Fort Worth, Texas – The young Michigan’s women’s basketball team, on the cusp of breaking into the rare air at the top of the sport, saw its season of many firsts abruptly ended just shy of the ultimate program first the Wolverines set as their goal – a Final Four appearance.
Michigan, a No. 2 seed, reached the Elite 8 for the second time in program history, but Texas, a No. 1 seed and a women’s basketball blueblood, used a stellar start, relied on its veterans and upended the cold-shooting Wolverines 77-41. Michigan finished the season 28-7, tying a program-best for wins, while setting regular-season records for most overall wins and Big Ten wins. Texas is heading to the Final Four for the second straight season.
It was the Wolverines’ lowest scoring output this season. They we held under 50 points twice this season by Iowa.
“We’re extremely disappointed,” said head coach Kim Barnes Arico, who completed her 14th season at Michigan. “Texas is a great team, but we’re a better team than we looked tonight. We had a bunch of shots go in and out. In the third quarter, I thought we were going to be able to make a run, and they just put us away.
“We’ve spent a lot of time talking this season about our program and the jumps we made. I know our team is really disappointed, but I also want us to, at some point, celebrate the best season in program history. Last year, we were extremely disappointed when we lost in the second round at Notre Dame.
“And this year we came back and we made it to the Elite 8. These guys right now aren’t feeling really great, and they probably can’t see what they accomplished in this moment right now. But what they’ve been able to do this season and their development and their commitment and their chemistry, all of it is really, really special.”
BOX SCORE: Texas 77, Michigan 41
The Wolverines entered the game with the nation’s ninth-ranked offense, averaging 83.5 points, but their sophomore trio of leading scorers – Olivia Olson, Syla Swords and Mila Holloway – did not have their usual impact. Olson and Holloway each had 11 points and Swords eight. The three combined to shoot 9-of-41. Olson and Swords made the All-Regional Tournament team.
Michigan shot 23.2% from the field, and Texas scored 34 points on layups to Michigan’s 16. The Wolverines entered the game plus-nine in rebounding but were dominated on the boards, 49-32.
Texas All-American Madison Booker scored 19 points and Justice Carlton had 15 to lead Texas (35-3), ranked No. 3 nationally. Michigan had held its first three NCAA tournament opponents to an average of 54.3 points.
“Looking at the field-goal percentages here, it’s hard to win games with the shots we were putting up,” Swords said, as she looked over the box score. “But we were getting really good looks at the rim and looks we normally make. That’s a credit to the defense. It’s a credit to their length and physicality.
“We can’t just say we had an off day. I mean, Texas is known for their defense, and that’s why we were so excited to match up with them because we pride ourselves in our defense as well. They altered our shots, but we got to our spots and just couldn’t finish them.”
Michigan was on its heels from the start as Texas hit its first nine shots and built a 14-point lead. The Wolverines scored in single digits in the first and third quarters and had seemingly no answers for the Longhorns, who were bigger and more physical.
“They just have so many different weapons, and we didn’t come out with enough energy,” Olson said. “On the defensive end, especially with shots not falling, we didn’t use that as fuel to get stops on the defensive end, and it kind of just trickled from there.”
This was a measuring stick game for the Wolverines, and they said they know what they need to do to take that next step and reach a Final Four. They said getting this experience will only assist them reach the next rung on the postseason ladder.
“The best thing about our team is we want to get back in the gym and get better, and we want to see what we need to work on.” Olson said. “I think just growing from these games and being put in this situation is really the missing piece. Like, we needed to get here, and now we know what it’s like to be here, and we’re going to use that just to get better as a team.”
Michigan reached the Elite 8 for the first time in program history in 2022 with All-American Naz Hillmon leading the Wolverines. This group of players said they know they needed this experience for, well, experience and understanding what they need to do to advance.
“As much as we don’t like to hear it, we’re still young,” Swords said. “This is only the second time the program has been in the Elite Eight. So as much as we can lean on people that have come before us, as much as we can lean on our seniors, a lot of it falls on us as sophomores, and we have to be better at the end of the day.
“We can’t just fall back on saying that we’re young and they’re experienced and just take that loss before the game starts. I’m just really optimistic coming into next year, because everybody, seniors included, are people that are going to get in the gym as soon as coach allows us when we get back and get working again. We’re going to be watching film from this game, and we’re just going to be taking it as fuel for next year and seeing how far we can go on that next run.”
Michigan has had slow starts but managed to find ways, through its defensive pressure and rebounding, to generate offense and overtake teams. Texas did not allow that to happen.
“We’ve been a team that has fought through everything this year, and we’ve challenged ourselves against the best teams in the country to be in a position that we were tonight,” Barnes Arico said. “We’ve always been able to find that second gear. We couldn’t against Texas.
“It was their rebounding, and we’ve always been in rebounding battles. We’re usually undersized, but we find a way to mix it up, we find a way to come up with the ball. We find a way to come up with the loose balls, and we get the balls to fall on offense. Sometimes we have droughts, but usually we’re able to get going. It’s a credit to Texas for sure. You know, maybe a little bit of our inexperience in those moments.”
Barnes Arico said she could see her team wearing down because of the Longhorns’ pressure.
“Their size and their physicality and the rebounding,” Barnes Arico said. “Texas smoked us in the rebounding battle. The 50/50 balls, we pride ourselves on coming up with those. They were ripping them out of our hands. Then you take the experience of a fifth-year point guard and an All-American in Madison Booker, and it definitely wore us down.
“We were tired, and we’re usually the team that’s making other people tired.”
Now, it’s back to work for the Wolverines as the players are eager to get back in the gym. Barnes Arico wants them to grasp what they’ve accomplished this year, appreciate it and move on and take the next step.
“Olivia Olson is already, like, ‘When can I get back in the gym? Man, I was terrible,'” Barnes Arico said. “I’m like, ‘Oh, my gosh, can you take a deep breath? You are one of the best players in the country, and you have proven that all year long.’ But she’s so down about this. They are the hardest workers, the most driven people. They will take this, and they will use this for motivation certainly coming into next season.”
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This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Michigan women no match for Texas in Elite Eight basketball loss
Reporting by Angelique S. Chengelis, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
