WATCH: Jordan Poole, Michigan stun Houston at the buzzer

By
Alex Muller
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With a spot in the Sweet 16 on the line, Michigan found themselves in a huge dogfight with Houston. The Wolverines and Cougars played a tightly-contested affair for 40 minutes, which ultimately led to the team with the last possession earning a chance to win.

Down 63-61 with less than four seconds remaining, Michigan is inbounding from underneath their own hoop and… well, this happened.

Freshman Jordan Poole receives a pass from Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman and just throws up a Hail Mary (mind you, while trying to coax a foul call by kicking his legs out) and absolutely rips the heart out of Cougars fans with a game-winner to send Michigan to their second straight Sweet 16 appearance.

Poole finished with just eight points in 11 minutes of action against Houston. He was also responsible for one of eight made triples for Michigan, on 30 total attempts from downtown. It certainly was not their best outside shooting performance, but the last made three-pointer is the most important.

Just how close was this game? The largest lead for either team throughout the contest was six points, held by Michigan on two separate occasions in the first half. One could say with confidence that the game was won (or lost, in Houston’s case) at the free throw line. The Cougars’ Devin Davis had missed two free throws following a Charles Matthews foul to keep it a 63-61 lead.

Michigan’s Moe Wagner, who had another relatively quiet night, ripped down the rebound on the second missed freebie attempt from Davis and immediately called timeout, allowing for head coach John Beilein to draw up an inbound play. Wagner, who again dealt with foul trouble for a second straight game in the tournament, finished with 12 points, which amazingly tied for a team-high with the aforementioned Abdur-Rahkman.

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Houston junior Rob Gray, who turned in a 39-point performance in the Cougars’ first-round win over San Diego State, finished with a game-high 23 points, 17 of which came in the second half.

As for Michigan, the 3-seed now advances to their second Sweet 16 in as many seasons and the fourth in 11 seasons under John Beilein. They will await the winner of the game between (7) Texas A&M and (2) North Carolina, which takes place on Sunday.