An oral history of the '89 championship run
1989 was my senior year. My memories of that run are the elite 8 game against UVA, which was one of the most dominant shooting performances by a Michigan team in a big game I can recall (though Florida 2013 is in the conversation) with Vitale just repeating "unbelievable" 4-5x in a row as Rice hit shot after shot, the win over Illinois who had dominated us twice that season (and hearing the roar after Higgins' shot from across the street from when I was watching) and, of course, the celebration on South U after the final game.
This article features Glen Rice, Terry Mills, Sean Higgins, James Voskuil, Bruce Madej and others. It brings back those memories and some things I'd forgotten.
https://www.michigandaily.com/section/mens-basketball/1989-oral-history
February 23rd, 2019 at 9:03 AM ^
People forget how big that Illinois win was. If memory serves, the previous two that season weren't very competitive. Not many people gave Michigan a chance. I was on a spring break trip to Florida, and watched the ending on a bar tv.
February 23rd, 2019 at 9:09 AM ^
My neighbor that went to Illinois has brought this game up to me many times. He has an abiding hate for Sean Higgins. This was their big chance to win it all and it got snatched away by a team they had beaten twice with an interim coach. Love it!
February 23rd, 2019 at 11:40 AM ^
Yeah, Illinois blew us out twice in the regular season. The second one was on Senior Day and came right when it seemed like we were on a roll. Glen Rice had challenged his teammates to "shock the world" and we won five or six games in a row, only to get pounded at home right before the tournament.
Illinois fans may never get over that Final Four loss. (Of course I've never gotten over '93 either...)
February 23rd, 2019 at 9:09 AM ^
February 23rd, 2019 at 10:37 AM ^
I road tripped to the Virginia game. Man, was that a fun game to be at!
February 23rd, 2019 at 9:41 AM ^
I was only 3 at the time of the tourney so I don't remember it, but what an up-and-down season that was. We scored 100 pts six times and were blowing teams out before losing to Alaska-Anchorage and a third of our Big Ten games. But all is well that ends well...
February 23rd, 2019 at 9:51 AM ^
Hopefully, this works. Here's the link again.
https://www.michigandaily.com/section/mens-basketball/1989-oral-history
February 23rd, 2019 at 9:52 AM ^
Recall,Illinois simply dragged M during regular season play.
But Illinois realize just how hard it was beat a team 3 straight...Higgins & Rice balled out.
February 23rd, 2019 at 10:06 AM ^
Great memories.
Least we forget, Fisher Coached marvelously, but this was Frieder's team.
And don't underestimate that Bo drove this team to WIN, His only NC.
February 23rd, 2019 at 10:52 AM ^
I remember in Rounds 1 and 2 in Atlanta that year, when someone made the mistake of not having the Michigan Band booked to make the trip with the team, Bo "rented" a college marching band (believe it was George State), got them some seats, bought them cheesy Kmart Michigan gear, and made those southern kids learn "The Victors". No Michigan team was taking the floor in the tourney without "The Victors" ringing in their ear.
God I loved Bo. Miss him and his passion for Michigan...
February 23rd, 2019 at 10:56 AM ^
It was Frieder’s team during the regular season. That was 100% Fisher’s team in the tournament.
February 23rd, 2019 at 11:31 AM ^
It was Frieder's team until he decided to go shopping for a new job the week of the tournament.
Fish would later screw up dealing with Ed Martin but he deserves his due for '89.
February 23rd, 2019 at 11:41 AM ^
"Bo drove this team to WIN, His only NC."
I find that a little ridiculous and expressed as much in a comment in another thread (the one attached to Brian's recent post).
Was Bo a good leader during the tourney? Yes, I think he was. Could they have won it without him? Impossible to say, but they were (by several accounts) playing more relaxed _and_ focused after being uptight under Frieder.
There was a lot of talent on that team and no one should be surprised that they won a championship.
In the handful of times that Bo had a chance to be in the national conversation for football, he and his team didn't get it done. I don't think 1989 can be called "his only NC."
February 23rd, 2019 at 12:57 PM ^
I second this sentiment - this was a talent-rich team and it isn't inconceivable that they would have been able to do what they did without Bo in the background as AD. I certainly don't credit Bo much if at all in this instance.
February 23rd, 2019 at 1:56 PM ^
I give Bo credit for firing Frieder, a consistently awful tournament coach. Bo correctly predicted that a guy with zero experience would probably do better in the tournament.
February 23rd, 2019 at 7:12 PM ^
Then you are saying Frieders results would have changed drastically from his previous results with teams like Illinois and UNC not to mention Virginia and his record beyond the first round.
It may be a huge addition by subtraction thing but those kids didnt play like that for Frieder. And the fact that he wasnt the coach was 100% on Bo. Bo put that all in motion. Dont discount that.
February 25th, 2019 at 2:17 PM ^
Fisher won more tourney games in the ‘89 title run than Frieder won in his entire tenure at UM. Seeing solid UM teams exit the tourney in rounds one or two was the depressing norm at that time.
I am not an x’s & o’s guy, but that team sure seemed to play a lot looser and with a lot more confidence under Fisher than they did under Frieder
February 23rd, 2019 at 11:09 AM ^
That game against UNC was the first time I can recall one of my favorite teams actually winning a game they weren't expected to win.
J.R. Reid, King Rice, Rick Fox, Pete Chilcutt, Scott Williams... So many punchable faces!
February 23rd, 2019 at 11:16 AM ^
With 1:03 left in the 2nd Half and Michigan up by only two, watch how quick Glen Rice gets the pass, rises, releases and makes that 3-pointer. That was a cold blooded dagger! I was in an Ann Arbor bar (Kelly's, I believe) when he hit that, and the place went wild. I couldn't believe how quick that catch and shoot was at the time - though I had consumed a fair share of alcohol watching it live. But 30 years later and partially sober this morning - that shot still is incredibly quick.
You may never see a better Tourney performance than Glen Rice that year. The 184 points is still a Tourney record. I mean - damn!
February 25th, 2019 at 2:20 PM ^
Can you even imagine that record ever being broken? Seems inconceivable
February 23rd, 2019 at 12:16 PM ^
Interesting comments around the 20:00 mark. Billy Packer comments on the original one and done Andrew Gaze. Says it's not good for the game to bring in guys for one year, but here referring to older players from overseas.
February 23rd, 2019 at 12:35 PM ^
I kinda miss Billy Packer.
February 23rd, 2019 at 10:49 AM ^
I was 12 and was the first year to really be into the tournament. I cut out the bracket from the newspaper and made my picks. I did have Michigan winning, but don’t remember who I had them beating.
February 23rd, 2019 at 11:12 AM ^
I'm getting a little tired of these "oral history" type stories on the internet. Seems like it's lazy journalism, since it abdicates most of the storytelling to the interviews themselves. A good writer can tell a story better than a bunch of disparate quotes copy and pasted together.
February 23rd, 2019 at 11:38 AM ^
Lazy? I would think it's not that simple to get in touch with these guys years later and get them to go on the record.
February 23rd, 2019 at 11:33 AM ^
After reading this article, and their comments about wanting to face and beat North Carolina and Illinios - I don't want to wait until tomorrow afternoon.
Bring on those evil green and white bastards right now, and let's kick the living shit out of Sparty!!!
February 23rd, 2019 at 12:21 PM ^
As a junior, that was a great sports year, though two tough football passes to start the year.
Still wish I had my shirt that had RB in the front and said as if it were not enough National Championship on back.
Loved the Rice North Carolina game.
And who can forget Hash Bash Illinois Game. Campus rocked that day and night.
February 23rd, 2019 at 12:40 PM ^
It wasn't mentioned in the article, but was this the year we lost to IU in Bloomington on a shot that was after the buzzer?
I think that was game where Rice gave his "Mission to shock the world" speech in the locker room after?
February 23rd, 2019 at 12:42 PM ^
I was supposed to be with my Aunt and Uncle in Seattle at the Kingdome. A month before the game I got a C in class and my dad wouldnt let me go. We have never talked about that since.
Sometimes you just know when a season is going to be special. Listened to our road game at Iowa on AM radio late into the night on a school night. Something I never did before or after that season.
Anyway we watched the championship on our 19” tv. It was color at least.
Glen Rice is every bit the Charles Woodson of Michigan basketball and that tourney run was the pinnacle of my Michigan fandom.
February 23rd, 2019 at 1:01 PM ^
Look at it this way - say you went to the game, and accidently bumped into Rumeal prior to the game. That half a second nudge may have caused him to miss that front end of the 1 and 1, and we lose the game. The Butterfly Effect and all...
So in retrospect, you getting a C and the wisdom of your Dad was the difference in helping us to the National Championship. Congrats! Tonight - I will tip one to you and Pops!
February 23rd, 2019 at 7:16 PM ^
Heck man you may be right. Never thought of it that way. Thanks pops for keeping me home from tbe biggest game in michigan hoops history. Haha.
BTW we are 0-4 since. I need to go to break the curse I think.
February 23rd, 2019 at 12:45 PM ^
Wow, I didn't know Frieder met the team in Atlanta. That had to have been weird.
Also, it's often forgotten but that first-round game against Xavier was tough.
February 23rd, 2019 at 1:45 PM ^
What a great run. Saw UIUC crush us on our home court earlier that season; they were amazing. We were lucky to beat them on a put back by Higgins. And a little lucky to win the title game on a weird call. What a run.
February 23rd, 2019 at 4:50 PM ^
The big W that got things rolling in the tournament was over N.C. I remember watching that game at Banfields in A2 with Glenn Rice hitting 8 3 pt FG’s and shooting 13-19 for 34 total points. After that W, I knew we had a shot to win it all.....?