Kobe Byrant Has A Ruptured Achilles Will Miss Rest Of Season

Kobe Bryant clutched his leg after being injured in the second half Friday night.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Lakers have two games left in race for playoffs
• The injury could keep Bryant out of all of next season
• Bryant has said that next year could be his last in the league

(CNN) -- Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant left Friday night's game with a leg injury that could be a ruptured Achilles tendon.

Bryant will have an MRI on Saturday to determine the exact nature of the injury.

If the injury does turn out to be a ruptured Achilles, it could have long-term effects for Bryant and the Lakers. That injury could take up to a year to heal, according to Will Carroll, sports injuries lead writer for Bleacher Report. Bryant has previously said that next season could be his last in the NBA. This is the 16th season in the league for the 34-year-old.

According to a tweet from the Lakers, Bryant could tell what the injury was before seeing a doctor.

"I was just hoping it wasn't what I thought it was," Bryant said, according to the tweet.

The Lakers have two games left in the regular season, both at home. They face the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday and the Houston Rockets on Wednesday.

The team, after beating the Golden State Warriors 118-116 last night, is one game ahead of the Utah Jazz for the final spot in the NBA's Western Conference playoffs.

Will Big East Louisville And Syracuse Prevail In Final Four

Louisville already had the bigger names, the better team and unfinished business after coming up short in last year's Final Four.

All Wichita State had was the cute-and-cuddly underdog angle. Now the Shockers don't even have that.
Kevin Ware is everybody's favorite player since he broke his leg in gruesome fashion last weekend, and having him at the Final Four has given the top-seeded Cardinals added motivation to claim the title that eluded them last year.
"We really want it, especially since we're back here for a second year," Louisville forward Wayne Blackshear said Friday. "With Kevin going down, especially the way he did, it's just making us play harder."
Louisville plays Wichita State in the first national semifinal Saturday in Atlanta. The Cardinals are 101/2-point favorites.
Wichita State has one player (Carl Hall) who salvaged his career after working in a light bulb factory and two more (Ron Baker and Malcolm Armstead) who paid their way to come to school and started on the team as walk-ons. Its coach has invited fans into the locker room after big wins. Yes, this is a school with all the makings of a team the entire country could get behind.
Problem is, in this case, Louisville and Ware already are tugging on America's heart strings.
"One of our teammates went down," Chane Behanan said. "We as a team have to step it up."

Syracuse vs. Michigan: Syracuse is brimming with

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confidence, largely because of its suffocating style when the other team has the ball. Next up, in the national semifinals, a guy who knows a thing or two about breaking down opposing defenses.

Trey Burke, meet the Orange Crush.

"It's tough to go against our zone when you've never seen it before," Syracuse forward C.J. Fair said, then, referring to Burke, added: "We want to force him to do some things he's not done before."
Burke already came up huge in the regionals, leading the Wolverines back from a 14-point deficit against Kansas with less than seven minutes remaining. He made a long 3-pointer at the end of regulation to tie the score, then finished off the upset of the top-seeded Jayhawks in overtime.
"We've just got to try to find different ways to attack the zone," the sophomore guard said of Syracuse's defense. "They play a really good 2-3. It's tough. We've got to make sure we knock down uncontested 3s."

Rutgers: The Scarlet Knights coaching scandal spiraled deeper Friday.

Athletic director Tim Pernetti resigned over his failure to immediately fire coach Mike Rice, who was caught on video hitting, kicking and taunting players with anti-gay slurs at practice.

Also resigning was John B. Wolf, Rutgers' interim senior vice president and general counsel, who is believed to have recommended against firing Rice in December over the video.
Two of Rutgers' leading donors have threatened to cut their contributions following Pernetti's resignation.

Ohio State: Forward Deshaun Thomas will forgo his final season of eligibility and will enter the NBA draft. He averaged 19.8 points and 5.9 rebounds this season.

FINAL FOUR

Saturday in Atlanta. TV: CBS.
Louisville (33-5) vs. Wichita State (30-8), 3:09 p.m.
Michigan (30-7) vs. Syracuse (30-9), 5:49 p.m.

Sabres Trade Pominville "Rebuilding Again"

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Aiming for their first playoff run in 10 years, the Minnesota Wild weren't afraid to go big and get a player like Jason Pominville for the push.
The Buffalo Sabres saw another opportunity to restock for the future, amid a season that's fast failing to meet expectations.
The Sabres traded their captain and a fourth-round draft pick in 2014 to the Wild before the NHL deadline on Wednesday for prospects Johan Larsson and Matt Hackett plus a first-round draft pick in 2013 and a second-round draft pick in 2014.
That's a high price, but the Wild were willing to part with some assets for a valuable two-way player in their attempt to reach the postseason for the first time in five years. They haven't won a playoff series since 2003.

ing New York is a big win for Marian Gaborik. Staying in Vancouver is a big loss for Roberto Luongo. Craig Custance looks at the other players who won and lost at Wednesday's trade deadline. Story •

Sabres general manager Darcy Regier's high-priced roster has been one of the league's biggest letdowns this season, in danger of missing the playoffs for a second straight year and the fourth time in six seasons.
"It's going to involve rolling back a little bit organizationally," Regier said. "Acquire the assets, the players, the draft picks and do it in a way that's going to allow us to group enough young players together, or players together, in order to win a championship."
Pominville is an eight-year veteran and a six-time 20-goal scorer with significant special teams experience who could join Mikko Koivu and Zach Parise on the Wild's first line. He played next to Parise in 2008 with the U.S. national team at the world championship.
"We played really well together. I like the way he plays. I think he's going to help us a lot," Parise said in San Jose, Calif., before the Wild played the Sharks. "He works hard. I just think you look at the way he's been used. Power play, penalty kill, reliable. He puts pucks in the net, he makes plays, he gets points. I think he plays a really all-around game. That's what we're going to see."
After signing Parise and defenseman Ryan Suter to mega-contracts last summer, the Wild went all in. They've been accumulating an impressive pool of young skaters in their system, so trading Larsson won't leave their organization bare. Rookies Charlie Coyle and Jason Zucker have been top-six forwards this season, and Mikael Granlund is waiting in the AHL in Houston for a second crack at the lineup.
"It just gives you a sense that they believe in the way we've been playing and they believe in our team," Parise said in San Jose. "Now it's up to us to elevate our game even more."
Pominville is in the second-to-last year of his contract, with a $5.5 million salary each season. The 30-year-old right wing, a second-round draft pick by Buffalo in 2001, had 25 points including 10 goals in 27 games for the Sabres this season. He's sixth in the NHL with 33 takeaways and 11th in the league with an average of 20 minutes and 53 seconds of ice time per game. He was picked for the All-Star game last year.
"Players like Jason aren't readily available, and that's why we paid a significant price in terms of assets in acquiring him," Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher said in San Jose. "Obviously, Buffalo felt they needed to move in a different direction, and when I spoke to Darcy and found out he might be available we were aggressive in our pursuit."
The Wild play at Los Angeles on Thursday, and Fletcher said the team will try to have Pominville at the arena for the game against the Kings. Whether he's in the lineup after the cross-country trip has yet to be determined. But whenever he debuts, the Wild will be eager to have him. They're in third place in the Western Conference, with 3½ weeks remaining in the regular season.
The Wild also acquired goalie Jeff Deslauriers from Anaheim for future considerations and assigned him to Houston, then recalled goalie Darcy Kuemper from the AHL club to be Niklas Backstrom's backup against the Sharks.
"He's like a few other players we have on our team like Parise and Koivu and Suter and Backstrom in that he's a top-line player, but he has a workmanlike mentality," Fletcher said.
Hackett and Larsson will be sent to Buffalo's AHL affiliate in Rochester, N.Y. The 23-year-old Hackett was a third-round pick in 2009. He has 13 career NHL starts. The 20-year-old Larsson was a second-round pick in 2010. He played in one game last season for the Wild.
The underachieving Sabres are retooling for the future after making four trades in the last three weeks, including defensemen Robyn Regehr to Los Angeles and Jordan Leopold to St. Louis over the past five days. Longtime coach Lindy Ruff was fired after a 6-10-1 start, and the Sabres were in 12th place in the Eastern Conference when Wednesday began despite ending Pittsburgh's 15-game winning streak the day before.
Regier said he wouldn't use the "r-word" but acknowledged the beginning of a "process" to retool this sputtering team. High draft picks are good way to start.
Regier said he and Fletcher were discussing a different player when Fletcher told him he wanted to focus on Pominville. Regier called the decision "difficult" to trade such an integral piece of the team.
"It's no fun being where we are. It doesn't matter whether you're a fan or in my position. There's no enjoyment out of it, but there is an opportunity," Regier said. "And what we're going to do is seize on the opportunity."
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AP Sports Writers Dave Campbell in Minneapolis and Josh Dubow from San Jose, Calif., contributed to this report.

Syracuse Basketball: Odds Are Against Syracuse Winning A National Championship

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Always bet on black. One of the coolest lines in Passenger 57 (it's a movie, I swear, look it up even). Although, if Wesley Snipes was talking about hoops, he probably would have recommended betting on red, or maize and blue, and certainly not orange...or black, I guess.

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Syracuse's run to the Final Four has most Orange fans clamoring to read and hear everything and anything they can about their team. Which, when thinking back to 2003, or 1996, and certainly 1987 and 1975, there is plenty more to read about this trip thanks to vast Internet options and the power of social media. Just refresh your twitter account and you're likely to see something different, or more likely rehashed (OH MY GOD, THE ZONE!!! THE ZONE!!), on the Orange -- and that goes double for the other three teams, which seem to have a bigger spotlight on them nationally.

But the one constant with college hoops -- and sports in general for that matter -- is Las Vegas. There's always odds. And a lot like the media coverage slanting away from Syracuse, Vegas hasn't exactly been on the Orange.

To start the tournament Syracuse was a 22/1 shot to win it all.

• Louisville #1 19/4
• Indiana #1 5/1
• Florida #3 7/1
• Gonzaga #1 10/1
• Kansas #1 10/1
• Duke #2 12/1
• Miami Florida #2 14/1
• Ohio State #2 16/1
• Georgetown #2 18/1
• Michigan State #3 18/1
• New Mexico #3 20/1
• Michigan #4 22/1
• Syracuse #4 22/1
• St. Louis #4 25/1
• Wisconsin #5 25/1
• Pittsburgh #8 33/1
• VCU #5 40/1
• And so on...

Not bad for a four seed, one that had lost four of its final five regular season games. Syracuse fans probably saw a team that had beaten Pittsburgh and Georgetown, while the rest of the college basketball world saw a team struggling, one heading west before possibly playing mighty Indiana. 22/1 odds were really probably spot on. The same odds for Michigan, for that matter.

But here we are with only two games left in the NCAA season (save for the CBI, NIT, and CBZ -- only one of those isn't real), Syracuse sitting 80 minutes from a national championship. Just four teams left playing college basketball games that count. So obviously, Syracuse's odds to win it all have increased:

• Louisville - 1/2 -- The favorite, obvi.
• Michigan - 3/1 -- Hmm, well the Wolverines are 2 to 2.5 point favorites over the Orange.
• Syracuse - 4/1 -- There are only four teams left, how is it...I mean, I don't get...
• Wichita State - 12/1 - Ohhhh! I get it, no love for the Shockers.

I wrote it Sunday:

-- and that's not even factoring in the emotional story of Kevin Ware. With a nice close to the regular season, a Big East tourney title, and four blowout victories thus far, the Cards are the clear-cut favorite -- no questions asked.

As far as the next team down? The Wolverines have Trey Burke and a host of talented, albeit inexperienced, sharp shooters. A top-ten team all season, one that competed in the supposed best conference in the land. Of course, Michigan did hit the skids, similar to Syracuse, and its a team with a coach who's never beaten Jim Boeheim (0-9 all time, 0-1 at Michigan).

We're picking nits here, but you could make an argument that Syracuse should be the favorite to play the Cardinals...and just the same, you could make the case for the Wolverines.

• Louisville v. Michigan - 10/11
• Louisville v. Syracuse - 7/5
• Wichita v. State Michigan - 15/2
• Wichita State v. Syracuse - 101

Of course, what the Sharps think hasn't mattered so far. The Orange weren't favored by 47 against Montana. Just the same, Indiana was the overwhelming favorite against Syracuse. And like we all know, almost no one gave SU a real shot at getting to Atlanta. So, all these numbers are in the end...just numbers.

That's what makes the tournament so great. It's not just Vegas, it's all of us. We all think we know what's going to happen, or at least have a good idea of what to expect. But how many of you had this Final Four on your bracket? If you said yes, you're a liar. No one gave a chance to Wichita State -- a team most figured would be beaten in the first round by Pittsburgh.

Didn't happen though. It's not the Hoosiers, or the Jayhawks, or the Buckeyes, or even the Lobos (a team I totally fell for by the way...what an idiot I am) setting up for a fun-in-the-sun trip to Atlanta like Vegas thought. It looks like Louisville, the team with the best odds of winning it all from the start, was forecast correctly. But, as the other three teams still playing have proven, odds are odds don't always mean everything.

Auburn Paid Players And Changed Grades

A scathing report alleges Auburn paid football players "several thousand dollars" and changed grades, among other violations, under coach Gene Chizik.
Chizik was fired after the 2012 season and has been replaced by former Auburn assistant Gus Malzahn. The report on Roopstigo.com by Selena Roberts described a culture of NCAA violations, criminal activity and more. Included in that crime was the arrest of four former Auburn players, including Mike McNeil, who spoke to Roberts while he awaits trial on armed robbery charges.

Former Auburn coach Gene Chizik allegedly allowed grade changes and paid players, among other NCAA violations. (AP Photo)

Three former players told Roberts that the university changed grades to keep players eligible, including former star running back Mike Dyer, during the team's national championship run. Dyer left the program after the year, transferred to Arkansas State, and is now out of the game.
"We thought we would be without Mike Dyer because he said he was one of them, but Auburn found a way to make those dudes eligible," Mike Blanc, a former Tigers defensive lineman, told Roberts.
Dyer went on to be named Most Valuable Player of the BCS National Championship game.
Blanc on Wednesday denied making such statements. He told rivals.com that he had no knowledge of grades being changed, and added that his grades were not changed.
Roberts further claimed that players were allegedly offered cash for a number of things, such as returning to school instead of entering the NFL Draft. Former receiver Darvin Adams, Blanc and McNeil all said the amount was "several thousand dollars."
McNeil alleges that current Florida coach Will Muschamp, a former Auburn defensive coordinator, offered him $400. Muschamp has denied the allegations.
Former Auburn standout Neiko Thorpe said coaches gave the athletes $500 to entertain star recruit Dre Kirkpatrick. The NCAA allowance is $50 per day. Kirkpatrick ended up signing with Alabama.
After the release of Roberts' report, Thorpe told the Columbus (Ga.) Ledger-Enquirer that Roberts misquoted him throughout the story, quoted him out of context, quoted him as saying something he didn't say, and misled him about the nature of the story.
“She explained to me she was doing a story on Mike McNeil, and basically it was a story trying to be good information about him, just telling what a good person he was,” Thorpe, now playing for the Kansas City Chiefs, was quoted by the Ledger-Enquirer as saying. “She told me she was just trying to do a good story on Mike—a character story, letting people know what kind of person he was.”
Thorpe also told the Ledger-Enquirer: “It was kind of crazy when I had a chance to read it and see what she put wasn’t true.”
Roberts, who is an Auburn graduate, defended her reporting in a Q&A with al.com. She also expressed disappointment with the responses of Blanc and Thorpe.
"I thought the one thing I was disheartened by with Mike Blanc and Neiko was that they were willing to put their name to what they said," she told the website. "I did talk to other players who were not comfortable with putting their name on it and told me some information on background. So, in some sense, when they were willing to say what they said and put their name on it, I think that showed a lot of courage and I think now in the aftermath of it you can see why it does take a lot of courage to stand up for what you believe is right and say things you believe are absolutely, 100 percent true."

Sabres end Penguins 15 Game Winning Streak

By WILL GRAVES , AP Sports Writer

PITTSBURGH (AP) Good periods. Bad ones. It didn't matter much to the Pittsburgh Penguins during their perfect 15-game run through March. In the end, they always found a way.
April might be a little tougher, particularly without star Sidney Crosby.
Outplayed on both ends of the ice for long stretches by rebuilding Buffalo, Pittsburgh fell 4-1 on Tuesday night to lose for the first time in more than a month.
"We just didn't have much of an answer," defenseman Matt Niskanen said. "Things weren't going well from the start and we didn't have a whole lot of a pushback or a whole lot of urgency."
Pittsburgh was attempting to move within one of the NHL record of 17 consecutive wins set by the 1992-93 Penguins, but looked out of sync without their captain. The Sabres jumped on Pittsburgh early and never really let up to end a four-game winless streak.
Kevin Porter scored his first two goals in more than a year for the Sabres. Steve Ott and Cody Hodgson also beat Pittsburgh's Tomas Vokoun as the Sabres took a quick three-goal lead and then clamped down on the league's highest-scoring team.
Ryan Miller made 19 saves on the night he surpassed Dominik Hasek for the most games played by a Sabres goaltender. It wasn't lost on Miller that his 492nd appearance could also be his final one in a Buffalo uniform. With the Sabres toiling near the bottom of the Eastern Conference, Miller understands he could be traded sometime before Wednesday afternoon's 3 p.m. deadline.
"It's one of those things where the players are definitely just chess pieces and the general managers are shuffling and moving them around and you don't have a say so you just worry about hockey," Miller said. "I thought it was great, we worried about hockey and we did a nice job."
Pittsburgh has already made its big moves, acquiring three veterans - including six-time All-Star Jarome Iginla - last week to bolster a run at a Stanley Cup.
Playing the second game of his career for a team other than Calgary, Iginla scored his first goal with the Penguins but it wasn't nearly enough.
"It's a tough feeling tonight; you just want to keep that (streak) going," Iginla said. "But at the same time it's very impressive to see what this group accomplished."
Even if that group is hurting at the moment. Crosby is out indefinitely with a broken jaw suffered in a win over the New York Islanders on Saturday. He underwent surgery and was released from the hospital on Tuesday, but the team has put no timetable on his return.
The Penguins are also missing defensemen Paul Martin and Kris Letang. Martin is out four to six weeks with an upper body injury while Letang is nursing a lower-body problem.
Pittsburgh vowed to press on without the league's leading scorer, but hardly looked like the juggernaut that outscored opponents 52-26 while becoming the first NHL team to go undefeated in a calendar month. The Penguins tied the second-longest winning streak in league history by playing responsible hockey at both ends of the ice.
Led by Vokoun, Pittsburgh came in riding a club record three consecutive shutouts.
It didn't take Buffalo long to ensure there wouldn't be a fourth, getting to Vokoun twice in the first period to put Pittsburgh on its heels.
The Penguins had a chance to take the lead early after Mike Weber was hit with a 4-minute penalty for boarding and unsportsmanlike conduct.
Instead Porter scored the first goal allowed by the Penguins in 218:48 of game time following a bizarre sequence in which Iginla broke his stick trying a slap shot from the point, leading to a breakout by the Sabres. Iginla, scrambling back without his stick, managed to take the puck away from a Buffalo player using only his skate and direct it to Niskanen.
Rather than move the puck to the boards and out of danger, Niskanen attempted a backhand clearing pass up the middle only to send it directly to Porter, who had little trouble flipping a wrist shot by Vokoun for Porter's first goal since March 12, 2012.
Iginla provided a spark later in the power play when he streaked down the slot and took a feed from Evgeni Malkin to beat Miller for a power play goal that tied it at 1.
The score briefly brought the crowd to life, but Buffalo kept right on attacking. Ott took a drop pass from Jason Pominville and fired a slap shot by Vokoun with less than 2 minutes to go in the first to put Buffalo back in front.
The Penguins had rallied from a deficit four times during their 15-game run. They couldn't make it five. Hodgson undressed Vokoun for a pretty wraparound goal 2:21 into the second period and Porter made it 4-1 just over a minute later when his shot from the top of the left circle deflected off Pittsburgh defenseman Deryk Engelland's skate and between Vokoun's legs.
Marc-Andre Fleury replaced Vokoun and was sharp, stopping all 16 shots he faced in his first game since sustaining a minor upper body injury against Montreal last week. Miller was even better, silencing the NHL's hottest team with relative ease.
"It always stinks when it comes to an end," Fleury said. "But I thought the guys did a great job throughout the streak, coming back from games and holding leads and I thought we played some very good hockey."
NOTES: Penguins D Brooks Orpik played in his 622nd career game, breaking Ron Stackhouse's club mark for games by a defenseman ... The Penguins begin a home-and-home set with the New York Rangers on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden ... The Sabres host Ottawa on Friday.

Rutgers Coach Mike Rice "Is A Nut" And Should Be Fired

By TIM ROHAN

In a video shown Tuesday on ESPN, the Rutgers men’s basketball coach, Mike Rice, is seen yelling homophobic slurs at his players, kicking them, grabbing them and shoving them. He also throws basketballs at their legs, their heads and their bodies from point-blank range — as if he were playing dodge ball.

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The footage, taken at practices from 2010 to 2012, went viral Tuesday, putting Rice under scrutiny.

In December, after seeing the video, Rutgers Athletic Director Tim Pernetti fined Rice $50,000 and suspended him for three games. He offered little elaboration.

Messages left for Rice on Tuesday were not returned, and efforts to contact Pernetti were unsuccessful. An N.C.A.A. spokeswoman declined to comment.

In an interview Tuesday on WFAN radio, Pernetti said of fining and suspending Rice, rather than firing him: “I made that decision. I am accountable for it. I have to live with it.”

He said: “In the end, I am not going to look back and say shoulda, woulda. All I can do is figure out going forward the decisions I can make to fix the problem for Rutgers.”

In a statement on behalf of Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, his press secretary, Michael Drewniak, said: “Governor Christie saw the video today for the first time, and he is obviously deeply disturbed by the conduct displayed and strongly condemns this behavior. It’s not the type of leadership we should be showing our young people, and clearly there are questions about this behavior that need to be answered by the leaders at Rutgers University.”

The video was compiled by Eric Murdock, a former Rutgers director of player personnel. Murdock’s lawyer, Raj Gadhok, said Murdock reported Rice’s actions last summer, and later was told his contract would not be renewed. In November, Gadhok said, Murdock presented the video, which is said to be about 30 minutes in length, to Pernetti and other Rutgers officials.

By Dec. 13, Pernetti concluded his investigation and issued Rice’s punishment. After the season, in which Rutgers finished 15-16, Pernetti publicly backed Rice, and he reiterated Tuesday to reporters that Rice would not be fired, barring any further incident.

Murdock said he planned to sue Rutgers for wrongful termination. Gadhok said that before Murdock reported Rice’s actions, he had been told his contract would be renewed.

The footage, apparently, was not supposed to be shown on ESPN until Sunday, but when word leaked, Rutgers showed it first to a group of reporters Tuesday. After the viewing, Pernetti told the reporters that the gay slur was “at the core” of Rice’s suspension in December. The physical contact, though, shocked many.

Jalen Rose, an ESPN basketball analyst, sent out a Twitter message saying: “The video of Rutgers H.C. Rice abusing players is appalling! He should be fired ASAP.”

In 1997, Indiana Coach Bob Knight was caught on tape choking a player named Neil Reed in practice. In 2000, when Reed spoke out about the incident and a video surfaced, Knight was placed on a zero-tolerance policy. Six months later, he was fired.

Rice is not the first Rutgers basketball coach to draw the public’s ire for an incident during practice. In 1997, Kevin Bannon ordered two players and two student managers to run sprints naked, as part of a free-throw-shooting contest. The two players later transferred. Bannon was not fired until 2001, when the incident was revisited publicly by the players.

Zach Schonbrun contributed reporting.

Michigan vs. Syracuse Preview "How To Defeat Syracuse Zone Defense"

By

John Rozum

(Featured Columnist) on April 2, 2013

Will Trey Burke propel Michigan into the national title game?
Tom Pennington/Getty Images

Trey Burke and the Michigan Wolverines have an incredible challenge in the 2013 Final Four vs. the Syracuse Orange.
With a defense that has allowed an average of 45.75 points in the NCAA Tournament, coach Jim Boeheim's squad definitely possesses the capability to slow Michigan down. That said, Michigan has proven to get past strong defensive units in VCU, Kansas and Florida.
And a victory on Saturday would not be surprising given Michigan's tenacity since March Madness began.

Get Ahead of the Zone
Syracuse's size is an extreme advantage in this contest. We saw the length completely baffle the Indiana Hoosiers, so how can Michigan avoid this situation?
Simple, get out in front and run.
Transition is key here, because the Wolverines have the skill to push the tempo and must do so. After any rebound or turnover, Michigan must get down the floor and get Syracuse on its heels to prevent the Orange from getting into their zone looks.
The Wolverines have already faced opponents that consistently challenge shots and generate turnovers, so adjusting to Syracuse won't be too drastic. It's just a matter of beating the Orange to the bucket every time a transition opportunity arises.

Match Syracuse on the Boards

Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Establishing an interior presence against the bigs of Syracuse will be difficult for Michigan.
Again, the Orange's size becomes a major factor. They average 38.7 rebounds per game while allowing a mere 36.8 opposing shooting percentage (ranks No. 2). The Wolverines aren't going to find a lot of clean looks at the rim, so getting physical inside is required to win the battle on the boards.
Mitch McGary and Glenn Robinson III must crash the glass and do so consistently, otherwise Syracuse's incredible depth will take over. Otherwise, C.J. Fair, Rakeem Christmas and Baye Keita will force ill-advised attempts and grab boards at a solid rate.
Michigan must attack the glass early and often, otherwise Syracuse will be able to dictate tempo and swing the game in its favor.

Attack in the Half Court

Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

Regardless of how many times Michigan takes advantage of transition opportunities, there will be situations when it must score in the half court.
Syracuse's zone is undeniably dominant, as it has paved the way to this Final Four matchup. But instead of working the perimeter, Michigan must attack when the defense tightens up.
Marquette attempted 24 three-pointers versus the 'Cuse, which wasn't typically its game. And although the Wolverines certainly shoot better from downtown, they must operate from the elbow and high post to get the best opportunities against Syracuse's smothering defense.
Considering Michigan's team quickness and explosive acceleration, the ability to drive and/or pull up will also draw fouls.
Ultimately, continuing to get the most from each possession will slide Michigan into the title game.