I. Page 10-Thursday, November 30, 1978-The Michigan Daily STATON, BODNAf Blue braces ori By GEOFF LARCOM pressed with the Spartans, but were There's beei little fattening )up on reticent to downgrade Central pre-conference season opponents for Michigan. Central Michigan so far this year. "There's no way you can write off In fact, this week could entail some CMU as a bad team; losing to MSU on weight loss for the Chippewas, who, on their home court is no disgrace, said the rebound from Monday night's loss Frider. "On paper we're better, but to Michigan State, must face Michigan they've got nothing to lose. A win for tonight in the Wolverines' season them would be just another feather in opener in Crisler Arena. their cap." The Chips started out strongly again- Frieder and Orr aren't about to take st the Spartans, but eventually suc- CMU lightly. Not after last year, when cumbed to the Spartans' superior speed Toledo stuck it to the Wolverines over and jumping ability, 71-54. Christmas break in overtime, 81-84, in Michigan's last MAC encounter. SHED NO TEARS for CMU however. The Chips are favored to take the Mid- IN ATTEMPTING to turn that American Conference title after losing nightmare into sweet dreams, the only one letterman to graduation Wolverines will go with the same five following last year's second place that started in last week's Windsor finish. Blue Coach Johnny Orr and his walkaway. Freshman Thad Garner and assistant Bill Frieder, who checked out sophomore Mike McGee will man the the Chips at East Lansing, were im- forward spots with Phil Hubbard at center, while Tom Staton and Marty Bodnar will start at guard. Until two days ago, Staton's starting was in doubt. The senior co-captain has been battling bronchitis for the past two weeks anid according to Orr "hadn't his usual spunk for awhile." "I can go full speed now," said Discuss Staton, who despite the illness still Steamboat Jan. 3-9 playedagainst Windsor. "I'm fifty-per- Staba an. cent better than I was last week." and Staton's partner in the backcourt, Weekend Trips Jan., Feb. Marty Bodnar, currently holds the hot Thurs., Nov. 30-- 7:30 p.m. hand in Orr's guard merry-go-round, a T ihus. Usituation where four players may see Michigan Union Ballroom action as a starter during the season. - --------.-.---..--.--.... ........ t - _..COUPON A-- Buy 50-100 copies of 1 origina/ at our /o w price of 3 %-/copy and get a like amount of another l original I free SVr Dollar Bill Copying -' Specia/sisfor dissertations and resuimes Iiii ; Color copies and photo (-shirr trans/ers s L imit / per person Next to Sec. ol Stae Expires 12-3 178 J i 1 Church St.-665-9200 -- -._-- --- ---- -_ --... -- F driday, December 1 NOON LUNCHEON SOUP 8 SANDWICH 50C PROF. JIM CROWFOOT Naturol Resources: "Getting involved in progressive social change: some personal ref lections." GUILD HOUSE-802 Monroe i ARMY SURPL US GIFIELD HERMAN 1 JACKETS SURVIVOR BOOTS 6 * 1 A style 7198 $26s98insulated to 201 below $56.98 Schott Bros. LEVIS DOWN JACKETS STRAIGHTS, FLARES, CORDS STYLE No. E-61 VALUES TOS Now $12.50 Reg. $ 76.98 se 6 ,0 Special $64.98 20% off all prewashed fashion jeans Sale ends 12/2/78 201 E. WASHINGTON- 994-3572 VS VSA . . . Mon-Wed, Sat 9-6, Thurs & Fri open til 9 ' MAKE RESERVATIONS NOW - Limited Seats R KEYS TO SUCCESS Chippewa attack i t r t t i 1 t r r ° i1 "WE'RE GONNA vary the five star- ters according to the situation," ap- praised Staton. "Marty is starting because he's been our steadiest outside shooter. We've also got strong shooters in the frontcourt and he can get the ball to them." Orr is currently at a loss as to who his second starting guard will be for the seasson; he's tried all possible com- binations in practice, yet still can't decide. It's a situation that differs from Orr's past years, when his backcourt was fairly set before the season started. "I've had great guards over the years: Joe Johnson, Steve Grote, Rickey Green and Dave Baxter. Now this year I've got a good front-line and am uncertain about the guards," Orr said. Coming into tonight's opener at 1-1, courtesy of an opening victory over Grand Valley, the Chippewas are led by frontcourt man Jeff Tropf, last year's leading MAC rebounder. Supplying out- side firepower are senior guards Dave Grauzer and Val Bracey. Frieder ex- pects these three to do the most damage for the Chippewas. "CENTRAL MICHIGAN'S strength is its shooting. Bracey and Grauzer are great outside shooters, while Tropf is very tough inside. Hubbard can't let him get position on us low," analyzed Frieder. Withouth Hubbard last year, the Blue cagers topped CMU by a 92-79 count. Hubbard had played against Central the year before, with the result a 1;3-62 crunching of the Chips. CMU head coach Dick Parfitt thus is predicting no miracles for his underdog team. "Michigan has much quicker and faster players than we do, they have the best running team in the nation," said Parfitt. "We're not going to try to run with them, just play our own game." WHETHER OR not tonight is a blowout, the likes of the MAC will seem awfully appetizing to the Chips after this week's games. And for the Wolverines, the preseason drudge of banging solely into each other is finally over. "We're anxious to get going. The guys are sick of each other and of the coaches," Frieder joked. Tori Ston Marty Bodnar full court 'P'RES Young women cagers face uphill climb By LIZ MAC Having a young team is a mixed blessing. At the present, the players lack experience, whereas in the future, the roster will be loaded with four-year players. That's the situation Coach Gloria Soluk faces with the Michigan women's basketball team. "Right now, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages," she admits. "The team is young and inexperienced." There is one junior on the squad this year. The rest of the team is comprised of four sophomores and ten freshwomen. Only three letter winners are returning from last year: Abby Currier, Brenda Venhuizen, and Deb Allor. AND BECAUSE of the fact that the inexperienced players' play tends to fluctuate more in practice, Soluk hasn't decided on the starters for Saturday's game with the University of Detroit. Freshwoman Diane Dietz, freshwoman Jeanne White, and sophomore Venhuizen have all looked sharp in practice. Junior Terry Schevers "has been doing a super job," according to Coach Soluk. Other players on the team are freshwomen Monique Bernoudy, Michelle Grier, Kris Hansen, Katie McNamara, Penny Neer, Tammie Sanders, Jill Smith, and Debbie Williams. Sophomore Yvette Harris is a transfer from the University of Detroit. ALTHOUGH HIGH school girls basketball programs are being developed more and more, the transition to college balls a difficult one. As one player remarked to Coach Soluk, "It's like I never played basketball before." Freshwoman Hansen agreed, saying, "It's much more aggressive. There are a lot of new offenses and defenses to learn." The Wolverines posted an 8-16 record last year, and it may be due to this that the team has a new playing style. "IT WILL BE a completely different team this year," said Soluk. "People will notice that we are a much stronger team defensively. We are also developing a fast break and a rather intricate moving offense." One thing that Coach Soluk hopes to see is some fan support. "I would like the students to make a commitment to come out and see one game. If they do that, I feel they will become fans. That's why we scheduled 16 home games." The women open their season this Saturday against a strong Detroit team, at 4:00 at Crisler (following the men's game). 10 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Hubbard and McGee . ..: room for two stars By DAVE RENBARGER O BVIOUSLY, MICHIGAN is going to have a far better basketball team this year than it had last winter. It simply can't be any worse-not with Phil Hubbard healthy. But, as Johnny Orr knows only too well, there is no obvious route to a Big Ten championship, especially when the talent is so widely distributed. With this in mind, let us look beyond the obvious for a moment or two in sizing up the 1978-79 Wolverines. For starters, it's pretty obvious that few teams can duplicate the scoring potential of the Hubbard-Mike McGee frontcourt tandem. But the nicest thing about such a combination is that Hubbard will be able to do his thing without stepping on McGee's toes and vice versa. "He's just so good around the basket, it's unbelieveable," said Orr of Hubbard, whose knee is now complety sound. "He's been gone a year and you forget that he can really do those things.'Now that he's back, I can see how we won before." Mr. Inside-Mr. Outside Precisely. When they won the Big Ten title two years back, the Wol- verines had Hubbard as a dominating middleman on the inside, and quick sho6ters like Rickey Green on the outside. Last year Joel Thompson dian't have the muscle to work effectively inside. As good an outsider shooter as Joel was, it just wasn't enough. The offense relied far too heavily on the out- side shot, and when the shooters were off, it was bye-bye, ballgame. The lack of an adequate inside game also generated a distinct lack of overall consistency. After posting three consecutive wins to kick off the Big Ten season last January, Michigan was never a consistent team from one night to the next as the season wore on. Beginning with the fourth game, the Wolverines alternated wins with losses for 12 games before finally winning two in a row. By then it was too late. With Hubbard back in the lineup, the lhck of consistency is alleviated. His inside game opens things up around the perimeters for guys like McGee to take advantage of. '(McGee's) the quickest player I've ever had-even quicker than Rickey Green,'" said Orr. "He's just a dynamic offensive basketball player. His whole game is improving." McGee agreed. "I think my game is more complete this'year," he said. "My defense is better, my shooting's better and my passing's better." His speed isn't any better-although it is doubtful that he could possibly move any faster on a basketball court than he did last year. Which is exactly why Orr is planning on watching his offense operate on fast-forward this season. "We're going to run," said Orr. "We're going to fast break after every opportunity. On turnovers, missed shots, interceptions, anything like that, as well as after every made basket. Bench strength crucial "We're going to try to get the ball up the floor to McGee as quickly as we can get it there. McGee has that option to take the shot or pass it to someone breaking down the floor." If he wants to run-and-gun for forty minutes, Orr is going to have to sub- stitute freely. He vows to do just that, but has never done much of it in the past. With this year's overall team depth, it would be foolish for Orr to hesitate when the starters are running out of gas. Even his players realize the necessity of a solid bench. "Our biggest problem last year was our bench," said Alan Hardy. "We're much better equipped this year. Whoever's on the bench this year is going to be good. The bench has got to keep the momentum when the starting five is resting." "There will be occasions in all games where different players will play," admitted Orr. "I'm not a great believer in a lot of substituting, but it's going to have to become a necessity. Another necessity for Michigan is for the team to win its ballgames at Crisler Arena. All of them-or at least all of them in conference play. Last year MSU dropped only one league game at home, when Mark Lozier drop- ped a last-second bucket to top the Spartans. Two years ago the Wolverines went 14-0 at Crisler, and three years back it was Indiana which didn't lose at home all year. But then the Hoosiers didn't lose anything that year, period. Sure, it's an old saying, but it's true. You've got to win them all at your own place, and split at worst on the road. And finally, there is one last element present in any championship calibre team. Call it confidence, call it enthusiasm, call it pride, call it what you will. It takes a certain emotional mixture throughout the rugged, 18- game schedule. This is the ingredient that can often separate the contenders from the pretenders, and Wolverine co-captain Tommy Staton says it's there. "I'm always enthusiastic about every season, but I'm even more en- thusiastic than usual this year," he said. "This is going to be the year that last year wasn't." Dec. 2 6 9 13 18 22+ 28-29; Jan. 4 Jan. 4 6 8 12 13 15 U. OF DETROIT 4:00 Home Louisville Away INDIANA STATE 1:00 Home W. MICHIGAN 6:30 Home ADRIAN 7:00 Home GRAND VAL. ST. 2:00 Home Motor City Tournament Away Bowling Bowling Green N. MICHIGAN U. OF DAYTON WISCONSIN INDIANA OHIO STATE Green Away 4:00 Home 7:00 Home 7:00 Home 2:00 Home 7:00 Home 18 20 27 31 Feb. 3 8-11 14 17 19 22 24 26 Mar. 1-3 8-10 22-24. Northwestern Away NOTRE DAME 4:00 Home Illinois Away CEN. MICHIGAN 7:00 Home Calvin Away Big Ten Tournament Away U. of Detroit Away MICHIGAN STATE2:00 Home EAST. MICHIGAN 7:00 Home PURDUE 5:15 Home OAKLAND U. 4:00 Home Wayne State Away SMAIAW Tournament Away MAIAW Tournament Away AIAW Tournament Away i i FREAKED AROUT FINALS? DO YOU FEAR -freezing or blanking on exams? -not being able to concentrate on studying 'cause you're scared? -not enough time to get everything done? IF YES, ATTEND ON THURSDAY, NOV. 30, 7-10 p.m. THE Preparing For Finals Workshop offered by The Peer Counselors In Academic Anxiety %.. .£