Towering center Aday Mara had 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists for a Wolverines team that set the Big Ten regular-season record with 19 conference wins. Johnson shot 8 of 8 from the field as Michigan (32-3) moved within one victory of tying a program record set in 2017-18.
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Top-ranked teams improved to 160-2 against No. 16 seeds, and Duke topped Siena earlier in the day.
Michigan advances to play the winner of the final Midwest Region game between eighth-seeded Georgia (22-10) and ninth-seeded Saint Louis (28-5).
Cam Gillus and Bryce Harris each scored 21 points, and Cedrick Taylor had 19 points and six rebounds for Howard (24-11). The Bison were playing two days after their 86-83 win over UMBC in the First Four in Dayton, Ohio, on Tuesday — the program’s first March Madness win in six appearances.
Michigan’s depth and relentless, come-from-anywhere style of attack eventually overwhelmed Howard, although it took a while for the Wolverines to get going. Howard’s 46 first-half points were the third-most by a 16 seed against a 1 seed in tournament history, and the most since Florida A&M scored 52 in a 96-76 loss to Kentucky in 2004.
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After the Bison cut the lead to 50-48 on Ose Okojie’s shot into the paint 14 seconds into the second half, Michigan began to pull away and eventually built a 77-59 lead on Roddy Gayle Jr.’s 3-pointer at 7:30 of the period.
Howard’s three-point shot went cold. After making 11 of their first 17 attempts, the Bison finished 14 of 29.
Fans take a look at a closer game
Once the Wolverines opened up a 20-plus-point lead, the crowd in Buffalo was more interested in watching the double-box broadcast on the scoreboard and cheering on the final minute of VCU’s 82-78 victory over North Carolina.
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AP March Madness Bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and Coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness