February 17, 2026; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Michigan Wolverines coach Dusty May watches the first half of the game against the Purdue Boilermakers at Mackey Arena. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images Morez Johnson Jr., making a successful return to his former school, scored 19 points and a game-high 11 rebounds to lead No. 3 Michigan to an 84-70 victory over No. 10 Illinois on Friday night in Champaign, Ill., clinching the Wolverines’ first Big Ten title since 2021.
Johnson, a sophomore who transferred from Illinois to Michigan on April 1, and his teammates seemed to be booed every time Johnson touched the ball. Adey Mara had 19 points on 8 of 9 field goal shooting and Jasel Rendevori added 16 points, seven rebounds and four assists as Michigan (27-2, 17-1) snapped its ninth straight loss to Illinois.
Keaton Wagler, overshadowed by the taller and longer Lendeborg, scored a game-high 23 points but was held to 7 of 17 points and 4 of the last 6 points as Illinois (22-7, 13-5) held on for four runs. Kylan Boswell added 15 points.
Ten students just behind the Illinois bench claimed they favored Illinois freshman David Mirkovic by drawing “MIRK > MOREZ” on their chests. David Mirkovic had 12 points and 10 rebounds at the power forward spot he would have held had Johnson not transferred.
Early on, Illinois students had a lot to cheer about. Illinois held a 16-11 lead until 13:03 when Wagler swung a stepback 3-pointer over the 7-foot-3 Mara while being fouled and drained the resulting free throw.
Michigan took the lead by 11 straight points before Illinois dared him to make a shot on Johnson’s 3-pointer with 9:45 to play.
The Wolverines continued to convert turnovers and Illinois long misses into fast break points to take a 38-31 halftime lead. LJ Cason fed Johnson on a 3-on-1 break for a layup with 1:11 remaining, and Johnson converted a tip-in with 0:42 to go to lead all first-half scorers with 13 points.
Every time Illinois dug into Michigan’s lead in the second half, the Wolverines answered. After Jake Davis swished a 3-pointer for the Illini, Lendeborg swung a 3-pointer. After Wagler attempted two free throws, Johnson bullied Wagler in the post, let out a primal scream, and threw down a huge dunk.
Wagler got it past Lendeborg for a layup to make it 47-41, then Michigan got Mara on a 5-footer and a pick-and-roll slam. Five minutes later, Mara went on a personal 7-0 run to give the Wolverines a 66-52 lead with 9:12 left. Trey McKenney followed with back-to-back 3-pointers to force Illinois to take a timeout down 72-54 with 7:27 left.
Illinois never got closer than 14 again.
Michigan shot 52.5% (31 of 59) from the floor and 62.1% (23 of 37) from inside the arc. They also converted 14 of 17 shots from the free throw line.
–Field level media
