Michigan was one of the last teams to make the field of 68 for this year's NCAA men's basketball tournament. Now, the Wolverines are the first to punch their tickets into the second round.
The No. 11 seed used a fierce second-half comeback on Thursday to take down Colorado State, turning up the defensive pressure to score a 75–63 win. Michigan outscored the Rams 46–27 in the second half after trailing by seven at the break.
Center Hunter Dickinson led all scorers with 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the field, with six rebounds and four blocked shots. Eli Brooks added 16 points with seven rebounds, six assists and two steals.
The Rams appeared to be in control of the game, at one point opening up a 15-point lead late in the first half. But the Wolverines grabbed the lead by the 10-minute mark of the second half and never looked back, ending the game on a 30–14 run.
Michigan advances to the second round, where it will face the winner of the Tennessee-Longwood matchup.