T -W. -W V U U U U 7W NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP Round ] Round 2 THE EXPERIENCE FACTOR Tarpley, Rellford, and Wade up front, Henderson in reserve will spell trouble for Tournament foes Round 2 Round ] Kentucky Davidson Regi W. Kentucky Nebraska Alabama Xavier, Ohio Illinois Fairfield Purdue Louisiana St. Memphis St. Ball St. Virginia Tech F Villanova FIN Georgia Tech Marist ,, Tonal o Championship AL SOUTHEAST I Quod me docuit usus, magister egregius. (What that superlative master, experience, has taught me.) - Pliny the younger By STEVE WISE IT'S EASY to see the advantages Michigan has against other basketball teams, most advantages anyway. Line the Wolverines up next to some squads and their superior height is quickly apparent. Bounce them off others and Michigan's overwhelming size and strength show up as black and blue marks and an average eight rebound deficit for opponents. OR PUT Michigan in a grueling fast-paced game and watch the Wolverines dodge fatigue by using their ex- cellent bench strength. "They're a team that has the ingredients to get to the final four," said Larry Brown, whose Kansas team is the only one seeded higher than Michigan in the NCAA tour- nament's Midwest Region. The key ingredient to Michigan's chances in this year's tournament is less visible. It's called experience, and with five seniors, two Big Ten Championships and two post-season tournaments behind them, the Wolverines are just loaded with it. "IT'S A BIG thing when you have experience," said Michigan coach Bill Frieder. "Our kids are gonna remember what happened last year." That's when the Wolverines fell in the second round to Villanova, the eventual National Champions. According to senior co-captain Butch Wade, the memory is painful but productive. "I've never felt as bad as we did (last year)," said Wade. "When we go out we're going to remember that. It's going to be in the back of our minds every game." THE WOLVERINES thought processes are the area where their experience might be most helpful. Tour- nament pressure breeds mental mistakes, but the seniors agree that having been there last year, they'll be able to handle it. "When you've been in a situation before, you don't get so nervous," said Robert Henderson, the senior anchor of Michigan's reserve corps. "You realize what your abilities are. You're able to play more at ease." Roy Tarpley, Michigan's other senior co-captain, said the seniors can also help younger players cope. "WE'RE GOING to let them know how tough it's gon- na be, that there are a lot of distractions," said the 6-11 center. "Just let them know they're going to have to be ready." Though spirit without experience is dangerous, 0 E experience, without spirit, is languid and defective. - Lord Chesterfield The seniors also know the difference between calm and complacency. Where Michigan might have been self-satisfied after the regular season last year, this year's senior-led, tournament-hardened group, feels the urgency that drives a winner. "It's a feeling I learned from Villanova's seniors," said Richard Rellford, who with walk-on Ron Gibas rounds out Michigan's senior quintet. "They played every game like it was the end of their lives. That's what we've got to do." IT'S EASIER to play with that desperation, though, when each game may be the last. Wade said there is a difference between last year, when a loss ended a season, and this year, when a loss will end his college career. "We try not to put too much pressure on ourselves, but we have to," said Wade. "For the seniors, there's no tomorrow." According to Wade, not only the seniors feel the heat. He said younger players know when Tarpley, Rellford, Henderson and himself graduate, the Wolverines will lose most of their strength and experience on the front line. "I THINK THE underclassmen feel the same way ... Granted, they may come back and play ball, but this may be their one chance (at a championship)," Wade said. Michigan also learned a lesson last year about over- confidence. Going into the first round game with Fairleigh Dickinson, the Wolverines were loose to a fault. Tarpley joked that he'd never heard of "Harley Dickerson." When Michigan struggled to a 59-55 come-from-behind win in that game, the Wolverines' attitude changed, not only toward Fairleigh Dickinson but also toward all lesser-known teams in the tournament. "WE LEARNED not to underestimate anybody with our performance against Fairleigh. Dickinson a year ago," Frieder said. The spectacles of experience, through them you will see clearly a second time. - Henrik Ibsen Even after closing this season with four crushing wins, Tarpley is more cautious. He speaks with concern about beating "the scrubbiest team in the world." Other players echo that sentiment. "We're gonna have to be wary, because we're not gonna be able to blow out people like we did tonight," said Henderson after the Wolverines trounced Indiana last Saturday. "I think we'll have in the back of our min- ds how we played last year, and we want to do it right this year."1~C WEST St. John's Montana St. Auburn Arizona Maryland Pepperdine UNLV NE Louisiana Ala. Birmingham Missouri N. Carolina Utah Badley Texas-El Paso Louisville Drexel Championship Game FOUR Duke Miss. Valley Old Dominion West Virginia Virginia DePaul Oklahoma Northeastern St. Joseph's Richmond Indiana Cleveland St. Navy Tulsa Syracuse Brown EAST MID WEST Kansas N. Caro. A&T Jacksonville Temple Michigan St. Washington Georgetown Texas Tech. N. Carolina St. Iowa Notre Dame Ark.-Little Rock Iowa State Miami Ohio MICHIGAN Akron ----------- | CAMPUS SCORNER1 818 S. State StreetI i665-4431 Open Til Midnight Fridays & Saturdays Til 1 a.m. W Groceries "Beer* "Wine" I Liquor " Ice " Fresh Produce SVHS Movie Rentals SKeys Made 9 Delivery Doily Graphi They said It.. Illinois coach Lou Henson, on the plight of coach Gene Keady and his Boilermakers, who must face Louisiana State in LSU's Assembly Center: "I wouldn't want to trade places with Keadyy. You shouldn't have to play anyone at their home site." Notre Dame coach Digger Phelps, expressing a slightly different philosophy: "You can't worry about who or where you play. It's showtime. You just have to go out and do it." Kansas coach Larry Brown, on the chance of a regional final between Kansas and Michigan, which em- barrassed the Jayhawks with a 19- point national televised drubbing last season: "It'd be the greatest thing that could happen to us because that would mean we were in the regional field. But we're not playing all our games thinking it's a chance to get back at Michigan ... "I'm not saying it'd be something we won't remember, but it won't be a situation where we'll be afraid of them." PERSONALIZED 19 AND DISTINCTIVE SERVING YOU: SJERRY " LARRY * DAVE TUES-THURS MON d WED FRI-SAT 8:30 TO 8:00 8:00 TO 5:30 WE WANT TO THANK ALL OUR LOYAL CUSTOMERS OVER THE LAST 14 YEARS BECAUSE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION ISD (BETWEEN HILL AND PACKARD) BARBERS & STYLISTS HAIR STYLING FOR THE ACTIVE PROFESSIONAL MEN " WOMEN "CHILDREN APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE 668=8669 806 S. STATE STREET ANN ARBOR, M1 48104 c by Bill Marsh &~k v i$-u hes 4/ '. 9 O *r ST. PATRII Special Pric *Free Souvenir Mug with Purchase of $1 GREEN BEER - Free T-Shirts F DOORS OPEN 7 A.M. MARCH 17 I i Cu0.i&awd Skoap 6 Handmade Fresh daily 611 Church St. (near Rick's) 662-7424 M-F 7 a.m.- 5:30 p.m. Sat. 7 a.m.- 3 p.m. Sun. 8 a.m.- 3 p.m. Roy Tarpley-'We're gonna let them know how tough it's gonna be.' bee tENIUOS, Page i1 4 Weekend-March 14, 1986 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ...,