Michigan Wolverines Poised for Deep Run in NCAA Tourney

Being a part of team is a special thing.  While most of us cannot relate to being a part of Division I collegiate basketball team, we can relate to being a part of something greater than ourselves.  From the outside looking in, it seems to me that teams in college are hard to figure out.  The most talented players do not always make up the best team.  Coaches who get the most out of individual players do not always have the best team.  Sure, these are important factors to having a great team, but there’s more to it. The best teams have those intangible characteristics that you can’t teach – it’s either there or it’s not.  Perhaps it could be hidden below the surface until a traumatic event brings it out.

In Michigan, I believe we are witnessing something special.  The plane crash at takeoff just days before the start of the Big 10 tournament brought this team together like no coach could.  It was handled exceptionally well by Coach John Beilein who reportedly gave the players a choice of whether or not to participate in the Big 10 game since they would have to fly out the following day.  After a players only meeting it would be decided that the team would go forward and play as scheduled.  Players found the courage to climb aboard a similar plane the very next day.  The did it for each other.  They did it for their school and their coach.  They did it for themselves.  This “team” would never be the same after that March 8, 2017 day.

As an 8 seed, Michigan won the next 4 days in a row and were crowned the 2017 Big 10 Conference champions.  On March 7^th, the experts considered the Michigan Wolverines to be on the bubble to get into the NCAA tournament.  Now they find themselves a 7 seed, having just knocked off the #2 seed Louisville Cardinals and in the Sweet Sixteen. 

How far can they go? For now, we just sit back and enjoy seeing history written.  Before the nation’s eyes, we see how Michigan believes in each other, taking no day for granted and playing like the team in possession of those intangibles that make champions.