The Wolverine

May 2018

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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MAY 2018 THE WOLVERINE 29 BY JOHN BORTON D uncan Robinson once rode in perhaps the most non-essen- tial police escort of all time, in a land far from San Antonio and One Shining Moment. During his freshman year at Divi- sion III Williams College, the Ephs made the title game that was attended by 2,681 fans. The flashing lights and sirens were fun, but about as neces- sary as Cool Zone fans in the Antarctic Football League. Traffic, Robinson likes to quip, isn't a big issue in Salem, Va., where the final contest was held in 2014. Flash-forward four years — Robin- son took the court with his Michigan teammates in the Alamodome, the epi- center of college basketball on April 2, 2018. Some 67,831 looked on, in this football stadium converted for the NCAA Tournament title game. Tens of millions more watched on television, including many back home in New Castle, N.H. Robinson came a long way, in so many ways. As he stood in a somber Michigan locker room, following the title game loss to Villanova, Robinson clearly hurt. Just as clearly, he could step back a bit and understand what it all meant. "It's just the relationships, the peo- ple, the love we've got for each other," he said, talking about what he'd take away from his Michigan experience. Robinson established relationships at Williams as well, some so strong he had teammates from there travel to San Antonio to show their support. But after Williams head coach Mike Maker left for another job, Robinson wondered about a chance at a higher level of basketball. Maker made a call to Michigan head coach John Beilein, and everything changed. A MEMORABLE RUN The fifth-year senior captain's four years at Michigan didn't have to con- clude with a four-day surge to the Big Ten Tournament title, or a five-game charge to national championship showdown. But they did, and Robin- son — the Big Ten's Sixth Man of the Year in 2018 — played no small role in it all. It's easy to forget, following a monu- mental March into madness, that the Wolverines nearly bowed out of the league's big party in the opening game. They trailed at halftime by five against Iowa, 40-35, but scrambled back to tie and eventually win in overtime. Robinson nailed two of his three three-pointers in the final 10 minutes of regulation, then hit the go-ahead triple with 2:17 remaining in over- time. That wasn't anything shocking, or new, given Robinson's 237 career threes — fourth on Michigan's all-time list. But this outburst couldn't have been timed much better, in Madison Square Garden. "Every one was a play call," Beilein recalled. "That's tough, when you say, here's what we're running, all eyes are on you, execute it and then knock it down while you're running away. "Those three that he hit … that takes seniors to do things like that." Michigan will hang a banner in Crisler Center next year for the tour- nament championship, with plenty of fond memories of subsequent wins over Nebraska, Michigan State and Purdue. Some will recall the boost a senior delivered to get the Wolverines there. Not that Robinson did nothing the rest of the way. To the contrary, he dropped 16 — draining four threes along the way — in Michigan's blow- out revenge victory over the Corn- huskers. He canned eight free throws en route to 13 points in helping the Wolverines send Michigan State pack- ing, and he scored six with three re- bounds, two assists, one block and a steal in the title game. To finish with a pair of Big Ten Tour- nament championships in his final two seasons put a special stamp on argu- ably the best shooter ever out of New Castle, and one of the best in Michigan basketball history. Meanwhile, the Wolverines were just getting warmed up. Of course, the NCAA Tournament didn't have to play out the way it did, either. The twists and turns, the near- misses, the heartbreak for one team engendering ecstasy for the other — that's all part of it. Michigan faced another crucible moment early in the Big Dance. This time around, Robinson couldn't do a thing about the outcome. With 2:06 remaining and Michigan trailing by a point to Houston, 60-59, Robinson fouled out of the game. The Cougars had put up a fierce defensive battle, and stood a handful of stops away from reaching the Sweet 16. How different an ending might that have been? Sure, the Big Ten Tourna- ment title was terrific, but one NCAA win over Montana and a long, miser- able flight home from Wichita? That's not what this senior envisioned. "I didn't want to go out like that," Robinson admitted. "You try not to go to that place, mentally, but I was fighting it. "Thankfully, Moe [Wagner] and some other guys picked me up, say- ing: 'We got you.' I'm thankful they did." "I saw Duncan foul out, and the look on his face … I've been there," junior forward Moritz Wagner confirmed. "When you're not on the court, you can't really help. I told him, 'We've got you.'" Freshman guard Jordan Poole had them all, firing off the single most memorable shot of the 2018 NCAA Tournament. His buzzer-beating three for the win not only kept Michigan's hopes alive, it extended the careers of the seniors. Robinson wasn't getting left out of the fun in Los Angeles. He dropped in two of Michigan's 14 three-pointers in a 99-72 branding of Texas A&M, then made the game-clinching free Talented Overachiever Duncan Robinson Finishes Under The Brightest Lights Michigan went 29-0 this season in games that Robinson — the Big Ten's Sixth Man of the Year — scored at least six points. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL

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