Yaxel Lendeborg hits game-winner, Michigan Basketball gets revenge on Wisconsin

· Yahoo Sports

Mar 14, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Michigan Wolverines forward Yaxel Lendeborg (23) celebrates with teammates after scoring a game-winning basket against the Wisconsin Badgers during the second half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

The Michigan Wolverines took down the Wisconsin Badgers, 68-65, in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals on Saturday in Chicago, as Yaxel Lendeborg knocked down a game-winning three-pointer in the final second to lift the Wolverines to the title game on Sunday afternoon.

Visit asg-reflektory.pl for more information.

Here’s our recap as Michigan took a step closer to winning the Big Ten Tournament for a second straight year.

FIRST HALF

Michigan went up 2-0 as Morez Johnson Jr. made a layup and the Badgers answered with a three-pointer, but then there was a three-minute scoring drought.

The scoring started to pick up a little bit in the ensuing minutes, as John Blackwell and Nick Boyd both knocked down threes to give Wisconsin a 9-6 lead. Elliot Cadeau tied things up with a three-pointer of his own.

Midway through the half, Aday Mara blocked his third shot of the day, leading to a fast-break layup by Roddy Gayle Jr. Wisconsin responded with a 5-0 run to build an 18-11 lead before Will Tschetter drilled a three-pointer to cut into the deficit.

Similar to the first matchup of the season, Michigan really struggled to contain Aleksas Bieliauskas from beyond the arc. The Wisconsin forward connected on three three-pointers in the first 13 minutes to help the Badgers take a 23-16 lead.

After missing eight straight shots, Michigan finally started to get it going on the offensive end by putting together a 7-0 run. That was led by a three-pointer from McKenney to cut the deficit to 26-25.

On the final possession of the half, Lendeborg hit a three-pointer to tie it 28-28. It certainly wasn’t a pretty half from Michigan — shooting 8-for-30 from the field to go with eight turnovers — but it found a way to fight back.

HALFTIME: MICHIGAN 28, WISCONSIN 28

SECOND HALF

The Wolverines opened the second half much better than the first, going on a 9-3 run to build a 37-31 lead. Mara scored three straight points, followed by Cadeau and Lendeborg attacking off the dribble and finishing in the paint.

Coming out of a timeout, Cadeau continued to lead the way by making a layup and a triple to extend the lead to 42-31. Just moments later, Mara grabbed an offensive rebound and finished a bucket through contact to put Michigan up 45-36.

The ensuing minutes were completely controlled by the Wolverines, as McKenney connected on another three-pointer. Mara found Lendeborg on a backdoor cut for a two-handed dunk to give Michigan a 52-39 lead with 10:19 remaining.

After struggling to find a rhythm, Wisconsin all of sudden found some momentum from an unlikely source. Austin Rapp made three straight three-pointers to turn a double-digit deficit into a 56-56 tie with 5:19 left.

Following a timeout, Mara threw down a dunk to put Michigan up 58-56, but Rapp wasn’t done just yet. He made consecutive triples to give the Badgers a 62-58 lead with about four minutes to go.

Michigan was searching for answers, but it remained calm and continued to play through Mara on the offensive end. It was a good game plan to say the least, as he made a mid-range jumper and a layup to tie it, 62-62, with 1:41 remaining.

Wisconsin had a chance to regain the lead but came up empty, and the Wolverines took advantage. Cadeau missed a triple, but Lendeborg snatched an offensive rebound and found Cadeau, who hit the three-pointer this time around with 47 seconds to go.

Boyd answered on the other end, drilling a game-tying triple of his own. With the clock ticking down, Cadeau found Lendeborg for the game-winning shot with 0.4 seconds left. That gave Michigan an unforgettable 68-65 win and a spot in the Big Ten Tournament Championship Game for a second straight year.

FINAL SCORE: MICHIGAN 68, WISCONSIN 65

MICHIGAN STAT LEADERS

  • C Aday Mara: 16 points, 8 rebounds, 5 blocks
  • G Elliot Cadeau: 15 points, 4 rebounds
  • F Yaxel Lendeborg: 12 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists
  • G Trey McKenney: 10 points, 3 assists

WISCONSIN STAT LEADERS

  • F Austin Rapp: 18 points, 6 rebounds
  • G Nick Boyd: 14 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds
  • G John Blackwell: 13 points, 4 assists
  • F Aleksas Bieliauskas: 10 points, 6 rebounds

UP NEXT

Michigan will face either the Purdue Boilermakers or the UCLA Bruins on Sunday (3:30 p.m. on CBS) with an opportunity to be crowned Big Ten Tournament champions for the second consecutive season and the fourth time in the past 10 years.

Read full story at source