Page Two

THE MICHIGAN DAILY

Thursday, September 7, 1972

j

Page Two THE MICHIGAN DAILY Thursdoy, September 7, 1972


cagers Prepare for newsse i era

By BOB HEUER
and DAN BORUS
The hopes of the Michigan
basketball team took a nose-
dive with the flimsy knees of
two of its key players in 1971-72
and though the team flirted
.with excellence, the Wolverines
fell to mediocrity by the sea-
son's end.
This year withthe most tal-
ent laden squad to be assem-
bled in Ann Arbor since Cazzie
Russell's era of 1964-66, the
Wolverines stand to be a force
to be reckoned with in national
and Big Ten circles. Led by
two-time All America Henry
Willmore and sophomore sen-
sation Campy Russell, whose
35 point average led the fresh-
men team to an unblemished
12-0 mark, the Wolverines have
enough talent to field two
equally talented squads.
"This year is, as well, a year of
expansion for the basketball
program. Three teams will rep-
resent the Maize and Blue: the
traditional varsity team, a jun-
ior varsity team composed of
players who are not qute var-
sity caliber, and a freshman
team made up entirely of non-
tendered walk-on prospects.
With the new NCAA rule,
freshmen are eligible for any
of the three squads.
The coaching staff awill fea-
ture some new faces, too. Jim
Dutcher, former head coach
at neighboring Eastern Mich-
igan, and Richard "Bird"

Carter, ex-Wolverine per-
former and 1970 graduate,
will join head coach John Orr
and Dick Honig. Dutcher was
hired to replace the depart-
ed Fred Snowden who took
the head job at Arizona State
University. Carter is expected
to handle the freshman team,
while Honig, mentor of last
year's sensational freshmen,
will move up to 'handle the
junior varsity.
The Michigan cagers will be
entering this season with the
same core of players that start-
ed the 1970-71 season as sopho-
mores. That squad was expected
to do great things but, in fact,
floundered badly in the early
going.
The team, sparked by the fine
play of Wilmore and Ken Brady,
jelled as Big Ten play got un-
der way and won nine straight
conference games to vault to
the top of the heap. Late sea-
son losses to Indiana and Ohio
State ended their' title hopes,
but a second place finish was
good for an invitation to the
N.I.T.
With only two starters lost
through graduation, and sopho-
more scoring leader Wilmore,
pivot man Brady and 6-6 guard
Wayne Grabiec returning, the
outlook for 1971-72 was quite
promising.
Bad luck struck early, Ken
Brady injured his knee even
before the team took to the
court.
With Brady out, the team was

-Daily-Mort Novec1k

wilmore drives

Michigan Union
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BILLIARDS
BOOKSTORE
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CHECK CASHING
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cageschedule.
Dec. 2--Notre Dame
Dec. 4-Oregon State
Dec. 7-Brigham Young at
Nassau, N.Y.
Dec. 9--at Dayton
Dec. 16-at Detroit
Dec. 18-19-Michigan Invitational
Western Michigan
Toledo
Morehead University
Michigan
Dec. 26-30-E.C.A.C. Holiday
Festival, Madison Square
Garden
Jan. 6--at Ohio State
Jan. 8-Iowa
Jan.'13-Michigan State
Jan. 20-Purdue
Jan. 22-at Northwestern
Jan. 27-Indiana
Jan. 29-at Iowa '
Feb. 3-at Illinois
Feb. 10-Michigan State
Feb. 17-Northwestern
Febs 24-at Minnesota
Feb. 26-Illinois
March 3-at Wisconsin
March 10-Ohio State

forced to go with a frontline of
Ernie Johnson 6-8, John Lock-
ard, 6-7, and Wilmore, 6-4. Al-
though all juniors, their inex-
perience as a unit and their
lack of great height would tell.
The campaign started smooth- .
ly enough with, three straight
wins over Notre Dame, Western
Michigan, and Eastern Michi-
gan. But in the first game of
the Michigan Invitational Tour-
nament, Toledo, aided by an in-
jury to Michigan star Wilmore,
upset the Wolverines.
The injury was a disaster-
ous one both to the Wolver-
ines and to Wihnore per-
sonally. Even 'after he re-
turned, Henry still favored
the injured leg and as a re-
sult his scoring totals were
down from his sophomore
highs. The moves which he
once dazzled opponents with
were just not as flashy. And
since the Miichigan offense re-
volves around Wilmore, the
attack suffered a bit from
lack of direction.
Sporting a 5-5 pre-Big Ten
record, the Wolverines moved
into the conference race un-
daunted. Victories over Michi-
gan State and Illinois rekind-
led early season optimism. But
in game number three, the
cagers received a sound thrash-
ing at the hands of Ohio State
in Columbus, Even Wilmore's
return could not stem the tide
as the Buckeyes toyed with the
Wolverines, leading by as much
as 30 points in the second half.
AFTER WINNING their next
two games, the Wolverines
faced an Ohio State squad, tired
by the now infamous brawl at
Minnesota. Missing starters
Witte and Minor, the Bucks
were not the same team that
had crushed the Wolverines two
weeks earlier. The Michigan
team was not sharp but did
emerge with a 88-78 victory.
The title express was derailed
again the following week in La-
fayette when Purdue took it to
the cagers in the form of an
84-74 drubbing. The Wolver-
ines let Boilermaker big men
Ford and Franklin penetrate at
will.
Ohio State and Minnesota
were having trouble keeping a
consistent winning pace going,
as well, and the Wolverines
found themselves in the thick of
the pennant race with the Go-
phers coming to town on Feb-
ruary 25,
THE BIG BAD Gophers, still
trying to achieve re-instatement
for suspended brawlers Taylor
and Behagen, took a ten point
lead into the dressing room at
half-time, but that was the
last they saw of it.
Ernie Johnson put the clamps
on Jim Brewer and the rest of
the team played the best man
to man they had played all year
as the Wolverines began to come
back. In the end, the league's
best offensive team had whip-
ped the league's best defensive
team at its own game, 64-52. By
controlling the tempo of the
game the Wolverines had gar-
nered the sole possession of the
Big Ten lead.
The glory was short-lived,
however, as the revived Indiana
Hoosiers took the steam once
again out of the Wolverines'
championship drive with a 79-
75 edging.
There was to be no revival
this time, as Michigan suc-
ceeded in blowing title, run-
nerup, and post-season tour-
nament bids in the season's

final week, losing to lowly
Michigan State and Iowa to
bring to a tremendous anti-
climax an up and down sea-
son that had too many downs
to be called successful.
But last season's disappoint-
ments are history and the
coaching staff has been concen-
trating on putting together a
championship caliber team, not
only with the players already
here, but also in their recruit-
ing efforts.
So far in the fold and set to
enroll at Michigan this fall are
6-2 Wayman Britt, team leader
of the 1971 and 72 state champs
from Flint Northern High, 6-6
Chuck Rogers from Findiay,
Ohio, and Lloyd Schinnerer, a
6-2 playmaker who, along with
Britt, could provide Michigan
with valuable backcourt help in
the future.
Quinn Buekner, named na-
tional high school athlete of the
year by Letterman magazine,
has still to choose between
Michigan and UCLA. Buekner
was a high, school All-Ameri-
can in football as well as bas-
ketball.
With the NCAA's new fresh-
man eligibility rule, any of
these players could don a var-
sity uniform for the Wolverines
this winter.
However, any freshman who
makes this year's varsity squad
is up against not only the great-
est talent, but the greatest
depth, that a Michigan team
has had in years. The coaches,
See SUPER-SOPHS, Page 7

*I

wilmore scores

grdpplurs eke

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By BOB McGINN
Hopes are high for 1972-1973
Michigan wrestling as only one
starter graduated from last
year's successful squad.
A year ago the Wolverines of
Coach Rick Bay pounded out
a 9-3-1 dual meet record be-
fore finishing third behind
Michigan State and Iowa in
the Big Ten meet. These
achievements would appear to
have constituted a fine season.
But Bay has mixed emotions.
"We had an above average
season," says Bay, who will be
entering his third campaign as
Michigan's head man. "But we
fell short of our two chief goals.
We had hoped to finish at least
second in the conference and
tenth in the nation."
Finishing third behind Iowa
was especially disappointing to
the Maize and Blue, as they
had tied the Hawkeyes in a dual
meet on the road.
An inability to w r e s t le
at a .500 level in the upper
four weights cost Michigan its
championship hopes. A look
at the final statistics reveals
that performers wrestling in
the first six weight categor-
ies compiled an excellent 95-
49-3 record, while the grap-
plers in 'the four heaviest di-
visions floundered to a dis-
mal 34-47-2 mark.
In an effort to put some new
blood into the lethargic 167,
177, 190, and heavyweight
classes, Bay and assistant coach
Bill Johannesen attempted to
recruit heavily in these areas.
But, in general, there were few
good big men around. Michigan
did sign some outstanding tal-
ent in the already loaded light-
er weights, however, prompting


Bay to remark, "The competi-
tion here should be fantastic,"
Heading the returning cast is
brilliant junior Jerry Hubbal'd
at 150. He captured his second
Big Ten title and was NCAA
runner-up on his way to a 22-
4-1 overall record.
In -the Nationals Hubbard
bounced five straight opponents
before meeting his Waterloo in
the finals. His conqueror was
unheralded Wade Shalles of
Clarion State. Hubbard was a
fourth place finisher in his
freshman campaign.
Michigan's other Big Ten
champ, senior Mitch Mendry-
gal (18-10),. will hold forth at
158. He was also elected captain
by his teammates. Mendrygal
won his first three matches in
the NCAAs before succumbing
in the quarterfinals.
The 6-1 Mendrygal started
slowly in the pre-Holiday activ-
ity, but he came alive later util-
izing his unorthodox but excit-
ing style. Mendrygal, a lowly
fourth seed in the Big Ten
meet, shocked observers when
he seized the blue ribbon.
Standout-,-sophomore .Jim
Brown (16-5-1) returns at 118.
Runner-up in the Big Ten,
Brown has all the equipment to
improve greatly in his second
season.
Last year's regular at 126,
junior Bill Davids (17-8), may
move up a notch to 134 because
of a pair of highly-regarded
freshmen. Davids led the team
in falls in 1971-72. Junior hold-
over Rick Neff (8-6) will be
tough to dislodge, though.
Expected to battle it out at
126 are newcomers Rich Valley,
a state champion from Vir-
ginia, and Jeff Guyten, the
Ohio champ.
The starting berth at 142 ap-
pears to be up for grabs among
five candidates. Last year's reg-
ular, sophomore Bill Schuck (8-
9-2>, must face the challenge of
soph John King, top-notch

freshmen Tom O'Brien (anoth-
er Virginia champion) and Pete
Anderson, and possibly Neff,
who would move up if beaten
out by Davids.
Unless drastic improvement
is shown, the upper weights
again could delay Bay's goal
of a Big Ten title. Only at
heavyweight, where hard-
working junior Gary . Ernst
(9-8-1) returns, is a starter
decided.
Thrown into the breech when
veteran Rick Bolhouse quit at
mid-season, Ernst responded
with several clutch victories. He
saved the match with Iowa by
shellacking undefeated Jim
Waseck.
Senior Roger Ritzman (3-7-1)
and undistinguished sophomores
John Ryan (6-12) and Dave
Curby (5-9) are back for an-
other go-round'at 167, 177, and
190, respectively' Curby will
probably be hard pressed by
rookie Steve Bissell, a two-time
national prep champion who
hails from Pennsylvania. Mich-
igan's title hopes rest with
these four grapplers.
THE SOLE STARTER who
graduated from last year's club,
Lon Harris, will be sorely miss-
ed because he was one of the
few dependable Wolverine wres-
lers after 158. Harris was 13-11
last winter, and 27-25-5 for his
career.
This season's schedule looks
much the same as last year's,
with dual meets slated with all
nine Big Ten foes. The high-
light of the home schedule
should be the tussle with Penn
State, winners of 38 straight
dual meets. The Nittany Lions
crushed Michigan 23-12 last
season so Bay's charges would
like nothing better than to re-
turn the favor this time around
in Crisler Arena.
Bay encourages any interest-
ed freshmen to contact him for
a tryout. Several walk-ons have
played big roles for Michigan in
recent years,

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-Daily-Mort Noveck
campy (40) puts one in


, Big Ten Standings...
W L Pet.
Minnesota 11 i3 .786
nhin St 1f 4 714

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TI CE'S

uo mate
MICHIGAN
Indiana
Purdte-
Wisconsin
Michigan State
Illinois
Iowa
Northwestern

9 5
9 5
6 8
6 8
6 8
5 9
5 9
A 11

.114
.643
.643
.429
.426
.426
.357
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.214


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