve played that I can remember,” Kansas coach Bill Self said.

The third-seeded Wolverines (33-7) had a bit more trouble against the bracket’s favourite underdogs, overcoming a frightful first half to send nun-turned-motivator Sister Jean Delores Schmidt headed to the exits early.

The Wolverines trailed the bracket-rambling Ramblers by seven at halftime, found the right gear in the second and have a title-game appearance no one outside of Ann Arbor saw coming when they were middling in the Big Ten just a month ago.

Now they’re done playing the favourite for a night, it’s back to the underdog role against Villanova.

“The whole villain thing, you guys love to write about it, talk about it, but at the end of the day it’s just basketball, you know?” Michigan big man Moe Wagner said. “And we just try to win. That’s all we do.

Their next task: Find some way to slow Villanova’s 3-ball roll.

The Wildcats were one of the most proficient 3-point shooting teams during the regular season and upped the 3 ante in the NCAA Tournament, knocking down a record 65 and counting. Villanova broke the Final Four record with 13 in the first half and literally shot the lights out by the second, when some scoreboards and upper-level lights briefly went out and darkened the upper decks.

“It was one of those nights where we were able to make shots and that’s what the lead looks like,” said Villanova’s Jalen Brunson, who had 18 points and six assists.

Michigan may have a better answer than the Jayhawks had.

Tired of watching victories fizzle away through defensive deficiencies, coach John Beilein made a philosophical change, putting an emphasis on that side of the ball.

Michigan had the nation’s No. 3 defence efficiency-wise and put Loyola on lockdown in the second half, forcing the Ramblers into a rash of turnovers to race away.

“We always talk about getting the domino going,” Loyola coach Porter Moser said. “They closed that gap of opportunity in a hurry.”

Villanova has a way of doing that, too.

The Wolverines may have an answer in Wagner.

The German big man carried Michigan through its struggles in the first half by using his size advantage against the smaller Ramblers, snagging five offensive rebounds to notch a double-double by halftime.

Wagner finished with 24 points and 15 rebound to join Hakeem Olajuwon and Larry Bird as the only players to have at least 20 points and 15 rebounds in a national semifinal game.

“He’s unbelievable. He’s one of those dynamic scorers from the post, he’s a great passer, made some unbelievable passers today with both hands,” Villanova assistant coach Ashley Howard said. “He’s a guy they can play through. We’ll watch tape, try to figure out the best way to approach going into Monday night’s game. It’s going to be a challenge and we’re looking forward to it.” </s> SAN ANTONIO — The Latest on the championship of the NCAA Tournament (all times local):

Third-seeded Michigan doesn't have much support from the public when it comes to pulling off an upset of No. 1 seed Villanova.

Oddsmakers in Las Vegas set the opening line for the championship game favouring Villanova by 5 1/2 points, and gamblers quickly pushed that to 6 1/2 points by backing the Wildcats. Sports book data compiled by Pregame.com shows bettors are overwhelmingly backing Villanova in every respect, whether gambling on the spread or the money line. There also appears to be consensus between sharps and casual bettors.

Only about 3 per cent of brackets filled out on Yahoo and ESPN platforms selected Michigan as a title winner, while Villanova was the most popular champion on Yahoo and just behind Virginia as the most likely pick for champion before the tournament began.

Michigan has made a shift in recent years to transform into one of the country's best defensive teams. Villanova is dropping 3-pointers like pop-a-shot and making teams look far less skilled.

Both teams are preparing Sunday for the final game of the NCAA Tournament, as March Madness bleeds into April for the championship game on Monday night.

Michigan (33-7) got here by ousting Loyola-Chicago in the Final Four on Saturday night, sending home Sister Jean and her Ramblers, the fan-favourite underdogs. </s> In an anti-climatic end to a tournament filled with surprises, Villanova cruised to its second men’s college basketball championship in three years Monday night, rolling past Michigan, 79-62, in San Antonio, Texas.

The No. 1-seeded Wildcats were led by Donte DiVincenzo, who poured in 31 points coming off the bench, including five 3-pointers. His scoring outburst was a record for a bench player in an NCAA championship game.

Someone check DiVincenzo for consciousness pic.twitter.com/6QfzlEkXMm — BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) April 3, 2018

The No. 3-seeded Wolverines were seeking their first national championship since 1989.

It was the third basketball title for Villanova, which also won in 2016 and 1985. The Wildcats, who were the highest-scoring team in the country, finished the year 36-4. They absolutely dominated the postseason, with a 17.7-point average margin of victory in the Big East and NCAA tournaments, and won all their NCAA tournament games by at least 12 points.

Also see: Notre Dame women win NCAA basketball title with stunning buzzer-beater

While the championship game lacked drama, this year’s tournament will be remembered for two shocking Cinderella stories: The University of Maryland-Baltimore County, who became the first 16th-seed in history to knock off a No. 1 seed; and Loyola-Chicago, the No. 11 seed who defied the odds to reach the Final Four in its first tournament appearance since 1985. </s> SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Michigan's game plan used to revolve around offense, hitting enough shots to outscore teams. Sometimes it worked. Many times, often on the biggest stages, it didn't.

The Wolverines have made a shift in recent years, transforming into one of the nation's best defensive teams. If shots aren't falling, they can always win with defense.

It's gotten them to the national title game for the first time since 1989.

Now Michigan faces its biggest challenge yet: trying to stop Villanova's horde of long-range shooters in Monday night's national title game.

"That's as good a team as we've played that I can remember," Kansas coach Bill Self said after the Wildcats crushed his Jayhawks with a barrage of 3-pointers in the national semifinals Saturday night.

Michigan (33-7) reached the title game by taking away Cinderella's slipper, sending Loyola-Chicago and Sister Jean home a game short of completing their divine run.

Villanova bombed its way past a blue blood to get there.

The Wildcats (35-4) turned a Final Four showdown with fellow No. 1 seed Kansas into a laugher, dropping in 3-pointers like they were playing pop-a-shot in the 95-79 rout. Villanova made a Final Four-record 18 3s in a record-matching 40 attempts, its second trip in three seasons to the title game never in doubt.

That's an NCAA record 442 from the arc this season — and they're still counting.

"I feel bad for Kansas," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "They're a great team, we just made every shot."

The third-seeded Wolverines (33-7) had a bit more trouble against the bracket's favorite underdogs, overcoming a frightful first half to send nun-turned-motivator Sister Jean Delores Schmidt headed to the exits early.

The Wolverines trailed the bracket-rambling Ramblers by seven at halftime, found the right gear in the second and have a title-game appearance no one outside of Ann Arbor saw coming when they were middling in the Big Ten just a month ago.

Now that they're done playing the favorite for a night, it's back to the underdog role against Villanova.

"The whole villain thing, you guys love to write about it, talk about it, but at the end of the day it's just basketball, you know?" Michigan big man Moe Wagner said. "And we just try to win. That's all we do.

Their next task: find some way to slow Villanova's 3-ball roll.

The Wildcats were one of the most proficient 3-point shooting teams during the regular season and upped the 3 ante in the NCAA Tournament, knocking down a record 65 and counting. Villanova broke the Final Four record with 13 in the first half and literally shot the lights out by the second, when some scoreboards and upper-level lights briefly went out and darkened the upper decks.

"It was one of those nights where we were able to make shots and that's what the lead looks like," said Villanova's Jalen Brunson, who had 18 points and six assists.

Michigan may have a better answer than the Jayhawks had.

Tired of watching victories fizzle away through defensive deficiencies, coach John Beilein made a philosophical change, putting an emphasis on that side of the ball.

It's worked out well.

Michigan had the nation's No. 3 defense efficiency-wise and put Loyola on lockdown in the second half, forcing the Ramblers into a rash of turnovers to race away.

"We always talk about getting the domino going," Loyola coach Porter Moser said. "They closed that gap of opportunity in a hurry."

Villanova has a way of doing that, too.

The Wolverines may have an answer in Wagner.

The German big man carried Michigan through its struggles in the first half by using his size advantage against the smaller Ramblers, snagging five offensive rebounds to notch a double-double by halftime.

Wagner finished with 24 points and 15 rebound to join Hakeem Olajuwon and Larry Bird as the only players to have at least 20 points and 15 rebounds in a national semifinal game.

"He's unbelievable. He's one of those dynamic scorers from the post, he's a great passer, made some unbelievable passers today with both hands," Villanova assistant coach Ashley Howard said. "He's a guy they can play through. We'll watch tape, try to figure out the best way to approach going into Monday night's game. It's going to be a challenge and we're looking forward to it." </s> SAN ANTONIO, Texas – In the preceding game, Michigan and Loyola-Chicago combined for eight three-pointers. In 20 minutes of action, Villanova had knocked down 13, tying the Final Four record for most three-pointers…in a game.

They’d break that record in the second half, finishing the contest with 18 made treys, and a wire-to-wire win over Kansas 95-79. The entire Villanova starting five scored in double figures, led by forward Eric Paschall with 24 points.

Jalen Brunson, the AP National Player of the Year, chipped in 18 points and six assists. As a team, the Wildcats shot 55-percent from the field, while holding Kansas to 44-percent.

The Wildcats reach the NCAA Championship game for the second time in the last two seasons after beating North Carolina in 2016.

They will face Michigan on TBS, Monday, April 2nd at 9:20 p.m.
Villanova beats Michigan 79–62 to win the NCAA men's basketball championship.