NCAA BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT : Michigan Holds Off Illinois St., 76-70

Michigan Coach Steve Fisher grimaced as soon as Wolverine forward Sean Higgins released a three-point shot from the top of the key with 2 1/2 minutes left Friday night.

The shot missed badly and Illinois State, which trailed 70-66, scored four consecutive points to tie, 70-70, in an NCAA West Regional first-round game at Long Beach Arena.

But Higgins, who never met a shot he didn’t like, kept shooting. And his persistence paid off.

Higgins made a three-point shot from the left side with 1:13 remaining to give the Wolverines a 73-70 lead and the defending NCAA champions held on for a 76-70 victory.

“I wanted to strangle Higgins when he took that first shot,” Fisher said. “But I could have kissed him after he made the second one.”

Actually, Higgins wasn’t the Wolverines’ first option on the play, which was designed to go to guard Rumeal Robinson, who had a game-high 24 points. But Robinson drove toward the basket, drawing Higgins’ defender to him, and kicked the ball out to Higgins, who had worked his way open on the wing with 1:13 left.

Before sinking the game winner, Higgins missed three of his first four three-point shots.

“You can’t lose confidence in your shot,” Higgins said. “You’ve got to keep shooting and that’s what I did.”

It wasn’t the first time Higgins has made a game-winning shot in the NCAA tournament. He had 14 points, including the game winner, as the Wolverines defeated Illinois in a 1989 NCAA semifinal game.

It was also a familiar story for Robinson, who made two free throws with three seconds left in overtime to give the Wolverines an 80-79 overtime victory over Seton Hall in the 1989 NCAA final.

This time, Robinson made two free throws with 43 seconds remaining to seal the victory over Illinois State (18-13), which missed its last seven shots, including a dunk.

Robinson admitted he was thinking about the free throws he sank in last year’s championship game.

“It flashed through my mind for a minute when I walked up to the line,” Robinson said. “I said I was going to hit them.”

Michigan (23-7) faces Loyola Marymount or New Mexico State Sunday in a semifinal game.

And no less an expert than Indiana Coach Bob Knight picks Michigan to become the first team to repeat as NCAA champion since UCLA in 1972-73.

“I hope he’s right,” said Fisher, who’s 7-0 in the NCAA tournament. “He’s pretty smart.”