Page 8-Tuesday, February 21, 1978-The Michigan Daily A STAR IS BORN: Currier carries By BILLY NEFF 'JIf there was a song about her it would be Debby Boone's 'You Light Up My Life' because she lights up my program," said women's basketball coach Gloria Soluk in reference to her starting center Abby Currier, a fresh- man from Lake City, Michigan. Not only is she one of the shining lightsin an otherwise dim 7-12 season, but she leads the team in scoring (17.3 points per game), rebounding and field goal percentage. "PROBABLY THE greatest compli- ment I could give to Abby, is that to find one nice thing to say about her is hard, since there are so many nice things to say. She is one of the finest athletes and one of the finest people I have ever coached,"continued Soluk. "I've never coached a girl with the humility and the ability that Abby has. She is going to be the catalyst of the futire, an indication of the kind of girls that are going to come here; she has won my respect and the respect of her teammates," concluded the enter- prising, first year mentor. Lnd she has also impressed many op- ponents. Karen Langeland, Michigan St te's women's coach, mentioned b4efly her only fear of the Michigan women's cage quintet. "Abby Currier is quite a player and we will have to pay special attention to her." Even though the Spartans did, the standout fresh- man posted 24 points, over half the Wolverines' total in an 80-47 defeat. CURRIER WILL eclipse all of the women's scoring and rebounding records at Michigan for one season and is the second leading freshman scorer on campus (behind Mike McGee). She feels her coach has helped her tremen- dously. "She's willing to spend as much time with you as you want. She's a very good coach; she's very patient, which she has had to be with me this year," said Currier. However, the modest freshman does not see herself quite in the same light that her leade does. "I have to im- prove, quit fouling and get in shape. I don't move my legs on defense and I'm overweight. I still have a long ways to go," emphasized the mature, but rather introverted freshman. IN FACT, her modesty manifests it- self very clearly in her own personal goals from before the season. "I just wanted to make the team and be able to play. I'm glad I came here since I might not be able to play elsewhere." Well, she probably is wrong about that as her accomplishments this year and in high school play prove. Currier led her high school team to a 24-0 record and a state championshir w'hile popping in 26 points snatching 15 rebounds eacl HER PREP COA( McGiness, is an avid far 'She's a great person, sh kind. You don't come acr cagers pin class D, p in a s mwho also served as Abby's track coach a game and in high school. By the way, Currier houting d threw the discuss farther than any n LAbby's other female in the state last year along e's one of a' with shotputting her way to second in ross athletes the state. Presently, Currier is excelling for a subpar team but one she really enjoys. "It's a nice group of kids and it's really fun. We're young and learning. We just have to try and win, do what we're taught to do," commented the 5' 11" physical education major. Her future lies possibly in coaching basketball or being a physical education teacher, but she really isn't sure. "Who knows what they want to do the rest of their life?" said the affable center. Currier sees women's basketball on. the rise. "It is improving and will con- tinue to improve. Not that many people are interested in women's basketball. A lot of people don't even know if there's a team. But I believe, if someone comes once, they might come again," she con- cluded. er But games like the Louisville game put women's basketball in its proper at are very perspective, according to Currier. "It kind of showed where women's basket- id she doesn't ball ranked - not too much." But she She'd rather believes "as women are taught things, d McGiness, they'll really start to improve." Women tankers win third Big Ten crown By BOB WARD The Big Ten championship title was claimed by the Michigan womens swim team for the third straight year last weekend at Champaign, Illinois. The tankers took first place, scoring 1299 points, a full 700 points ahead of second- place Wiseonsin. The Badgers, defeated by Michigan earlier this year, racked up a score of 598, while Indiana took third place with 391 points. Michigan's score was the highest ever in the eight-year history of the meet, and the win tied Michigan State's record of three championship titles. MSU placed a low seventh in this year's meet. "Our key was in the depth," said Michigan's coach Stu Isaac, 'to place a lot of people in the top eight. All 25 people we took scored (placed in the top 16)." This insured points from every swimmer. The swimmers set several Big Ten records. Freshwoman Lisa Matheson took two individual records, in the 200-yard butterfly and the 1650-yard freestyle, while Linda Kendall, also a freshwoman, set a record in the 100- yard butterfly. Freshwoman Jody Ford claimed a Big Ten record in the 400 yard in- dividual medley, while Sue Collins and Karen Rydland plunged in to take titles in the 50 yard butterfly and 200 yard breaststroke, respectively. Three relay teams, the 800-yard freestyle, 200-yard freestyle, and 400- yard medley set conference records. To top that off, every one of the relay teams set a Michigan varsity record as well. Julie Bachman, freshwomanmdiver. placed first on the one meter board, defeating Olympic Gold medalist Jenny -handler,who dove for Ohio State. Bachman also defeated Big Ten defending cliampion Barbara Wienstein, who placed eleventh in the meet. All five divers placed in the top eight in what Isaac claoms is ". . . the best diving conference in the country." Abby Ciurri like that very often; th coachable." "She's very unselfish an like to boost herself up.; take the back seat," sail PISTONS' CHANCES DIM IN NBA k AFROTC OPEN HOUSE 7:00 PM WEDNESDAY 22 FEBRUARY NORTH HALL (BY Dental School) " Find out about Pilot Slots/Scholarships and post college jobs. * Meet students in the program If you have two years of school remaining, Air Force ROTC may Satisfy your needs Y Playoff serambi I i.r.r .r. w .ter. .'err Sri 764-2405 -, GTC Gateway to a great way of life. Fr By SCOTT M. LEWIS As the pro basketball season enters its home stretch, all but four teams still entertain hopes of an NBA champion- ship. For some clubs, like the Detroit Pistons, these hopes reflect nothing but unwarranted optimism. For many, however, succeeding in the playoffs is more than wishful thinking. The next six weeks will separate the contenders from the also-rans. The first two-thirds of the season serve only to' eliminate the truly inept teams from playoff consideration. From this point on, playoff aspirants must win con- sistently if they plan to be playing basketball in May. THE SYSTEM for determining who participates in post-season play is less complicated than the NFL's mathematical absurdity, but only slightly. Here's how it works: In each conference, the two teams with the best records automatically qualify and are exempt from first- round action. The four teams with the next best records also qualify, and are ranked and paired according to their winning percentage. The teams with the most wins do not necessarily have to be the two divisional champions. A look at the playoff race as of yesterday morning may clarify this mess. EASTERN CONFERENCE W L Pct. GB Seattle ......... Los Angeles...... Milwaukee ........ 30 30 30 Chicago..........30 29 .508 17 Golden State........28 30 .483 18%/ Detroit ............ 26 31 .456 20 If the season were to end right now, the playoff match-ups would be: Atlan- ta-Cleveland (winner plays San An- tonia) ; Washington-New York (Philadelphia); Milwaukee-Denver (Phoenix); and Seattle-Los Angeles (Portland). As one can deduce from the confer- ence standings, only two teams, Por- tland and Philadelphia, have clinched a playoff berth. Phoenix, San Antonio, and Denver also seem to be headed for post-season competition. ASIDE FROM these five powerhouses, the remaining seven positions are wide open and probably won't be decided until the final day of the regular season. In the East, Cleveland, Washington, and New York are vying for the third spot and a home court advantage in the 26 .536 27 .526 29 .508 15%/ 16 17 e begins first round. The Cavaliers, led by reju- venated Elmore Smith, are the strongest of the three, as the Bullets are plagued by injuries and the Knicks by sporadic play. The sixth and final position will probably be claimed by the veteran Boston Celtics. Although Atlanta and New Orleans currently sit ahead of the Celts, both have shown signs of folding. New Orleans appears to be definitely through for the year, since Pete Mara- vich's sprained knee will keep him out for at least two more weeks. AS FOR THE Houston Rockets, they were knocked out along with star for- ward Rudy Tomjanovich, compliments of the now-notorious Kermit Washing- ton. The playoff battle in the Western Con- ference also involves all but two teams, and is shaping up to be a real dogfight. Five teams hover around .500, and are so equal in terms of personnel and per- formance that it is impossible to predict which three will qualify for the playof- fs. SPECIALISTS SPARKLE: Tumblers fall short Student Newspaper at The University of Michigan ----------- WRITE YOUR AD HERE! ----------- i Ii ------------.CLIPAND MAIL TODAY!------------ U USE THIS HANDY CHART TO QUICKLY ARRIVE AT AD COST WORDS 1 day 2 days 3 days 4 days 5 days 6 days addi. 0-10 1.15 '2.30 3.05 3.80 4.55 5.30 .75 11-15 1.40 2.80 3.70 4.60 5.50 6.40 .90 Please indicate 16-20 1.65 3.30 4.35 5.40 6.45 7.50 1.05 wherethis ad 21-25 1.90 3.80 5.00 6.20 7.40 8.60 1.20 i "orun" 26-30 2.15 4.30 5.65 7.00 8.35 9.70 1.35 for sale 31-35 2.40 4.80 6.30 7.80 9.30 10.80 1.50 help wanted roommates 36-40 2.65 5.30 6.95 8.60 10.25 11.90 1.65 personal 41-45 2.90 5.80 7.60 9.40 11.20 13.00 1.80 etc. 46-50 3.15 6.30 8.25 10.20 12.15 14.10 1.95 Seven words per line. Each group of characters counts as one word. Hyphenated words over 5 characters count as two words-This includes telephone numbers. ,E A- . _ - r L .... a ... 19..iJ. Yds_ TheMLJ.Ianelrnf. Philadelphia ..... San Antonia...... Cleveland ......... Washington ...... New York ......... Atlanta.......... 40 35 29 29 29 26 16 21 27 27 28 31 .714 .625 .518 .518 .509 .456 5 11 11 11 /2 141/ New Orleans ...... Houston ........... Boston......... 26 22 20 32 35 33 .448 .386 .377 1 1 1 WESTERN CONFERENCE W L Pct. Portland ...........45 10 .818 Phoenix ............ 37 19 .661 Denver ............ 37 21 .638 15 181/ 18%/ GB 81/ 91/ By DIANE SILVER, Performing in a meet against the defending NCAA gymnastics cham- pions is never an easy tak. But when one of a team's four all-arounders sustains injuries mid-way through the competition, some teams might give up hope all together. Although the Michigan tumblers had every reason to despair when Chris Van Mierlo hurt his shoulder during his ring routine, they kept plugging away, with the spirit they have held all season. The tumblers posted a respectable score of 401.92 (203.4 in optionals) to Indiana State's 425.25 (213.85). ECHO LAKE-A Pvt. Coed Camp in the N.Y. Adirondacks Outstanding Summer Employment Opportunities High level positons as: Wategfront Director, Unit Heads, Girl's Athletic Director, Tennis Staff, Arts & Crafts, General Counselors Interview Dates: Thurs. February 23 and Tues. February 28 Call Mrs. Cooper (SAB Rm. 3200) at 763-4117 for appointment Interviews are also available for future dates it.All Ladies Admitted FREE TONIGHT at SECOND hCHANCE Appearing through Saturday: "It was an encouraging performan- ce," said Michigan coach Newt Loken. "The guys gained 12 points on com- pulsories over last , weekend's com- petition at Iowa." First and second place honors on pommel horse went to Michigan's Brian Carey and Hal Dardick, scoring a 9.3 and 9.05 respectively in the optional competition. "Carey did a great job," said Loken. "That was one of the best routines of his life." Outstanding performances were also turned in by Michigan's Gordon Higman and Darrell Yee on rings. Higman's 8.85 was good for first place while Yee followed with an 8.75, tying for second place with Indiana State's Don Osborn. Other Michigan high scorers were Carl Badger on vault, John Corritore on parallel bars, and Bob Creek on high bar, each earning the top combined compulsory and optional totatls in their event. The Wolverines couldn't bend the Sycamores in the all-around com- petition as Don Osborn and Mike Booth captured first and second places with combined scores of 108.15 and 103.25. Michigan's Nigel Rothwell placed third with 99.95. fl I iti i f