March Madness

NCAA Tournament Championship 2013, Michigan vs. Louisville final score: Cardinals clinch title with 82-76 win

Luke Hancock had 22 points for the new champs.

By jlpennington Apr 8, 2013, 11:50pm EDT

The Louisville Cardinals stormed back after the Michigan Wolverines stunned them to open Monday's national championship game, and Louisville won its third national championship in school history with an 82-76 win in the Georgia Dome.

The Cardinals won their third national championship in school history and first under Rick Pitino, who has coached the Cardinals now for 12 seasons. He won a championship as coach in 1996 with Louisville's No. 1 rival, the Kentucky Wildcats. Louisville's other two championships came in 1980 and 1986.

Michigan fell short of winning its second national championship, as the Wolverines' sole title came in 1989. They lost in consecutive championship game appearances in 1992 and 1993.

The Wolverines led by as many as 12 late in the first, but the Cardinals closed the half on a 14-3 run, so Michigan led just 38-37 at the break.

Michigan reserve guard Spike Albrecht captivated the country with a 17-point first half in relief of Trey Burke, who sat all but six minutes in the first half with two fouls, but Albrecht did not score in the second half.