Michigan’s Dusty May expects Yaxel Lendeborg to play in national championship: ‘He played the second half like a 38-year-old at the YMCA’

Michigan men’s basketball head coach Dusty May told reporters he expects AP First Team All-American Yaxel Lendeborg to play in Monday’s national championship game against UConn after an MRI came back clean, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

May said Lendeborg underwent imaging after injuring his knee and ankle against Illinois and the results showed no structural damage. He added that the final decision will ultimately be made by Lendeborg and Michigan’s medical staff.

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Lendeborg twisted his ankle during the first half after an awkward landing on a drive to the basket. He briefly exited to the locker room before returning in Michigan’s 91-73 Final Four blowout victory over Arizona. He finished with 11 points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal in 15 minutes.

Limited mostly to a spot-up role, Lendeborg scored nine of his points from beyond the arc, shooting a perfect 3-for-3 from three-point range. At 23 years old, Lendeborg is one of the older players in college basketball. May joked that he played like that yesterday after his injury.

“He played the second half like a 38-year-old at the YMCA,” May said. “A really good 38-year-old at the YMCA.”

Chris Williams, Lendeborg’s trainer, reportedly said his knee looks good structurally and all his ligaments are strong. He mentioned that Lendeborg has a low-grade MCL sprain and a small bone bruise but he still expects him to play. Williams is optimistic and hopes Lendeborg will show the agility and athleticism of an 18-year-old on Monday night.Lendeborg echoed his coach’s and trainers optimism that he will play against UConn.

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“I’m playing no matter what,” he said, later adding, “Unless I wake up and can’t even stand, I’m going to be in that game.”

Those comments came after an initial scare when he feared the worst.

“I definitely felt like I did all this for nothing in the moment,” Lendeborg said. “I had to calm down, talk to myself, and get out of my own head.”

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/mens-college-basketball/breaking-news/article/michigans-dusty-may-expects-yaxel-lendeborg-to-play-in-national-championship-he-played-the-second-half-like-a-38-year-old-at-the-ymca-181424603.html

Author : Tarohn Finley

Publish date : 2026-04-05 18:14:00

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