Michigan mauls Michigan State to cap off a historic season
Yaxel Lendeborg set the tone from the tip. With 27 points he made Michigan’s 90-80 win over Michigan State in Ann Arbor on Sunday look easy. The hosts, ranked third nationally, sweep the regular-season series against their big rival. The rotation clicked — Morez Johnson Jr. bullied the paint with 18 and 7, Roddy Gayle Jr. chipped in 15. At 29-2, this is the Big Ten’s best campaign since Indiana’s unbeaten 1976 run.
Across the court, Jaxon Kohler and Jeremy Fears Jr. tried to keep the Spartans afloat with 23 and 22 points respectively; Fears also dished out 9 assists. Michigan State still holds the No. 3 seed for the conference tournament in Chicago. The rivalry burned hot early — refs called three technicals in the first ten minutes. Fears picked one up after a cheap shot on Elliot Cadeau. Tempers flared again when Aday Mara shoved Carson Cooper in the back, and later Trey McKenney ripped the ball away from Kohler with a brutal strip.
Nebraska snatches overtime win over Iowa
They scrapped to the final whistle, but the Cornhuskers wore Iowa down (84-75). The Lincoln victory ties Nebraska’s single-season program record for wins. Nebraska smothered Iowa in overtime with a dry 9-0 run to finish it off. Weirdly, Cale Jacobsen chose OT to hit two triples — he’d only made 14 all season. Sam Hoiberg and Pryce Sandfort finished with 15 apiece, locking up second place in the Big Ten. Kael Combs’ and Cooper Koch’s 18 points couldn’t spark an upset on the road.
Illinois does the job and buries Maryland
David Mirkovic wrecked the opposing paint. Illinois’ big man posted a huge double-double — 22 points and 11 rebounds — to guide his team to a tight 78-72 win at College Park. The game turned on small edges. Kylan Boswell added 11 useful points, while Keaton Wagler waited until the second half to score all of his 11. That late-game control punches the Fighting Illini’s ticket straight into the conference quarterfinals on Friday. Maryland, meanwhile, faces a darker outlook. Andre Mills did drop 30, but the team finishes second-to-last in the conference and will have to survive a win-or-go-home opening round against Oregon on Tuesday.
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