You see the forwards everywhere around Lucas Oil Stadium.

The road ends here.

In so many ways, the Final Four feels like a destination.

And for the three teams who get here and do not win the championship, it is.

A Final Four appearance is banner worthy.

It is celebration worthy.

But when you get to this point with all that Michigan has, with a cutting-edge

head coach who leads and teaches at an elite level, with a coaching staff that is young,

hungry, collaborative, with the Dominican LeBron, Yaxel Lendeborg, who has been the best player

in the country during an NCAA tournament that now he has to endure some adversity in

with that injury from Saturday night, with fellow front court stars Adai Mara and

Mora and Moresh Johnson Jr., who are as impressive and talent as they are in stature.

With Roddy Gail Jr., us learning about his April Roddy evolution after a great March

Roddy performance, with Elliot Cadeau flipping

from North Carolina scapegoat to Michigan Point Guard Wizard. With Trey McKinney, the pride of Flint,

the best freshmen in the country that very few have talked about outside the state of Michigan,

with Will Cheddar and Namari Burnett, who emerged from the rubble of 8 and 24

and accepted much less individually for oh so much more collectively. And with a Michigan fan base

that has done its part in helping Michigan get now one win away from a national championship.

With all of that, the end of the road feels like it has to be

not arriving in Indianapolis, but cutting down the nets on Monday night. One step down,

one to go. And the unique part of it is that that step came against a team that had the same

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