by Jeff Goodman

Hoops Hysteria

• Final NCAA tournament bracket
• Bracket Challenge: Check your picks

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Championship — Detroit, Ford Field

• North Carolina 89, Michigan State 72



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FOXSports.com analysis

• Rosenberg: Can't doubt Ol' Roy
• Goodman: UNC's cupboard not bare
• Whatifsports.com: Decade's best teams
• Goodman: Hansbrough's finishing touch
• Kriegel: Tar Heels live up to hype
• Goodman: No excuses for Spartans
• Herwitt: Five keys to UNC's title win
• Chat about North Carolina's title win
• Complete college hoops coverage

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Video

• Lawson, Ellington talk about draft
• Postgame: Tar Heels talk title
• Goodman: How UNC became champ

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Photos

• NCAA championship | Final Four

Merritt wasn't the only former walk-on to play in the shocking 55-52 upset win at Madison Square Garden against the Bruins, either. C.J. Lee saw time in the game and the Wolverines were also without arguably their second-best player, guard Laval Lucas-Perry, who won't be eligible until Dec. 20 after transferring from Arizona.

This is what second-year Michigan coach John Beilein does.

He wins with guys that no one else wants. He did it at Canisius, Richmond and West Virginia — and now he's doing it at Michigan.

Players like Merritt, Lee and unheralded freshman Stu Douglass.

"We know that no one gave us a chance," Merritt said. "We totally understand that. When you lose for a long period of time, people start to question where the program is headed."

It's headed up. Just ask UCLA coach Ben Howland.

Sure, the Bruins lost three pros from last year's Final Four team: Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook and Luc Mbah a Moute.

But you think Beilein would gladly trade rosters with Howland? In a heartbeat.

This group is a far cry from the Fab Five that strutted around Ann Arbor back in the early 1990s.

People want to point to the 1-3-1 zone that Beilein employs as the primary reason why he's successful. Sure, it's certainly a factor, but how about the fact that he gets the most out of his players and is maybe the most underrated coach in the country.

Beilein took West Virginia to the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight in consecutive seasons in 2004 and 2005 with a team full of players whom you can't find on any NBA rosters. Mike Gansey is playing in Germany and the team's other big name, Kevin Pittsnogle, has gotten into teaching.

A year after Gansey and Pittsnogle left Morgantown, so did Beilein. He went to Michigan and all the naysayers wasted no time.

"He won't be able to recruit Detroit," many of them said. "Kids won't want to play his style."

One of those Detroit kids, Manny Harris, had already signed with the Wolverines.

Harris had always wanted to play for his home-state team and signed to suit up for then-coach Tommy Amaker. He didn't know much about Beilein, other than the fact that he was being told by many people that Beilein's style of play wouldn't be well-suited for Harris' athletic game.

"A lot of people were telling me that, but I decided to take a chance and it's worked out," Harris said.

All Harris needed to do for validation was check out the scoreboard Thursday night.

One year ago, I was in Ann Arbor and was shocked when Beilein was able to keep the Wolverines competitive with UCLA for nearly 30 minutes. However, the Bruins dominated down the stretch, rallying from an eight-point second-half deficit to win by 15.

Michigan was 4-8 after that loss. This team, which held off the Bruins with the help of a terrific backdoor pass from Anthony Wright to DeShawn Sims in the final minute, is 3-0 with victories over UCLA and a Northeastern team that won at Providence.

"I can't believe it," said one Michigan fan while walking out of Madison Square Garden.

"What the hell just happened?" uttered another.

Beilein just worked his magic. That's what went down.

"It's about picking and choosing," UCLA point guard Darren Collison said of the vaunted 1-3-1 defense. "Sometimes you have to play soft and other teams you have to attack."

Collison — who was facing a Beilein-coached team for the fourth straight season — and his teammates didn't make enough correct reads.

Collison and fellow senior Josh Shipp combined for 10 turnovers. Jrue Holiday wasn't just the team's most inexperienced perimeter player, but also it's most effective one. Not only was he an efficient 6-for-8 for 13 points and just two turnovers, he also did a nice job defensively on Harris for much of the game.

But the Bruins desperately miss Love and his ability to score in the low-post. Don't be surprised if Howland gives his young big guys, Drew Gordon (five minutes) and J'Mison Morgan (did not play), extended playing time against Southern Illinois in the consolation game on Friday night.

Finally, fans in Ann Arbor — who have endured a harsh football season in which the nation's winningest program has lost eight games and won't be in a bowl game for the first time in 34 years — can celebrate something.

"It's been a rough year and you can see it around campus that fans are down a lot," Merritt said.

Michigan ended a 12-game losing skid to ranked opponents and also pulled out its first victory against a top-five club since the 1997 team with Robert "Tractor" Traylor knocked off Duke.

Now Beilein & Co., will face Duke on Friday night in the championship game of the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic.

With Harris, Sims and a bunch of guys no one else wanted.