A Kansas comeback, a Michigan meltdown

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (News4usonline) – In their first-round NCAA Tournament game against Kansas, Michigan led for more than 26 of the 40 minutes in the contest. The Wolverines dominated the time of possession. 

With 6:41 left in the fourth quarter, Michigan forced Kansas to stare down a double-digit lead (10 points) that the Wolverines held over the Jayhawks. At that juncture of the game, it appeared that the Wolverines would be on their way to advancing to the next tournament round.

But there is a reason why they call the tournament a form of March Madness. That’s because anything crazy can happen. Crazy is what happened to the Wolverines next. That comfortable lead the Wolverines had evaporated into an 81-72 overtime loss to the Jayhawks. 

The improbable win by the Kansas comeback came about when the Jayhawks outscored the Wolverines 37-19 in the fourth quarter and overtime. It didn’t help the Wolverines to have their leading scorer, Cameron Williams, out for much of the final period because of foul trouble. 

“Cameron was on the bench for probably most of it with her fourth until like four minutes to go. They were just going high-low, and they were just trying to isolate us inside and really take away that,” Michigan head coach Kim Barnes Arico said after the game during a postgame press conference. 

“Then they were getting downhill, and they got to the free-throw line, and we had our fifth foul on us with probably seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter, so that’s dangerous. I don’t have the book on me, but the number of times they went to the free-throw line in the fourth quarter was probably more than we went for the game,” she added. 

Up until the fourth quarter, Michigan had outscored Kansas through the first three periods. That’s when the Jayhawks started turning it on. Kansas took advantage of Williams not being on the court. 

In the final quarter, the Jayhawks outscored the Wolverines 23-14 to tie the ballgame and send the contest into the extra session. 

Like anything that is crazy, the impossible defeated the possible one more time, defying logic. With the Wolverines clinging to a three-point lead late in the game, it became obvious that Kansas needed a miracle to keep their season alive. The Jayhawks got one. 

Zakiyah Franklin, who led all players in scoring with 22 points, rained on Michigan’s parade with a long 3-point shot that clanged three times on the rim before dropping through the net with 12 seconds remaining in regulation.  

“Pretty much we run this play all the time when it’s late clock,” Franklin said. “We kind of ran it, and they took away the main two options that we had. It’s just one option that’s pretty always open, and it actually was. So I kind of just shot the ball.”

Kansas head coach Brandon Schneider wasn’t hesitant to heap praise on Franklin. 

“The kid’s a winner, and that’s why we recruited her,” Schneider said. “Our program came from the very, very bottom of the Power 5, and we needed a kid like that that was used to winning that, quite frankly, if you came up short, was going to be pissed off when you got on the bus or the plane. That’s all she’s done is help change our program around. I think it’s very, very fitting that may be one of the bigger plays in Kansas women’s basketball history.”

Franklin’s shot proved to be a momentum-buster for the Wolverines because in the overtime period Michigan players looked defeated. They played like it as well. Michigan scored just five points in the overtime period. 

The bad side of this is that the Wolverines surrendered 14 points to the Jayhawks. Kansas converted 66 percent of their field goals in overtime. Michigan struggled, making only 2 of 9 shots in the extra period. 

Williams, who finished the game with 18 points, was almost able to will her team to victory. That reality didn’t come to fruition for the senior. After the game, Williams talked about how important it was for her to be extremely productive for her team after getting the starting nod. 

“It meant a lot,” Williams said. “Just doing whatever I can to help my team be successful is where my head’s at no matter what position I’m coming from. I think the biggest thing is going out there and playing with my team means the most.”