Game Notes | Live Video | Live Audio

CHICAGO (March 28, 2018) - Loyola enters Saturday's NCAA semifinal game versus No. 7 Michigan as the hottest team in the nation, riding a 14-game winning streak. In fact, the Ramblers have won 21 of their last 22 contests, with the lone setback being a two-point loss (69-67) at Bradley on January 31. The Ramblers are making just their second appearance in the NCAA Final Four, the last time coming in 1963, when they knocked off Duke (94-75) in the semifinal game before slipping past Cincinnati (60-58) in overtime to win the national championship. Loyola is just the fourth No. 11 seed to reach the Final Four, joining LSU (1986), George Mason (2006) and VCU (2011).
 
Series Stuff
Saturday's game will be the fourth meeting between the Ramblers and Wolverines and Michigan holds a slight 2-1 edge in the series. This is the first meeting between the teams since February 1, 1969, when Wade Fuller scored 35 points and Walter Robertson added 33 to spark Loyola to a 112-100 victory at Chicago Stadium.
 
Loyola and Michigan have met one previous time in NCAA tournament play, on March 13, 1964, when Les Hunter scored 25 points, but it wasn't enough in an 84-80 loss to the Maize and Blue.
 
Since Porter Moser took over the Loyola program for the 2011-12 season, the Ramblers have collected seven wins over Power 5 conference opponents, plus another five versus teams from the Big East or Mountain West conferences.
 
Scouting Michigan
Michigan also enters on a hot streak, having claimed its last 13 contests and 15 of its last 16 games, and the Wolverines are a sparkling 11-1 on neutral floors this year. Saturday's game will be a battle of two of the top defensive teams in the country. Loyola enters the Final Four ranked No. 4 in the nation in scoring defense (62.4 ppg), while Michigan checks in at No. 8 (63.1 ppg).
 
Junior forward Moritz Wagner leads a balanced Michigan attack with 14.3 points per game, while corralling 6.9 rebounds per contest. Charles Matthews, a Chicago native and graduate of St. Rita High School, pitches in 13.0 ppg, 5.6 rpg and 2.5 apg, and Muhammad-Ali-Abdur-Rahkman adds 12.8 ppg.