NEW YORK — The Michigan men’s basketball program’s famed “Fab Five” will reunite during Saturday’s Final Four at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Juwan Howard, Ray Jackson, Jimmy King, Jalen Rose and Chris Webber will be part of an alternate cast — televised on truTV and streamed on HBO Max — when the Wolverines (35-3) face fellow No. 1 seed Arizona (36-2) in the second national semifinal at 8:49 p.m. The winner advances to the NCAA Division I tournament title game Monday in the same venue, facing the winner of Saturday’s first semifinal between No. 2 seed Connecticut (33-5) and No. 3 seed Illinois (28-8), which tips off at 6:09 p.m.
Both semifinals and the title game will be available on TBS, TNT, truTV and HBO Max, but the Fab Five will add a twist to one matchup.
“It’s going to be great, and we’re excited about it,” King said Thursday in a telephone interview. “It’s a symbol of our support of the University of Michigan, especially because our team is doing so well in the tournament. The team has looked good all season, being dominant and setting records and the way they’re doing it, it’s been fun to watch.
“We want to just come together and be fans of guys on the cusp of doing something historical.”
Howard, Jackon, King, Rose and Webber — the five members of Michigan’s iconic 1991 recruiting class who led the Wolverines to the Final Four as freshmen and sophomores ± have reunited only a handful of times. Rose and Webber have been part of TBS, TNT and truTV’s studio crew during the NCAA tourney this year.
The Fab Five were estranged for many years because of Webber’s association with a Michigan booster. The scandal resulted in the program having to forfeit victories from his two seasons and the Final Four banners being removed in Ann Arbor. The NCAA also banned Webber from associating with the program for 10 years.
The relationship healed after Howard was hired as Michigan’s basketball coach in 2019. Howard led the program for five seasons and was fired two years ago.