Michigan Keeps Tourney Hopes Alive With Victory Over UConn

It might not be the Thabeet-powered destroyer of basketball worlds it once was, but UConn is still UConn to pollsters, as evidenced by its place in the ESPN/USAToday Top 25. That may be all Michigan will need come tournament selection time. In fact, with six Top-25 games remaining on their schedule, Michigan controls its own destiny.

Of course, they need to survive a brutal stretch coming up this week. First comes a road game against No. 19 Wisconsin on Wednesday. The Badgers have been a force this year, starting the Purdue upset party. Led by Trevon Hughes, Jon Leuer and Jason Bohannon, Wisconsin will try to keep its home game winning-streak alive against an admittedly streaky Wolverine squad that has yet to notch a signature road win.

In fact, Michigan only has one win away from Chrisler Arena—at Penn State—and they needed a near-miracle to win that one. If they are to make a case for the selection committee, they will need to become road warriors. It only gets harder from here on out for the Maize and Blue.

Should they find a way to win at Wisconsin Wednesday, they get a few days to prepare to keep pace with Purdue on Saturday in Mackey Arena. Purdue has lost three in a row and, should they somehow lose to Illinois, the Boilers will be looking for a team to bludgeon to keep a top five seed alive come March Madness. The Boilermakers boast one of the most capable Big Ten guards in E'Twaun Moore and more often than not get one stellar performance after another from forward Robbie Hummel.

Assuming Michigan survives their road games, things just get worse for the Wolverines who play host to in-state rivals and perennial tournament giant, Michigan State. MSU is 5-0 in the Big Ten and is two close games away from their only loss being to No. 1 Texas. Michigan has not beaten the Spartans since the 2006-2007 season, when they posted a 67-56 victory at home en route to a 20-11 record.

With a win against a surging Ohio State squad already notched on their belt, the Wolverines would have quality wins against UConn, OSU, MSU, WISC and Purdue. That would be five Top 25 wins versus last year's performance that ended with just three, but saw Michigan earn a 10-seed. Should Michigan steal wins from Wisconsin, Purdue and MSU, they very well may find themselves once again at the 20-win mark and very likely on their way to another NCAA tournament as a low-seed.