Michigan Beats Loyola-Chicago In March Madness Final Four Match — Advances To NCAA Final

Michigan Beats Loyola-Chicago In March Madness Final Four Match — Advances To NCAA Final

They did it! Michigan took on Loyola-Chicago in the Final Four, and after a wild match, it was Michigan who booked a ticket to the March Madness finale!

Heading into this game, the Loyola University Chicago Ramblers were already winners, having advanced farther than anyone expected the 11-seeded teem to go. Yet, their March Madness wasn’t done yet. They still had to face the University of Michigan Wolverines. The two met in the first of the Final Four games on March 31, squaring off on the court of The Alamodome in San Antonio. Although it was an often-tied matchup, in the end Michigan came out on top, winning 69-57.

Shockingly, this Loyola’s first defeat since January. Early on, both teams struggled to find momentum but the Wolverines soon claimed a slight lead. However, Loyola was never too far behind. The head-to-head scoring left fans feeling like it was anyone’s game in the second half. But a number of turnovers gave Michigan the opportunity they needed to pull ahead. Ultimately, Loyola could no withstand Mo Wagner who scored 24 points on Saturday, ending what was a miracle run for Chicago.

Loyola-Chicago became the fourth 11 seed to reach the national semifinals, according to Sports Illustrated, after LSU in 1986, George Mason in 2006 and VCU in 2011. Their win over the Kansas State on March 24 was shocking, as out of 17 million brackets that had been filled out, on 83,292 had picked the Ramblers to go that far. Even Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, the 98-year-old nun who performs as the Ramblers team Champlain, is also the team’s biggest fan. Many thought she was the team’s good luck charm or fairy godmother, who even didn’t think her team would get this far. “Keep breaking (my bracket),” she told the players.

“This is the most fun I’ve had in my life, it is,” Sister Jean said during a Final Four presser, according to the New York Post. “And I almost didn’t get here, but I fought hard enough to do that because I wanted to be with the guys.” When asked if God is a basketball fan, Sister Jean said he probably is. “And he’s probably a basketball fan more of the NCAA than the NBA (laughter)… And I say that because these young people are playing with their hearts and not for any financial assistance.”

The Wolverines entered this game as the favorites, fueled by sharpshooter Charles Matthews and a defense considered the best of the four teams left. The Wolverines breezed by Montana, barely escaped a showdown with the University of Houston. After that 64-63 nail biter, the Wolverines recovered to blow by Texas A&M before defeating Florida State in the Elite Eight.

The winner of this match will go on to meet the winner of the Villanova vs. Kansas game in the NCAA Tournament final on April 2.