UConn will face Michigan on Monday night to battle for the NCAA championship title.
WASHINGTON — Now that the 2026 NCAA Final Four games are complete, UConn and Michigan will compete for the championship Monday.
The Connecticut Huskies defeated the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Michigan Wolverines defeated the Arizona Wildcats Saturday to move onto the National Championship.
Throughout March Madness, a good mix of top-seeded teams as well as lower-seeded teams have pulled off upsets to advance further in the tournament. The 2026 tournament continued with a trend of mid-major teams (teams not in a power conference) not advancing past the round of 16.
UConn Huskies vs. Illinois Illini highlights
Coach Dan Hurley’s Huskies muscled their way back to the national title game, beating Illinois 71-62 in the Final Four on Saturday night as they seek their third championship in four seasons.
Tarris Reed Jr. had 17 points and 11 rebounds, while the fabulous freshman Braylon Mullins scored 15 for the Huskies (34-5), who rode strong inside play and tough defense to their 19th straight victory in the Sweet 16 or later rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
READ MORE HIGHLIGHTS HERE: Freshmen Braylon Mullins and Keaton Wagler shine as others struggle in UConn’s win over Illinois
If UConn wins Monday’s game, it will be the teams seventh title, all since 1999, and third under Hurley, who would become the only active coach with more than two.
Mullins, whose buzzer-beating 3-pointer sent the Huskies past Duke and into the Final Four, hit a catch-and-shoot 3 with 52 seconds left — his only basket of the second half — to give UConn a 66-59 lead.
The Huskies haven’t lost a tournament game played past the opening weekend since 2009, when they fell in the national semifinals to Michigan State. With one more victory, they would break a tie with North Carolina and move into third place alone in national titles, trailing only UCLA (11) and Kentucky (eight).
Michigan Wolverines vs. Arizona Wildcats highlights
Michigan overpowered Arizona early and humbled the ’Cats all night long, turning the Final Four meeting billed as the Game of the Year into a 91-73 Wolverines highlight reel Saturday night.
Junior center Aday Mara scored a career-high 26 points and had nine rebounds, a dinged-up Yaxel Lendeborg had 11 points in 14 minutes and the Blue blew through their fifth straight March Madness opponent by double digits while becoming the first team to break 90 points five times in a single tournament.
Koa Peat had a quiet 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Big 12 champion Wildcats (36-3). They shot 6 for 17 from 3, 36% overall and had two assists and nine turnovers over a first half that ended with them trailing 48-32. Sparkplug Jaden Bradley got his fourth foul 94 seconds into the second half and finished with 13 points, most in extended garbage time.
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