Michigan has a 34.5 point lead headed into the meet’s final day, though that lead is far from a sealed-deal. Here’s the team standings with two days to go:
1. Michigan 336
2. California 301.5
3. Arizona 234.5
4. Southern Cali 212
5. Florida 196.5
6. Texas 192
7. Stanford 169
8. Auburn 167.5
9. Indiana 151
10. Georgia 106
See here as Prive V. Fishback breaks down all of the scenarios.
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Michigan and Florida are seeded to have the biggest scoring days on Saturday in the final events; Michigan’s seeded points are 126, as compared to Cal’s 74. Here’s the races we’ll see:
- 1650 freestyle (timed final)
- 200 back
- 100 free
- 200 breast
- 200 fly
- platform diving
- 400 free relay
Keep in mind that point expectations have Michigan seeded 6th in the 400 free relay, and Cal not seeded to score at all, so that in itself should provide a major shakeup. But the magic number in prelims for Cal is 86.5: their improvements, plus any move-downs by Michigan, has to equal 86.5 for a Cal tie, and 87 for a Cal win.
Michigan is supposed to dominate Cal in the mile; some of Michigan’s distance guys have been swimming well, and some have not.
In terms of A finals/B finals, here’s what each race expects:
- 1650 Free: Michigan 3/1, Cal 0/0 (timed finals)
- 200 Back: Michigan 0/0, Cal 1/0
- 100 Free: Michigan 0/1, Cal 0/0
- 200 Breast: Michigan 1/0, Cal 2/1
- 200 Fly: Michigan 1/2, Cal 2/0
- 400 Free Relay: Michigan 1/0, Cal 0/0
- TOTAL: Michigan: 6/4, Cal 5/1
Individually, watch the 200 breaststroke where Arizona sophomore Kevin Cordes will be shooting for another American and NCAA Record. In the 100 free, Vlad Morozov comes in as a big favorite, but Auburn’s Marcelo Chierighini has also looked very good in this race.
In the 200 backstroke, David Nolan will be looking for a perfect three-for-three in individual titles this week. Among his challengers will be Auburn’s Kyle Owens and Indiana’s Eric Ress, who have had very up-and-down meets, and the surprise challenger Drew Teduits from Wisconsin. Teduits cut almost a second off of his best time in the 100 back earlier in the meet, and this 200 is his better event.