Men's Volleyball
vs. Toledo
Tonight, 7:30 p.m.
CCRB

SPORTS
Wednesday, February 4, 1987

Women's Swimming
vs. Northern Michigan
Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Matt Mann Pool
Page 9

The Michigan Daily
Brown busts
butt for icers
Frosh fires Blue

By PETE STEINERT
It is no wonder that Michigan freshman Rob Brown's favorite NHL
hockey team is the New York Rangers.
. "I just like the Rangers because they don't have a lot of outstanding
players," Brown said after a recent practice at Yost Ice Arena. "Over the
years they've had a lot of hard workers and just a lot of team efforts."
Brown may not have known it at-the time, but he had just given a
good description of his own style of play.
. Although he may not be the flashiest player on the ice, Brown
compensates for what he lacks in size and talent with a lot of hustle and a
lot of desire.
"I'm not the fastest skater on the ice, and I don't have the hardest shot,
but if you work hard, you can make up for those things," said the 5-8,
165-pound center. "It kind of makes the other weaknesses not show up as
much."
HARD WORK has become a way of life for the Williamston (near
East Lansing) native ever since his hockey career started at age four.
When he was in eighth and ninth grade, he made the 80-minute drive to
Detroit four or five days a week to play on a team with present roommate
and teammate Alex Roberts.
He faced perhaps his biggest challenge in December of 1985, when he
partially tore a ligament in his left knee while playing with St.
Michael's in Toronto. The injury put him out of action for two months
and greatly diminished his chances of earning a college scholarship.
"When I hurt my knee, that's the
first thing that went through my
mind," Brown said. "You know -
my career is going to be over.
When I was all through with the
rest of the rehab and everything, I
wasn't sure if I was going to be
' able to play or not."
Brown succeeded in walking on
at Michigan in hopes of just
getting a chance to play. As it has
turned out, he is one of just five
players on the team to appear in all
32 games.
Not until recently, however, has
his persistence really begun to pay
dividends. He is now a regular on
the penalty-killing unit and
Brown centering Berenson's checking line,
... blue collar blue-liner which also includes Ryan Pardoski
and Joe Lockwood.

Daily Photo by JOHN MUNSON

Rob Brown dives to the ice to try and stop a shot by Western Michigan's All-American, Wayne Gagne.

Big Ten coaches stress
winning conference


"I
team
said.

think Brown is one of the first freshmen to really identify with the
defensive concept, and he's doing a good job of that," Berenson

"(Playing with Pardoski and Lockwood) has given me a lot of
confidence," Brown said. "Staying with the same people for week after
week, I'm getting to know Joe and Ryan better and better. I'm starting to
think on the same waves as they are."
BROWN'S confidence boost has shown in the second half of the
season. Eleven of his 13 points (5 goals, 8 assists) have come since mid-
December. Brown had his best offensive series of the season last weekend
against Western Michigan, with a goal and three assists.
As the weeks go on, Brown is probably starting to remind fans more
and more of another 5-8 Wolverine center, sophomore Todd Brost. Both
players, similar in build, are in constant motion on the ice.
"I think smaller guys have to be skating and moving all the time and
be constantly in the game," Brost said. "I think (Brown) is playing really
well lately."
"When I first signed my letter of intent to play here, and I started
meeting people, everybody told me that there's another Todd Brost
coming in, and I pretty much had to live up to his reputation," Brown
said. -
Brown and Brost are the kind of players whose hustle can spark a fire
in a team. That has become increasingly evident with Michigan's
improved second-half play.
"It is pretty contagious," said Bryan Deasley, who was a linemate of
Brown's last year at St. Michael's. "It works for the benefit of the team.
If anyone's working hard the way he does, it spreads through the team."
crew laces
at Madison
The men's rowing team broke
the monotony of their brutal winter
training this past weekend when N IC
they traveled to Madison to
compete in the Mid-Winter Crew
Classic.
The competition wasn't a boat
race in arctic February - the
Classic is a five-mile timed race on
ergometers, or rowing machines. NO COVER 9-10
Michigan rowers fared well $1 COVER AFTER 10
among the 250 competitors, with with student 1D
national-champion Wisconsin $1 DRINK SPECIALS
making up the largest contingent.
In the lightweight division, TOP 40
Michigan head coach Brian Benz
captured first place with a time of
18:19 and senior captain Dave
Roberts placed eighth with 8:41.
-Chris Gordillo

CHICAGO (AP) - The
prestige, not to mention the
money, involved in the NCAA
basketball tournament is great. But
most Big Ten coaches still insist
winning the conference
championship is most important.
"Winning the Big Ten
championship is an
accomplishment they can't take
away from you. It's a tough thing
to do," said Bill Frieder Tuesday in
a weekly telephone interview with
conference coaches.
Frieder has guided Michigan to
two successive championships only
to have the Wolverines bow out of
the NCAA tournament in the
second round each time. Michigan
is one of the hottest teams in the
conference, with six straight
victories.
Frieder said winning the Big Ten
is more important than reaching the
Final Four in the NCAA "unless
you were to win the national
championship."
Some of the other coaches were
not that sure.
"If you look at the results of the
Big Ten champions in tournament
play the last few years," said Iowa's
Tom Davis, "you're going to find
people who appreciate a champion.
But you're going to find people
who appreciate more who goes the
furthest in tournament play and
who is playing the best in March."
Purdue's Gene Keady called
himself a "league champion guy."
"We will work like heck to win
the championship and strive to
improve for the NCAA

championship," he said.
Ohio State's Gary Williams
said: "If you start to worry about
the tournament, you won't do well
in a conference like the Big Ten.
You don't get to the NCAA
without showing what you can do.
The NCAA will take care of itself."
Lou Henson of Illinois said he
didn't think many coaches coached
with the idea of preparing their
teams specifically for the NCAA
tournament.
"If a team wins four or five
games in the NCAA, some coaches
say that's what we tried to do,"
Henson said. "I know it has been
said, but I'm not so sure it's true.
We try to win each and every game
and strengthen our team as we go
along."
One thing all of the coaches
agreed upon was that the Big Ten
should land six teams in the NCAA
as it has the past two seasons.
Indiana, Iowa, Purdue, and Illinois
- all ranked among the top 20 in
the Associated Press poll most of
the season - are considered shoo-
ins.
208 S. First, Ann Arbor 996-8555
This Week at
The Blind Pig
Feb 4 THE POINT
Feb 5 LET'S TALK
ABOUT GIRLS
Drink Specials Every
MON $1 SHOTS
TUE $3 BEER PITCHERS
WED $2 MARGARITA MUGS
THU $1 WATERMELONS

vu frtvmls of
%M u#Iversit~j br&"v
corcLg t tU youto hear
noted aui~thor a a Lalunm
Fri~t, Februaryj 6
3:30-4:30 p.m.
Rc hinAmphU te



p .(

What's Happening
Recreational Sports

JOIN AN
IM VOLLEYBALL LEAGUE
Instant Scheduling:

76-GUIDE
WINTER WORKSHOP SERIES
PLEASE JOIN US FOR THE FOLLOWING PEER-LED WORKSHOPS
T-TT TTRT)V ATT-TTS '7 tn 9nm

Tue.,'
Wed.,

Feb. 10, 11am - 4:30pm
Feb. 11, 11 am - 4:30pm