ANN ARBOR, Michigan (AP) ― Perhaps the best sign that Michigan’s basketball program was moving in the right direction came not last weekend in the NCAA tournament, but about a month ago toward the end of the regular season.

The Wolverines had just lost to Penn State, a low point during a February stretch that also included a 23-point loss to rival Michigan State. The Wolverines found their character questioned and their prospects for a successful postseason suddenly doubted.

But in a way, the angst was a good sign. This Michigan team had raised expectations in Ann Arbor ― and it wasn’t too late for Trey Burke and his teammates to reach them.

Now with a Final Four berth, they have. “This team has faced a lot of adversity this year, and a lot of people doubted us to get to this point,” Burke said. “A lot of people said we were too young, we weren’t tough enough. But I definitely think that’s why we played with a chip on our shoulder over the last couple of weeks.”

Michigan is headed to the Final Four for the first time since 1993, when Chris Webber and the Fab Five lost in the NCAA title game for the second consecutive year. The Wolverines were on the verge of elimination when Burke made what was probably the shot of the tournament, a long 3-pointer to send their regional semifinal against Kansas into overtime. After winning that game, Michigan routed Florida 79-59. It’s fitting that the Wolverines made it back to the Final Four now, because 2013 is a significant year for the Michigan program. A federal investigation revealed that a booster gave Webber and three non-Fab Five players more than $600,000 while they were student-athletes, and the NCAA forced the school to dissociate from them until this year.

The dissociation officially ends in May, but the school hasn’t said much about what that will mean. Michigan’s relationship with the Fab Five has been complex. Sanctions related to that era cast a cloud over the program for years, but the on-court success achieved by Webber, Jalen Rose and the rest of that group remains a significant ― and positive ― part of the program’s history.