The University of Michigan, in which the Spaniard Aday Mara stands out, has climbed to the top of the Associated Press NCAA rankings for the first time in 13 years.
The Wolverines, who have a 24-1 record, received 60 of 61 votes to surpass Arizona and become the NCAA’s overwhelming favorite to win the ‘Final Four’
We have positioned ourselves to play the kind of games we want to play in mid-February, but we have to keep getting better
Arizona, which had not lost a game, was overtaken in one week by Kansas and Texas Tech.
“It means we haven’t drunk our own Kool-Aid. We have positioned ourselves to play the kind of games we want in mid-February, but we have to keep getting better,” said Michigan coach Dusty May.
Michigan ranked second in the NCAA rankings in six of the nine weeks it was led by Arizona, but last week it already achieved the number one ranking in the analytical rankings of KenPom, Evan Miyakawa and Bart Torvik.
The last time Michigan was ranked No. 1 was in January 2013 with Glenn Robinson III, Trey Burke, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Nik Stauskas on the team.
Aday Mara celebrates being No. 1 in the NCAA with an express double-double
Aday Mara’s double-double (10+11+3+2) in just 18 minutes, he played little because of personal fouls, in Michigan’s 80-91 win over Purdue.
Yaxel Lendeborg, Morez Johnson Jr. and Aday Mara, Michigan’s three great leaders to be No. 1
Yaxel Lendeborg (14.4 points and 7.7 rebounds), Morez Johnson Jr. (13.6 points and 7.2 rebounds) and Aday Mara are the three great leaders of Michigan.
The 20-year-old, 2.21m Spanish center, who is already aiming for the first round of the NBA Draft, imposes his talent and presence by averaging 11.3 points, 7 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.8 blocks in 22.8 minutes for the Wolverines.
