Devin Davis had a chance to seal the win for the Cougars, but he missed a pair of foul shots with 3.6 seconds left. The Wolverines (30-7) called timeout to set up a final play, and Muhammad-Ali Abdur Rahkman found Poole on the wing, and the youngster's shot hit nothing but net.
The officials reviewed it to make sure, but Poole had clearly gotten the shot away.
Abdur-Rahkman and Moe Wagner scored 12 points apiece to lead Michigan, but it was the unheralded freshman the stole the show. His flair for the dramatic sent coach John Beilein's team to Los Angeles for a West Regional semifinal against North Carolina or Texas A&M next week.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.