Michigan DENIES UConn, Claims Title + UNC Hires Mike Malone

Pete Thamel, Dan Wetzel, and ESPN college basketball insider break down Michigan holding off UConn to win the NCAA national title. They talk about what went wrong for the Huskies and how Michigan won in the paint. Then the guys dive into UNC hiring Mike Malone just hours before the transfer portal opens and his challenge of building a roster. Plus, they discuss NCAA tournament expansion and whether it actually makes the sport better. 0:00 - Welcome 0:30 - Michigan holds off UConn, wins NCAA title 5:04 - UConn’s costly mistakes: Free throws, Turnovers 9:19 - Michigan wins behind bigs in the paint 12:47 - Michigan’s Dusty May could’ve coached at Indiana? 16:18 - Michigan’s roster moves pay off 21:59 - UNC to hire ex-NBA coach Mike Malone 23:58 - UNC hires Mike Malone just before transfer portal opens 28:20 - Why is the transfer portal open now and not in May? 30:44 - UNC’s Mike Malone is set to build a roster on the fly 37:59 - NCAA tournament is expanding from 68 to 76 teams 44:55 - Can there be too many portal transfers? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Michigan DENIES UConn, Claims Title + UNC Hires Mike Malone is an episode from The ESPN College Football Podcast by ESPN.

This episode is 49:26 long.

This episode was published on Apr 7, 2026.

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