March 12, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes guard Bruce Thornton (2) reacts after making a late 3-pointer against the Iowa Hawkeyes at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Image No. 3 Michigan has a five-day break and advances to the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals on Friday against Ohio State. This is an advantage for the conference’s regular season champion.
As the top-seeded Wolverines aim to repeat the feat with a tournament title amid high expectations heading into the NCAA Tournament, coach Dusty May insists his players remain balanced.
“It’s the same for us, whether we’re the hunters or the hunted,” May said. “We’re obsessed with playing good basketball through possession and outside of the clock and the score, we encourage our guys to separate themselves from the scoreboard. Let’s get some good balls, get in the fight, and see where we are.”
Michigan (29 wins, 2 losses), which lost only one regular season league game, meets the 8th seed Buckeyes, who are more energetic and confident than when they last faced each other on February 8th.
Ohio State (21-11) trailed by 21 points when visiting Michigan. The Wolverines also had 12 wins on their home floor when the schools met on Jan. 23.
On Thursday afternoon, Ohio State had four scorers in double figures, including Bruce Thornton (24 points) and Christoph Tilly (16 points), and the Buckeyes advanced to the quarterfinals by beating Iowa 72-69.
Ohio State held a 16-point lead near the midway point of the second half before holding off several Hawkeyes. When it wasn’t Thornton, the team’s top scorer, the Buckeyes typically answered behind the frontcourt duo of Tilly and Amare Bynum (11 points).
“It’s just posture in the paint,” Bynum said. “We’ve been trying to finish on guys and use our athleticism to get in position.”
Michigan also knows how to flex its inner muscles. Wolverines’ 7-foot-3 center Aday Mara scored 24 points against Ohio State on Feb. 8, and senior forward Yaxel Lendeborg averaged 16.0 points and 11.5 rebounds in the two meetings.
Lendeborg (14.7 ppg), forwards Morez Johnson Jr. (13.7 ppg) and Mara (11.3 ppg) each have double-digit scoring averages for the Wolverines.
By May, Michigan’s depth extends to the locker room. “It’s not one person or two people that lead our locker room, it’s everyone.”
“Leadership is open to everyone in our locker room,” May added. “And these people have a real way with themselves, and other people who don’t want to lead, can take leadership because they know that the person holding them accountable or speaking up has our interests first and not their personal interests.”
Ohio State coach Jake Diebler has seen similar unselfishness among the Buckeyes, who have won four straight since avenging a 17-point loss at Iowa on Feb. 25.
“I’m really excited about where we are as a team right now, the fight we’re playing, the connection we’re playing on both sides of the ball,” Dibler said. “It’s been a real pleasure coaching this group.
“They’ve stuck together through a lot of adversity, and I think that’s why we’re here to do our best. Our plan is to keep moving and keep going. We’ve got to get some rest, recover and be ready to do it again tomorrow.”
–Field level media
