Michigan gives update on Yaxel Lendeborg's injury ahead of championship game

Connor Earegood, The Detroit News on Apr 5, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

INDIANAPOLIS – Michigan star Yaxel Lendeborg is determined to play in Monday’s national championship game against UConn, and he got a positive sign Sunday.

According to UM coach Dusty May, Lendeborg had an MRI scan Sunday morning for his sprained MCL that limited him in a Final Four win over Arizona.

“All imaging has come back clean, and he is getting treatment and doing rehab all day today,” May said. “I'm sure he'll give it a go tomorrow, but that'll be entirely up to him and the medical staff. He'll tell me if he can go, and if he can — we were laughing as he played the second half like a 38-year-old at the YMCA, and a really good 38-year-old at the YMCA. So whatever version of Yaxel we get, it's going to be somebody that helps us play better basketball.”

"We didn’t expect significant damage at all, and we got reassurance on that," said Michigan athletic trainer Chris Williams, who has been working on Lendeborg's knee since Saturday night.

When asked on Sunday if he planned to play Monday, Lendeborg said, "Absolutely."

Lendeborg played just 14 minutes of the game against Arizona and had 11 points on 3-for-4 shooting.

With 8:51 to play in the first half, Lendeborg rolled his left ankle driving to the basket when he stepped on the foot of Arizona center Motiejus Krivas. He also sprained the MCL of his left knee on the play, covering it in a brace when he returned to the court in the second half and an ice wrap after the game.

Williams added a bone bruise to the diagnosis, though the MRI results are a positive development for the UM star. Ligaments are intact, Williams told ESPN's Pete Thamel, and he classified the MCL sprain as low grade.

"We’ve been working on it, and when we go out there, we hope he’s not even thinking about it," Williams said. "It’s still sore and he still has some pain, but he’s a tough guy and he knows how to deal with pain, he’s done it before."

Michigan and UConn will play for the national championship Monday at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Huskies are 6-0 all time in title games. The Wolverines are 1-6.

____