March Madness 2026: Can Michigan still win it all after being humbled in Big Ten tournament?

CHICAGO — The program that dethroned a historic Michigan team on Sunday is a reminder that the Big Ten tournament is hardly a forecast of NCAA tournament success.

“Winning it our freshman year, we thought it was pretty cool,” said Fletcher Loyer, Purdue’s all-time leading 3-point shooter, “but then obviously we lost to a 16 seed.”

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It’s obvious because it’s unforgettable.

Five days after hoisting Big Ten hardware, the Boilermakers became the second men’s team to ever fall to a No. 16 seed in March Madness in 2023. Fairleigh Dickinson was David, and Purdue was Goliath. Without a player taller than 6-foot-6 taking the court, FDU slayed Purdue and its giant, Zach Edey, a 7-foot-3 consensus National Player of the Year.

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That jaw-dropping defeat left a mark that’s since scarred. With distance from it and perspective gained from a prolific four-year career, Loyer reflected at his locker while processing his second Big Ten tournament title.

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Wearing a championship hat sideways, with a piece of a cut-down net dangling by his calm eyes, he admitted that the year after that fateful loss to FDU, the Boilermakers “didn’t care at all” about the conference tourney.

“We won the regular season, that’s what we wanted to do, but ultimately we wanted to get back to the NCAA tournament. Last year, once again, it was not on our mind at all. We were ready for the NCAA tournament,” he said.

The senior guard added: “But this year having not had the regular season we wanted to have and the young guys having not won the Big Ten, it was our main goal to come here and win.”

In four days, Purdue went from being the No. 7 seed in the Big Ten tournament to becoming a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament. The Boilermakers used the Big Ten tourney as a rallying cry.

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Michigan, denied its second straight title in the event, will now use it as motivation.

‘It definitely fuels us to make sure that we never lose…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/mens-college-basketball/article/march-madness-2026-can-michigan-still-win-it-all-after-being-humbled-in-big-ten-tournament-130726630.html

Author : Andy Backstrom

Publish date : 2026-03-18 13:07:00

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