He left UK because he wanted to play. Now he’s in Final Four with team that never recruited him.

Except for the most crazed of Kentucky fans, no one thinks getting to the Final Four is easy. But the road taken by former UK player Charles Matthews was especially long and winding.

Before he and his Michigan teammates reserved a spot in San Antonio via victories in Wichita and Los Angeles, Matthews traveled from his native Chicago to Lexington and then to Ann Arbor.

Matthews played for UK in the 2015-16 season. Then he moved to Michigan, where he sat out the 2016-17 season as a transfer.

“It was special,” he said in Los Angeles of playing in the Final Four in San Antonio this weekend. “Last year, all I used to hear in practice was ‘turnover Matthews, turnover Matthews.’ And, ‘Go see 212.’

“That’s when I have to run up to the top of the bleachers” in Section 212 of Crisler Center, he said. “But I stayed with it. Coach (John Beilein) stayed on me. He continued to believe in me, and that continued to help my confidence grow. My teammates believe in me, and I believe in them. So it’s just been a special feeling.”

If his college career had unfolded as he expected, Matthews would be nowhere near this year’s Final Four. He signed with Kentucky rather than Kansas or Michigan State for the reason many prospects commit to UK: It’s a fast route to the NBA.

“At the time, I guess, he thought he was going to be a one-and-done guy,” said Gary DeCesare, who coached Matthews at St. Rita High School in Chicago. “Kentucky is a very attractive package, and John (Calipari) does a great job.”

On a UK team that included guards Tyler Ulis, Jamal Murray, Isaiah Briscoe and Dominique Hawkins, Matthews played sparingly. He averaged 10.3 minutes, 1.7 points and 1.6 rebounds.

Matthews brought a twist to the concept of a one-and-done guy by deciding to transfer.

“Kids are not dumb,” DeCesare said of this decision. “No matter where they go, they’re not happy if they’re not playing. It had nothing to do with Kentucky or Coach Cal. It just had to do with playing time. And Charles wanted to play.

“There was no ill feeling toward anybody or anything.”

Upon learning of Matthews’ interest in transferring to Michigan, Beilein called Calipari.

“He recommended him very highly and was a real classy gentleman about the whole deal,” Beilein said.

DeCesare set the transfer in motion by calling Beilein. For the Michigan coach, it was a call out of the (maize and) blue. Michigan did not recruit Matthews out of high school.

“I had no knowledge of him until his high school coach called me after he had decided he was going to transfer,” Beilein said.

Matthews’ wish to play for a school closer to Chicago led DeCesare to call Beilein as part of a check into transfer options within the Big Ten.

There was one other factor.

“He just thought he’d be a really good fit for Michigan,” Beilein said of DeCesare.

DeCesare was familiar with Michigan’s style of play. Earlier in his coaching career, he was an assistant for Jerry Wainwright, who replaced Beilein as coach in Richmond in 2002.

“We basically coached Beilein’s players for our first two years at Richmond,” DeCesare said.

Beilein saluted Matthews’ willingness to be coached and to improve. Specific targets were better shooting and ball-handling. The Michigan coach did not take this willingness for granted.

“I’m talking 1,000 percent,” Beilein said of Matthews accepting how Michigan conducted its basketball business. “To culture. To individual workouts. Scouting reports. To all the things that sometimes guys who are recruited so highly have a hard time buying into.

“So many times they’ve been told they’re the greatest. And now you say, 'No, these are weaknesses we’re going to work on. These are blind spots.' There has been none of that. He is just trying to get better.”

DeCesare said he considered this as a belated freshman year for Matthews. As with many freshmen, Matthews faced adversity.

“He was really struggling in January to understand what his role would be and what he should do,” Beilein said of Matthews. “Now, he’s got a pretty good defined role. ... His growth over these two years that he’s been with us has just been tremendous. ... His attitude has helped him do that.”

Like Michigan, which has won its last 13 games, Matthews goes into the Final Four on a roll. He ranks second on the Michigan team in scoring (13.0 ppg), rebounding (5.6 rpg), blocks (24) and minutes (29.9 mpg). After averaging 17.5 points in victories over Texas A&M and Florida State, he was named Most Outstanding Player of the West Region.

When it was suggested that Matthews’ transfer to Michigan had worked out well, DeCesare chuckled and said, “I don’t think it could be any better, unless they win it all.”

This story was originally published March 27, 2018 at 6:35 PM with the headline "He left UK because he wanted to play. Now he’s in Final Four with team that never recruited him.."