Saturday, March 20, 1976 THE MICHIGAN DAILY Page Seven THE MICHIGAN DAILY Page Seven Tiger By RICH LERNER Speclal To The Daily LOUISVILLE - And then there were eight. The countdown to the NCAA basketball championships con- tinues today with the regional finals and Michigan remains among the contenders for t h e crown. block road to Philadelphia The Big Eight champion Tigers : are 26-4 on the season. Big and fast, the Tigers were impres- sive in their 86-75 win over Tex- as Tech Thursday night.- All-American guard Willie j Smith leads Missouri. The 6- 2 senior played an absolutely amazing game against Tex- aes Tech, scoring 30 points, grabbing ten rebounds and THE LINEUPS MICHIGAN Rickey Green (6-2) Steve Grote (6-2) Phil Hubbard (6-7) John Robinson (6-6 Wayman Britt (6-2) G G C F F MISSOURI Jeff Currie (6-3) Willie Smith (6-2) James Clabon (6-P) Tim Anderson (6-8) Jim Kennedy (6-6) we need another year," Stuart said. Steve Grote draws the unen- viable assignment of guarding Smith. Grote strained a liga- ment fighting for a loose ball ! against Notre Dame, and has a heavily bandaged knee. "It'll be alright," said Grote after playing on it in practice yesterday. Daily )torts NIGHT EDITOR: RICK MADDOCK dishing out seven assists. ba y'stb Michigan-Missouri "le's t r e e n d o u dutstanding, too. 6-6 forward Bullock's first three shots on broadcast on radio stations Michigan coach Johnny Orr. "IIJm Kennedy averages 16.2 Thursday night. WUOM-FM (91.7); WAAM- sure would like to have him points per game and 5.7 re- Both Michigan and Missouri AM (1600); and television sta- on my team." bounds. The All-Big Eight Ken- love to run and today's game tion WWJ, Channel 4. Tip-off Smith has a feather light nedy is joined at forward by should be fast paced. time is scheduled for 12:15 shooting touch from both in 6-8 junior Ken Anderson, a 14.2 "I don't think it'll be a slow p.m. close and long range. T h e points per game scorer. down," said Orr. "We're n o t slippery backcourt man shows 6-8 James Clabon and 6-9 going to try to slow it down. no qualms about shooting from Stan Ray share the center We've only tried to slow it The Wolverines face Missouri i as far as 30 feet from the spot for the Tigers. Despite down once this year and that at1 5A .i aetl-basket.,hi sz h Tigers are far was against Las Vegas," said vised on WWJ, Channel four.' Smith's supporting cast is from slo. The battle Orr who was at his loquacious with the Wolverines should be best at yesterday's press con- fleree ference. "They beat us 108-94. rt fierce. We did a helluva job. Our "I was surprised with Mis- defensive goal in that game souri's big men's agility," said was 104, but we didn't know Orr. (Las Vegas Coach Jerry) Tar- PClabon, a junior college trans- kanian's brother and uncle were fer never played high s c h o o l reffing the game.", I basketball. However his steady Michigan's speed worries improvement has won him a Mizzou coach Norm Stuart. starting job in the pivot. A tre- "We think we have fair court mendous leaper, he blocked speed and good quickness. But W olverines cautious ?Texas Tech all-America Rick after I saw Michigan I think Wayman Britt will guard Ken- has a sore acchiles tendon will nedy and John Robinson, who I cover Anderson. Phil Hubbard will guard Clabon and Rickey Green takes Jeff Currie. The winner of the Michigan- Missouri game will play t h e winner of today's Rutgers-VMI battle next Saturday in Phil- adelphia. Season record MISSOURI (26-4) M 87, Fairleigh Dickinson 67 M 88, Toledo 85 (ot) M 105, Baylor 70 M 85, Oklahoma City 68 M 94, Rice 75 M 80, S. Dakota State 57 M 71, UCLA 83 M 66, Hawai i M 99. Hawaii 91 M 81, Oklahoma State 79 M 86, Kansas State 66 M 79, Kansas 69 M 90, Lafayette 77 M 106, MacMurray 34 M 99, Kansas 69 M 88, Oklahoma State 67 M 84, Iowa State 68 M 72, Oklahoma 58 M 62, Nebraska 57 M 81, Kansas State 85 M 98, Colorado 78 M 72, Oklahoma State 71 M 85. Iowa State 64 M 61, Kansas 60 M 95, Nebraska 84 (OT) M 57, Oklahoma 68 M 81, Kansas State 72 M 95, Colorado 60 Steve Grote . . .remember letdowns UCLA PLAYS HOST ON COAST By KATHY HENNEGHAN AA r "A.-. -/ .E a s r- an - l=l-s !n c LOUISVILLE { ie rtfUh ULtreUMU HE QUESTION IS: Did the Wolverines pull off a stunning win over Notre Dame Thursday night only to fall flat on By The Associated Press the end, it will be to our advan-t their faces against Missouri today? Michigan has certainly Indiana, as loose as a loser tage."V been guilty of letdowns at earlier points in the season. In according to its coach, and Mar- The winner will play the sur-' general the Wolverines have been at their worst in games they quette, ready to turn on the vivor of the game between de- expected to win handily, and at their best when fighting for bully like the "97-pound weak- fending champion UCLA, 26-4,r their lives. ling" according to its coach, and Arizona, 24-9, who will meetV One of Michigan's worst efforts of the year had to be meet today in the key NCAA Re- in the West final at UCLA'sa an 84-81 win over Ohio State in January. To hear Johnny Orr gional basketball final. homecourt in Los Angeles. tell it, the game might just as well have been a loss. "We No. 1 Indiana, unbeaten in 29 UCLA WILL be trying to stay ~ ~~games since the start' of the, in the running for something 0 were either tired or not mentally up for the game," he said season, meets No. 2 Marquette,i te nn somethingt at the time. That Ohio State team was the cellar dwellar in the saomesN.2Mrute old and something new-its 11th Bg Te tiyehar he gtae ame two das after Mhan 27-1, at Baton Rouge, La., in national championship in 13f Big Ten this year. The game came two days after Michigan the Mideast title game. years and its first under Genea lost 80-74 to Indiana. After being sky high for the Hoosiers the "I THINK pressure is largely Bartow, who succeeded Johns team had nothing left. a figment of the imagination of Wooden after last year.f Another forgettable game from Michigan's standpoint sports writers," said Indiana Garry Colson, coach of Pep-V was the 76-75 loss at Illinois. The upset came in the wake Coach Bobby Knight, whose perdine, a 70-61 loser to UCLA of Michigan's hard fought 84-80 road win over Purdue. The Hoosiers were eliminated in the Thursday night, is one who 1 Illini simply outhustled Michigan. "I was a little afraid of regional final last year. "It's no thinks UCLA will succeed. this," Orr said. "We were very high for Purdue, and we more pressure on us to win this "You can go all the way," game than if we were 0-29." Colson told Bartow. "You play-f just couldn't get anything generated for this game." "I believe when it gets to be ed bad at times, but you won And then there was the final regular season game against a tight situation at the end of and that's what counts." Northwestern. The Wolverines had already received t h e i r the game, a white-knuckler, the: One thing UCLA won't be NCAA bid, removing a lot of incentive for the win. Michigan tendency is for the better team I able to play badly-and survive1 pulled it off but just barely, 80-77. "They're a strange bunch of to tighten up," said Marquette!-is defense. Arizona out-of- guys," mused Orr after that game. "They're all nice kids, but Coach Al McGuire. "The weak- fensed the nation's most of- sometimes you really have to yell at 'em to get them to work er gets strong. If it's close at fense-minded team in. gaining Is another letdown likely today? It's doubtful. PI RINGS ' For one thing the Wolverines are not inclined to take NA A P AII N GS their opposition lightly. They learned that lesson against Wichita State. "Hey! Wichita State had a good team," said ..................................................................."......:::.:.......*:::...::....... Phil H ubbar kst.. .... .,:...................s. .r....s:.r....r.. :.:....... The team knows it cannot take a win over Missouri for grant-.i East Mideast ts ( LttUe Doily Photo by KEN FINK WAYMAN BRITT (32), one of the big reasons the Wolverines are in the regional finals this afternoon, shows his soft touch in a 66-63 victory over Michigan State, this past January. M 69 Wahinton 67 the regional final, beating Ne- M 86. Texas Tech 75 vada-Las Vegas 114-109 in over- time. THE NATION'S only other major unbeaten team, Rutgers, will try to turn its opponent into a "pumpkin" in the East Re- gional final at Greensboro, N.C. Should the Scarlet Knights, 30- 0, fail, unranked Virginia Mili- tary Institute, who this season finished at .500 or better for only the fourth time in 33 sea- sons, will make it into the final four. It has a school record 22 wins against nine losses. "We're here," said VMI Coach Bill Blair. "Don't ask me how." Besides talent, Rutgers also is counting on the law of aver- ages. "We can't believe Phil Sellers will have three bad shooting games in a row," Rut- gers Coach Tom Young said of his All-American, who has a 19- point per game average but has scored only 21 in two playoff 2455S" games. --- - - -- - - - -- - -- - - -- - - - - m 0 amw S CO R E S COLLEGE BASKETBALL Thursday night UCLA 70. Pepperdine 61 NBA Golf Ball Special---PGA Par-Ex Reg. 16.00 Now 9.95 ed while looking ahead to Philadelphia. Any team still alive in the tournament at this point is very respectable. Missouri's record is 26-4 -and the Tigers boast high caliber players - honorable mention guard Willie Smith for one. "I didn't see much of the Missouri-Texas Tech game but I understand they have some good big guys too," said Hub- bard. "We won't let down. We just have to take 'em one at a time. We're going for the money now." Another reason that a let down will be very surprising is senior Wayman Britt. Anyone who saw the look on Britt's face as he sat on the bench after fouling out Thurs- day knows he will give his all in this game. Britt wanted - that win so very badly but was powerless to do anything about it in the game's final minutes. As the only senior of Michigan's top ten players, this tour- nament might mean a little more to Britt than to some of the younger players. Any game now could be the last of his collegiate career. If there's a way to win by sheer determina- tion Britt will find it. Michigan has a few things to prove by getting to the final four, and the Wolverines can only reach that goal by taking care of Missouri today. If we get to the final four, we'll consider ourselves definite contenders for the national championship," said Orr. "Sure. Indiana and Maronette are good, but we're not afraid of them. I don't see how anybody could think like that." Michigan could also help dispell some myths - mainly the supposed lowliness of Big Ten basketball on the national scene. "Everv time you look at the TV, all you see is North Caroline-Maryland, North Carolina-Marvland," said Orr. "Isn't it sickening but you don't see any of those ACC teams in the regionals. "The problem with the ACC is that people confuse com- petitiveness with quality. The teams in that league are all very close, and that creates interest." Of course, Michigan is not the only Big Ten team still in action. Indiana takes on second-ranked Marquette today in the Mideast regional final. Is Michigan hoping for another shot at the Hoosiers in Philadelphia? "Well, as long as we get there," said Hubbard, "we don't care if they get there. Let them worry about that." S- ALE6 20% ~to 40 OF 0 ZUNI & NAVAJO JEWELRY "HAND WOVEN CLOTHING s LEATHER JACKETS, CAPS & VISORS BLANKETS * SCARFS * ONYX p a,,t At Greensboro, N.C. Rutgers (30-0) vs. VMI (22-9), 12:15 p.m. Midwest At Louisville, Ky. Missouri (26-4) vs. MICHIGAN (23-6), 12:15 p.m. At Baton Rouge, La. Indiana (29-0) vs. Marquette (27-1), 2:15 p.m. West At Los Angeles, Calif. Arizona (24-8) vs. UCLA (25-4), 4:15 p.m. Chicago 108, Atlanta 101 IBoston 120, Kansas City 117 (OT) SNew Orleans 103, Cleveland 51 NHL SPittsburgh 7, Washington 3 V~ancouver 2, Atlanta 2 LIMIT: 3 DOZEN r (OUR LICENSE) so you've 4t it (SPIRITS) F1 Feld Sal iesEnglfler i .90 ..rs/l@WS for f--j You can get ahead faster in a technical sales career with Texas Instruments. Here's Why: Whpes NOW YOU CAN HAVE WINE WITH OUR ITALIAN DINNERS. 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