Final Four features Michigan's Jersey boys Elliot Cadeau, Yaxel Lendeborg

A few days before Christmas, University of Michigan basketball star Yaxel Lendeborg came home to Pennsauken to surprise his ailing mother with a gift – new Jeep Wrangler. He also dropped in at Pennsauken High School to see his old coach, Harrison Carsillo, and speak with the team there. “He took a half-hour and answered questions and told them his story,” Carsillo said.

What a story it’s been. After academic ineligibility cost him two-plus years of high school ball, Lendeborg is a first-team All-American and the leader of a team that is rolling into this weekend’s Final Four of the NCAA Tournament. His message was palpable for Carsillo’s players.

“Believe in yourself and never give up on your dreams,” the coach said. “Here’s a guy who sat in the seats your sitting in and wore the jersey you’re wearing, and look where he is now. ” He’s in Indianapolis, where the Wolverines play Arizona in the national semifinals Saturday in the most anticipated game of the college basketball season.

And he’s one of two New Jerseyans in Michigan’s starting lineup. Point guard Elliot Cadeau grew up in West Orange and attended Bergen Catholic High School for two years. They took markedly different paths to their current station, but they’re both repping the Garden State on the biggest stage in college sports.