Oage 8-Wednesday, February 14, 1979-The Michigan Daily THREE-WAY TIE FOR FIRST Showdown nears in Big Ten cage race By GEOFF LARCOM With six games to play in the Big Ten 'basketball season, four teams remain atop' the conference mountain, still fighting to avoid slipping off. Only one team can ultimately occupy the Big Teri summit, however, and at this point, it's still anybody's guess as to who that will be. Take your pick. At 9-3 are Purdue, Iowa and Ohio State, with Michigan State a hair's breadth behind at 8-4. And if preseason expertise means anything, that's three surprises out of four. At the season's start, the Big Ten basketball writers had picked Michigan State to finish first, with Michigan and Indiana, both now 6-6, selected as potential run- ners-up. DESPITE THEIR four Big Ten losses the Spartans are making the prophets look good. Jud Heathcote's cagers have won their last four conference contests in a row, after slipping to 4-4 early in the season, courtesy of back-to-back losses to Michigan and Northwestern. But most important, the Spartans are 4- f against the top three, with double wins over Iowa and Ohio State to their credit, in addition to their 52-50 road loss to Purdue. The second Ohio State victory was " - T . This it it-Final Reductions -. Now through February 28th 50% OFF' ALL SKI JACKETS . . . men's and women's by Comfy, -, Gerry, Obermeyer, Sportscaster 4. ALL SWEATERS... -. . SKI CAPS camp and ski styles 9 " 2"9ALL SKI PANTS... -- All wool hi-rise and bibs 4; Adult-Child " SIERRA CLOTH PARKA with hood - down filled $59095 . - tan or blue Reg. $95, NOW Taffeta SHELL PARKA with hood S ) down filled red or royal Reg. $75, NOW VESTS WARM-UPS - % OFF 20% OFF '. SOPEN:,r t" Mon & Fri. 10-7 213s. Main * Tue.-Thurs. 10-5:30" * Saturday 10-5:30 665-3888s -.. ." ". "" "" "" " 4* w ". * particularly emblematic of MSU's resurgence, as the Spartans crushed the Buckeyes in Columbus, 73-55. Michigan State had struggled to top the Bucks in overtime, 84-79, just ten days earlier in Jenison Fieldhouse. Michigan assistant coach Bill Frieder, whose team has faced Iowa, Purdue and MSU once and Ohio State twice, feels that the Spartans will end up on top. "MICHIGAN STATE has the best schedule going for it, they've played all the contenders twice except for Pur- due," said Frieder. "They're also the most experienced club." Translation: NCAA tournament ex- perience. The Spartans were runners- up in the Mideast Regional last year, and four starters from that squad are still running the show. Guards Terry Donnelly and Earvin Johnson, along with center Jay Vincent and forward Greg Kelser are right at home in the late-season Big Ten pressure cooker. Yet the Spartans must still get by In- diana in Bloomington, along with Michigan and the Boilermakers at home, before finishing up against Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Then, for Michigan State, there's the final problem, three teams, vastly im- proved over last year, still above them in the standings. Conference Purdue...... Iowa ........ Ohio St........ Michigan St.... Illinois ...... Illinois ...... MICHIGAN ... Indiana..... Minnesota ..... Wisconsin. Northwestern. W L 9 3 9 3 9 3 8 4 All Games W L 19 5 16 5 14 7 16 5 OF THOSE three, Iowa has been this year's biggest surprise. The Hawkeyes startling rebound from'a 5-13 Big Ten slate last year is attributable to two things: the continued excellence of guard Ronnie Lester and a revamped forward line. Last year, William Mayfield, the Hawkeyes' third leading scorer, played but a minute of the Big Ten season, while Kevin Boyle, second Big 10 Standlngs behind Lester in scoring, was still in high school., "We're not as talented as some Wteams," said Iowa Coach Lute Olson. "It's the chemistry of our team that's done it. We're winning'with good defen- se, by playing together, working the ball around and capitalizing on other's mistakes." In addition there's Lester, whose quickness and shooting ability make the Hawkeyes doubly tough down the stretch. "A year ago, Lester would make a good play, like make a great pass, and we'd blow the shot from twelve feet," said Olson. "We don't do that now." THE HAWKEYES are 1-3 against the top three, having beaten Purdue at home. The Hawkeyes must still deal again with Purdue tomorrow night at home, and Ohio State at St. Joh Arena a week later\ ThenBuckeyes, 2-2 against this year's current big boys, play Iowa 'at home and end up with Purdue on the road. While the Buckeyes this year couldn't *shake their Michigan State jinx, they have wins over Iowa, 72-67, and Purdue, 75-71, to show for their efforts. The Buckeyes', success down the stretch largely depends on the ability of Kelvin Ransey and Herb Williams to sustain their strong play. "Williams is the main reason for OSU's success. He's greatly im- proved," said Frieder. "But if you sag on Herbie, Kelvin pops them in. And if you key on Kelvin, Williams hurts you inside." THE TEAM winding up the 'season against OSU, the Boilermakers, have possibly the roughest road ahead. Pur- due must duel Iowa and Michigan State on foreign ground prior to finishing up against Indiana and then the Buckeyes at home. The Boilermakers are the hot- test team in the conference, having won nine of their last ten in Big Ten play. "Along with Iowa, Purdue plays the best together of anybody," said for- ward Paul Heuerman of Michigan. "They both work the ball around well, and take good shots." Heuerman gives the Buckeyes the best shot at the title however, while fellow Wolverine :Marty Bodnar likes the Spartans, along with Frieder. Wolverine co-captain Tom Staton took a different attitude. When asked who he was most impressed with., Staton thought a moment. "No one,", said the Wolverine sparkplug. 6 6 '6 8 10 11 18 12 14 9 8 5 6 8 10 12 13 16 Tomorrow night's games Northwestern at MICHIGAN, 8 p.m. Purdue at Iowa Michigan State at Indiana Ohio State at Minnesota Wisconsin at Illinois WARMUP FOR STA TE T OURNE Y: Women cagers duel U-D tonight By ELISA FRYE The women's basketball team has come a long way since its season opener back in December. The un- polished squad that lost to the University of Detroit 76-69 has surpassed their pre-season hopes by producing several outstanding young players, and by beating teams like Notre Dame, Western Michigan and Wayne State. Now the women cagers have almost come full cir- cle. As the season nears its end, there is only one thing on their minds - the upcoming State Tour- nament. And on their way to the SMAIAW's, they wouldn't mind knocking off a few intra-state foe's. The Wolverines must face Michigan State, Eastern Michigan, Wayne State and the same Detroit team that gave them such a tough debut. Michigan will take on the Titans tonight at Calihan Hall. While Detroit may have given the Wolverines a walloping at the beginning of the year, Coach Gloria Soluk will not be making excuses for a loss tonight. "They (the team) know they shouldn't have lost last time," Soluk said. And she has confidence that the cagers will be able to upset the number one team in the state. "We're going to beat them (the Titans)," Soluk stated firmly. The SMAIAW, which starts March 1, is very impor- tant to Soluk. As tournament time nears, she is eager to have her team primed. "This is the most important part of the season," said Soluk. "We're so prepared. The biggest part of the season is the State Tour- nament," she added. But before the Wolverines go running headlong into Calihan, they must first consider their overtime loss to Iowa in the Big Ten tournament last week, 79-70. Michigan was down by 12 points at the half. "It's tough coming out after the half with the other team in the lead," said Assistant Coach Margo Plotzke. "The pressure is on you to make up the points." But, when the overtime period started, "the momentum was going our way. "We overcame lopsided officiating, and I give the kids credit for that,"said Soluk. Plotzke concurred. "The Iowa game was great in that we were able to make up for everything - but then we went flat." A bright spot for Michigan in the loss was sophomore Abby Currier, who scored 26-points, while teammate Diane Dietz was held to only six. "Abby is coming along," Soluk said. "She's playing like we've been expecting her to play all season." Join the Daily Sports Staff ............ . . . . ................:::....n .. .. ...-: .. AP Top Twenty UPI Top Twenty { :; "}> s.... - - _ 4 t i 3 5 i a,. a 5 t Surface Division, Midland-Ross Corporation. Perhaps you will recognize us quiCker by our previous name-- Surface Combustion. WHAT ARE WE? We are one of the nation's leading manufacturer's of industrial furnaces and heat treating equipment. WHO BUYS OUR PRODUCTS? Almost any manufacturer who applies heat to their product during the manufacturing process. WHERE ARE WE GOING? Surface is in the forefront of the heat processing indus- try in developing new technology, new products, and new markets. WHO ARE WE LOOKING FOR? Graduating engineers with Bachelors degrees in civil, electrical and mechanical engineering WHO CAN I TALK TO? Mr. Grant Barnes, our division personnel manager, would be glad to tell you more about Surface, our employees and our career opportunities. WHERE CAN WE MEET? At University Placement Office on Feb. 16, 1979. SURFACE DIVISION MIDLAND-ROSS i 1. Indiana St. (43) 2. UCLA19) 3. Notre Dame (tie) DAILY LIBELS 4. North Carolina 5. Duke 6. Louisiana St. 7. Syracuse 8. Michigan St. 9. Louisville 10. Marquette 11. Arkansas 12. Texas 13. Purdue 14. Iowa 15. Temple 16. Georgetown 17. Ohio St. 18. Detroit 19. Vanderbilt 20. Alabama 1, n nn 23-0 18-3 17-3 20-0 17-4 17-4 20-3 20-2 16-5 21-4 17-4 18-4 18-5 19-5 16-5 19-3 18-4 14-7 18-4 18-5 15-7 1,196 1,190 1,073 1,073 973 901 895 869 795 759 749 532 507 310 309 279 223 210 197 185 124 Team 1. UCLA (15) 2. Indiana St. (25) 3. Notre Dame (2) (tie) LIBELS (2) 4. North Carolina 5. LSU 6. Duke 7. Syracuse 8. Michigan St. 9. Louisville 10. Marquette 11. Arkansas 12. Texas 13. Purdue 14. Temple 15. Iowa ' 16. Georgetown 17. Vanderbilt 18. (tie) Ohio St. 18-3 23-0 17-3 20-0 18-4 20-3 17-4 20-2 16-5 21-4 17-4 18-4 18-5 19-5 19-3 16-5 18-4 18-5 14-7 Points 599 596 518 518' 432 379 363 338 322 306 295 172 139 89 85 78. 55 48 44 44 31 Well, the Indiana State Sycamores finally made it to the elusive number one ranking in college basketball, at least in one poll. The Sycamores, the nation's only major undefeated team, moved into the top spot in the Associted Press poll, receiving 43'first place votes and 1,196 points. In one of the closest votes in the history of the AP poll, UCLA was second with 19 first place votes and 1,190 votes. In the UPI poll, the Sycamores weren't so fortunate. UCLA became the fourth team this season to take over the number one spot in the UPI ratings by beating out Indiana State by a meager three points. Four Big Ten teams played in the Top Twenty this week; ninth ranked Michigan State, Purdue, Iowa and Ohio State. 18. (tie) Texas A&M 20-6 20. Detroit 18-4 .:...::::::. .N." "::":: .":S+f,.r.:4;:ii^:i{ ' ':::":":"}'4'":;'4:{":{":.. {{i. ,'" ' '' " }.V1£. . .tin} Y,,". ::4v..: .v:'t::.:: . "