UConn must overcome Michigan's dominance to establish a basketball dynasty in national title game

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — There's a dynasty brewing in college basketball. And, in a perfectly fitting twist, UConn can cement that status by overcoming a Michigan powerhouse that is racking up historically impressive numbers, hoping to go down as one of the sport's greatest teams itself.

Those are the stakes in Monday night's title game between the Huskies and Wolverines.

Connecticut is trying to become the first program since John Wooden's UCLA behemoth of the 1960s and ‘70s to win three championships over a four-season span, while Michigan is trying to cap off a March Madness string of dominance, the likes of which were last seen by this very UConn program that won it all in 2023and ’24.

“This run they’re on is one of the best — probably the best — since John Wooden,” Michigan coach Dusty May said. “If we think riding in on a wave is going to take care of UConn, then we’re going to be very disappointed at about 11 o'clock tomorrow night or whenever the game concludes.”

The Wolverines (36-3), seeded first in the Midwest, are listed as a 6 1/2-point favorite by BetMGM Sportsbook. Even with his team's front-runner pedigree, coach Dan Hurley of UConn (34-5), a No. 2 seed out of the East, is leaning into the underdog role, not fighting it.

“There’s been plenty of times in the history of this tournament where the best team hasn’t won it,” Hurley said. “You've just got to be better one night. The good thing for us, it's not a seven-game series.”

In yet another twist with plot-shifting potential, the status of both Wolverines forward Yaxel Lendeborg and UConn guard Solo Ball could play heavily into this game.

Ball was walking around in a boot Sunday after spraining his left foot in the first half of UConn's 71-62 win over Illinois. Lendeborg tweaked his knee and ankle when he landed awkwardly on the foot of Arizona's Motiejus Krivas in the first half of Michigan's 91-73 semifinal beatdown of the Wildcats.

Both have vowed they won't miss Monday's game.

"He played the second half like a 38-year-old at the YMCA -- and a really good 38-year-old at the YMCA," May said of his 15-point-per-game All-American. “Whatever version of Yaxel we get, it’s going to be somebody that helps us play better basketball.”

The Wolverines are the first team to score 90-plus points in five straight tournament games. They are trying to become the fifth team to win six tournament games by double digits. The other four: 2009 North Carolina, 2018 Villanova and both of the recent UConn teams.

“When you get to the Final Four and you know you have the best team, that was a different level of pressure than in ’23 where we weren’t really sure,” Hurley said of his '24 squad. “But there’s also some pressure even if you’re — whatever — the underdog, because we’re one game away from having a national championship with this team.”

The Wolverines roster is a reflection of what college hoops looks like in the transfer-portal era. Four of their starters came to Michigan this season, as May fashioned a quick rebuild in his second year in Ann Arbor. This is May's second trip to the Final Four in four seasons. His first came with Florida Atlantic.

“What makes Dusty May special as a coach is obviously his eye for talent, his ability to construct a roster, the fact that he insulates himself with an excellent coaching staff, and his ability to build team and culture,” Hurley said. “He’s got a special eye for how to put together a great team.”

UConn is built differently — with what Hurley would call judicious use of the transfer portal (Tarris Reed Jr., for instance, came from Michigan) combined with players who have become entrenched on a campus with 18 national basketball titles — six for the men and 12 for the women. The best example of that: Alex Karaban, who, with a title, could become the first player since the UCLA dynasty to win three national titles over his college career.

"You dream of being on this stage one time, and to be heading into it for a third time, it’s a blessing," Karaban said.

UConn isn't the only program with a deep history. Michigan redefined college basketball in the 1990s with the Fab Five. Juwan Howard, Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Ray Jackson and Jimmy King came to the school together as freshmen in 1991. They made the title game twice and lost.

But they're most remembered for bringing a baggy-shorts, mass-marketing brashness to the game, one underpinned by the question: Why are all these coaches and shoe companies raking in dough while we play for free?

“We got to college and started understanding the hypocrisy in the game, with the schools making millions and us sitting around poor as hell,” Jackson said in a 2023 interview with The Associated Press.

In today's NIL landscape, players are making money and nobody overlooks the Fab Five's role in pushing things forward. What that group was missing, of course, was the national title. Michigan's only championship came in 1989, a few years before the Fab Five arrived.

“Other than Michael Jordan, since I’ve been alive, I don’t think there’s ever been a group change the culture for the better in our sport than the Fab Five,” May said earlier in the week. They're “just number one. We’re proud to represent those guys and carry the flag for the former players at the University of Michigan.”

One key casualty of all this UConn success: Hurley's sideline wear. He has worn the same blue suit at March Madness dating as far back as 2012 when he was coaching Rhode Island.

He also wears the same socks and underwear and eats eight M&Ms before games — but none of them green.

Anything to keep the good mojo going.

“The pants are fine,” Hurley said. “It’s the jacket that is really — the lining is a problem. There’s like three holes. When I stick my arm in the right, there’s like three different places (you can stick your arm), and if you can see it, it’s like the lining is coming through.

“I'm going to have to get a tailor in the offseason.”

This story has been corrected to show that Michigan is the favorite to win.

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

UConn head coach Dan Hurley reacts after a call during the second half of an NCAA college basketball tournament semifinal game against Illinois at the Final Four, Saturday, April 4, 2026, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

UConn guard Solo Ball speaks during a news conference ahead of a national championship NCAA college basketball tournament game against Michigan at the Final Four, Sunday, April 5, 2026, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg reacts after an injury on the court during the first half of an NCAA college basketball tournament semifinal game against Arizona at the Final Four, Saturday, April 4, 2026, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

UConn head coach Dan Hurley speaks during a news conference ahead of a national championship NCAA college basketball tournament game against Michigan at the Final Four, Sunday, April 5, 2026, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Michigan head coach Dusty May speaks during a news conference ahead of a national championship NCAA college basketball tournament game against UConn at the Final Four, Sunday, April 5, 2026, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday made expletive-filled threats against Iran and its infrastructure if it doesn't open the Strait of Hormuz by his Tuesday deadline, after American forces rescued a wounded aviator whose Iran-downed plane fell behind enemy lines.

A defiant Iran struck infrastructure targets in neighboring Gulf Arab countries and threatened to restrict another heavily used regional waterway, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait off the Arabian Peninsula.

Trump on social media vowed to hit Iran’s power plants and bridges and said the country would be “living in Hell” if the Strait of Hormuz, crucial for global trade, isn’t opened. He ended with “Praise be to Allah.”

Trump has issued such deadlines before but extended them when mediators have claimed progress toward ending the war, which has killed thousands, shaken global markets and spiked fuel prices in just over five weeks.

“It seems Trump has become a phenomenon that neither Iranians nor Americans are able to fully analyze,” Iranian Culture Minister Sayed Reza Salihi-Amiri told visiting Associated Press journalists in an interview in Tehran, adding that the U.S. president “constantly shifts between contradictory positions.”

Both sides have threatened and hit civilian targets like oil fields and desalination plants critical for drinking water. Iran’s U.N. mission called Trump’s threat “clear evidence of intent to commit war crime.”

Iran’s joint military command warned of stepped-up attacks on regional oil and civilian infrastructure if the U.S. and Israel attack such targets there, according to state television.

The laws of armed conflict allow attacks on civilian infrastructure only if the military advantage outweighs the civilian harm, legal scholars say. It’s considered a high bar to clear, and causing excessive suffering to civilians can constitute a war crime.

An intense search followed Friday's crash of the F-15E Strike Eagle, while Iran promised a reward for the “enemy pilot.” It was the first known American aircraft to crash in Iranian territory since the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28.

Trump said that the service member was “seriously wounded and really brave” and rescued from “deep inside the mountains" in an operation involving dozens of armed aircraft. He said a second crew member was rescued in “broad daylight” within hours of the crash.

A senior U.S. administration official said that before locating the second aviator, the CIA spread word inside Iran that U.S. forces had found him and were moving him out, creating confusion for Iranians. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet made public.

Iran also shot down another U.S. military plane Friday, demonstrating the perils of the bombing campaign and the ability of Iran's degraded military to hit back. Neither the status of the A-10 attack aircraft's crew nor where it crashed is known.

On Sunday, Iran’s state television aired a video showing what it claimed were parts of U.S. aircraft — a transport plane and two helicopters — shot down by Iranian forces during the rescue operation.

However, a regional intelligence official briefed on the mission told the AP that the U.S. military blew up two transport planes because of a technical malfunction and brought in additional aircraft to complete the rescue. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the covert mission.

Iran’s joint military command later said the U.S. bombarded its own aircraft to “prevent embarrassment for President Trump."

Two Black Hawk helicopters were hit but navigated to safe airspace, according to a person familiar with the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive information.

Trump's deadline centers on alarm over Iran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz, critical for global shipments of oil and gas from the Persian Gulf as well as humanitarian supplies. Some ships have paid Iran for passage.

An Iranian presidential spokesperson, Seyyed Mohammad Mehdi Tabatabaei, said on social media that the strait can reopen only if some transit revenues compensate Iran for war damages.

A top Iranian adviser, Ali Akbar Velayati, warned on social media that Tehran also could disrupt trade on the Bab el-Mandeb, a key chokepoint to and from the Red Sea.

Diplomatic efforts continued. Oman's Foreign Ministry said that deputy foreign ministers and experts from Iran and Oman met to discuss proposals to ensure “smooth transit” through the strait.

Egypt said that Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty had spoken with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, and with Turkish and Pakistani counterparts. Russia said that Araghchi also spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Bahrain urged the U.N. Security Council to act on its draft proposal with language authorizing defensive action to ensure safe passage through the strait.

In the United Arab Emirates, authorities said that four people — one Nepali and three Pakistani — were hurt in fires caused by debris from the interception of an Iranian projectile at Khor Fakkan port, and interception debris caused fires at a petrochemical plant in Ruwais, halting operations.

In Kuwait, Iranian drone attacks caused significant damage to power plants and a petrochemical plant. They also put a water desalination station out of service, according to the Ministry of Electricity.

In Bahrain, a drone attack caused a fire at a national oil company storage facility and a state-run petrochemical plant, the kingdom’s official news agency said.

In Israel, rescue authorities searched for three people in the northern city of Haifa after an apartment building was hit. It wasn't immediately clear what struck it.

Meanwhile, more than 1,900 people have been killed in Iran since the war began.

In Lebanon, whose health ministry said an Israeli strike without warning killed four people in Beirut, more than 1,400 people have been killed and more than 1 million people have been displaced. Eleven Israeli soldiers have died there while targeting Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants.

In Gulf Arab states and the occupied West Bank, more than two dozen people have died, while 19 have been reported dead in Israel and 13 U.S. service members have been killed.

Lee and Toropin reported from Washington, Metz from Jerusalem and Magdy from Cairo. Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Lisa Mascaro and Seung Min Kim in Washington; Munir Ahmed in Islamabad; and Farnoush Amiri in New York contributed to this report.

Israeli security forces and rescue teams work amid the rubble of a residential building struck by an Iranian missile in Haifa, Israel, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israeli security forces and rescue teams work amid the rubble of a residential building struck by an Iranian missile in Haifa, Israel, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Iran's Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts, Seyed Reza Salehi Amiri, talks during an interview with the Associated Press in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Yemeni soldiers patrol the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait, Yemen, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdulnasser Alseddik)

A cafe attendant sits at the counter as two men sit at a cafe in downtown Tehran, Iran, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A woman walks past a poster of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in downtown Tehran, Iran, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Vehicles and motorcycles move past an anti-U.S. billboard depicting the American aircrafts into the Iranian armed forces fishing net with signs that read in Farsi: "The Strait of Hormuz will remain closed, The entire Persian Gulf is our hunting ground," at the Eqelab-e-Eslami, or Islamic Revolution square in downtown Tehran, Iran, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

In this image provided by Sepahnews, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's official website, wreckage is shown at what Iran's state TV claimed was the site of a downed American transport plane and two helicopters involved in a rescue operation, in Isfahan province, Iran, April, 2026. (Sepahnews via AP)

In this image provided by Sepahnews, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's official website, wreckage is shown at what Iran's state TV claimed was the site of a downed American transport plane and two helicopters involved in a rescue operation, in Isfahan province, Iran, April, 2026. (Sepahnews via AP)

In this image provided by Sepahnews, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's official website, black smoke rises into the air at what Iran's state TV claimed was the site where an American transport plane and two helicopters involved in a rescue operation were shot down, in Isfahan province, Iran, April, 2026. (Sepahnews via AP)

In this image provided by Sepahnews, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's official website, wreckage is shown at what Iran's state TV claimed was the site of a downed American transport plane and two helicopters involved in a rescue operation, in Isfahan province, Iran, April, 2026. (Sepahnews via AP)

Members of Lebanon's General Security stand at the Masnaa border crossing in the Bekaa valley, eastern Lebanon, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

A man, who fled Israeli bombings in southern Lebanon with his family, sleeps in his car used as shelter, along a seaside promenade in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Followers of Iraq's Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr chant slogans as they wave national Iraqi flag during a protest against U.S. and Israeli attacks on multiple cities across Iran, in Tahrir Square, Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

A bedroom is damaged in a building struck in an Israeli airstrike in the southern port city of Tyre, Lebanon, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

Pedetrians walk by a destroyed building within the Grand Hosseiniyeh, with the mosque visible in the background, which officials at the site say was hit by U.S.-Israeli airstrikes Tuesday, in Zanjan, Iran, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Police officers and their horses take cover in an underground parking garage as sirens warn of an incoming missile fired from Yemen in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Maya Levin)

A man looks at a destroyed building within the Grand Hosseiniyeh complex that officials say was hit by U.S.-Israeli airstrikes Tuesday in Zanjan, Iran, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)