Michigan hangs on to beat Tennessee, 73-71, move on to Elite 8

2nd-seeded Michigan returns to Elite 8 with nail-biting win over 11th-seeded Tennessee

INDIANAPOLIS – Jordan Morgan collected 15 points and seven rebounds and Nik Stauskas scored 14 points as the Wolverines held off the Volunteers in the NCAA tournament regional semifinals in Indianapolis.

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Glenn Robinson III added 13 points and Caris LeVert had 10 and five assists for No. 2 seed Michigan (28-8), which will take on Kentucky or Louisville in the Midwest regional final Sunday. Derrick Walton Jr. collected nine points, six rebounds and four assists for the Wolverines, who shot 55.1 percent from the floor.

Jordan McRae scored 16 of his 24 points in the second half and Josh Richardson contributed 19 points for No. 11 seed Tennessee (24-13), which had a half-court heave in the final seconds sail well over the backboard. Jarnell Stokes added 11 points for the Volunteers.

Stauskas' only 3-pointer of the second half gave Michigan a 70-60 advantage with 3:41 to play but McRae scored seven points and added an assist during an 11-2 burst to cut the deficit back to one with 10.8 seconds left. The Wolverines' second turnover in the final 20 seconds gave Tennessee a chance to take the lead but Stokes was called for an offensive foul for lowering his shoulder into Morgan and Stauskas split a pair of free throws with 2.1 seconds left to seal it.

Michigan set a blistering pace by shooting 61.5 percent in the first half and knocking down 7-of-9 from beyond the arc en route to a 45-34 lead at the break. The Wolverines opened up a 60-45 lead just in front of the midway point of the second half before the Volunteers made a move, using an 11-2 run to chop the deficit to six points with less than seven minutes to play.

GAME NOTEBOOK: McRae collected four of Tennessee's eight blocked shots, including one on Robinson with 46 seconds left that gave the Volunteers a chance. … Stokes recorded a double-double in each of Tennessee's first three NCAA tournament games but was held to six boards by the Wolverines. … Michigan is attempting to get back to the Final Four for the second straight season and is headed to the school's sixth regional final since the 1989 championship season.