‘This team will have a bond for eternity’: Michigan Wolverines reflect on Big Ten Tournament triumph

Dusty May and the Wolverines reflected on winning the Big Ten Tournament Championship Game, and what it means to cement their legacy at Michigan. “This team will have a bond for eternity.” STORY:

In the aftermath of a 59-53 win over the Wisconsin Badgers to take home the Big Ten Tournament championship , the Michigan Wolverines reflected on how they got the job done and what it means to them.

“I know that these guys are going to come back in 10 years and tell stories about this tournament, and tell stories about the time we got knocked on our tails the last three games of the regular season and how we responded,” head coach Dusty May told Maize n Brew. “Ultimately, we’re very proud. When you have a history and a legacy like Michigan, you’re very proud to be a part of it, but it’s great that I know this team will have a bond for eternity.”

Coming into the Big Ten Tournament , the Wolverines were in the midst of a three-game losing streak to end the regular season. In just three days, Michigan completely flipped the narrative and cemented legacies.

“It’s great for these guys,” May said. “They’re going to bring their grandkids and children, and they’re going to point up at that picture. You see those banners in Crisler. Crisler is clean and crisp, and when you’re part of one of those, it’s really, really cool. For me, it confirms that we’re going to be able to bring this group back in five years, 10 years and 20 years, because I care a lot more about that than I do the actual banner. The banner is just a symbol of this group coming together and doing something special.”

The Wolverines trailed by double digits in the second half before storming back and eventually taking the lead in the final minutes. With the game on the line, Michigan once again proved to be the more composed team.

“I want to praise our guys’ resiliency and their togetherness,” May said. “For the majority of the game, it wasn’t how we scripted it, it wasn’t what we thought it would look like, but it was two heavyweights going at it back-and-forth, tooth and nail. I’ll give our guys credit for staying the course. Different guys stepped up, got us ignited and then these guys (Tre Donaldson, Vlad Goldin and Danny Wolf) took it over and made plays.”

When he was hired last spring, May made it a priority to target winning players in the transfer portal. Less than a year later, Donaldson, Goldin and Wolf proved their coach right by leading Michigan to a Big Ten Tournament title.

“It’s why we all came here,” Wolf said. “We talked about doing these things in the summer when we were first together as a group. The end of the regular season didn’t end as we would have hoped. Coach May said it right in the postgame speech, we have a new season approaching. This was part one and we have part two coming up soon. I grew up watching games like these, and just so proud of how hard my teammates played. Our coaches put us in a great position to succeed. When it mattered, we were able to come away with the win.”

Despite struggling at the end of the regular season, Donaldson stepped up when the lights were brightest in Indianapolis. One day after sinking a game-winning layup in the semifinals against Maryland, Donaldson drilled a go-ahead three-pointer with two minutes left in the title game against Wisconsin.

“(The championship) means the world to me,” Donaldson said. “I think the best feeling is seeing the guys from last year, the smiles on their faces. This is what we came here to do and this is what we wanted to do. It means the world to me. I know it means the world to my teammates, but it’s a blessing to play for something that’s bigger than you with this Block M on our jersey. It’s a legacy behind it and just being able to establish ourselves in history as a team through ups and downs is amazing.”

The Wolverines continued to show they can win in multiple ways as they fought off a poor shooting performance by being more physical and tough than Wisconsin. That was the biggest difference down the stretch and ultimately helped them win the game.

“This is a physical game,” Donaldson said. “When it comes down to tournament time and winning, it’s going to be physical because teams want it so bad and they’re gonna chase the ball and people are going to be in the way. It’s just the will to win, and I feel like that’s where the physicality comes from. The urge in wanting to win so badly, I feel like that plays a part in it. That’s where we stepped in these past three games in the Big Ten Tournament, just that physicality and that desire to win.”

Michigan certainly had a desire to win, as it turned a disappointing start to the month into a memorable run through the Big Ten Tournament. Now, the Wolverines will turn their attention to the NCAA Tournament and try to keep the magic alive.