On Saturday evening, the Michigan basketball program punched its ticket to the national championship game with a dominant win over the Arizona Wildcats in the Final Four. The Wolverines will now take on the UConn Huskies, who breezed past Illinois in comfortable fashion in their own Final Four matchup, on Monday evening.
In the first half of this one, a scary moment occurred when Michigan star Yaxel Lendeborg was forced to go back to the locker room after twisting his ankle. Eventually, Lendeborg returned in the second half, although it was clear that the injury was affecting him.
Now, Lendeborg has made a bold statement as to his status for Monday's national championship game.
“There’s no way they’re gonna keep me off the floor,” said Lendeborg, per Matt Norlander of CBS Sports on X, formerly Twitter.
Many fans were puzzled as to why Lendebor returned in the second half against Arizona, considering both the severity of the injury as well as the fact that the game was well out of reach for the Wildcats throughout the second half.
“Yaxel Lendeborg told me his mom and agent told him not to play in the second half last night but he shot that advice down once the trainer told him it was his decision,” reported Norlander.
Michigan will now be taking on a UConn team that has caught fire at the right time as the tournament has worn on. Even if he's not 100 percent, Lendeborg still figures to play a big role in trying to help Michigan claim its first national title since 1989.
