Basketball vs. Purdue Saturday, 4 p.m. Mackey Arena SPORTS Baseball Spring Trip March 11-21 Texas The Michigan Daily Thursday, March 3, 1988 Page9 The Schef's Specialty BY ADAM SCHEFTER If hkstory repeats, Michigan will be partying in KC So what if Michigan does not win the Big Ten championship? If history repeats itself, a 1987-88 national championship banner will be dangling from the rafters of Crisler Arena next season. Last year, Bob Knight's buddies, the "basketball experts", said that Indiana had to pull out its last three games of the season to harbor any hopes of winning the national championship. Now, those same basketball aficionados are pointing to Michigan's final three games - against the exact same three teams, at the same arenas, and in the same order that Indiana played last year - as must- win games. The experts claim the Wolverines have to be victorious on the road to head into the NCAA tournament with enough gas to get to the Final Four. THERE'S MORE THAN JUST the schedules, though. During the 1986-87 season, Indiana swept Michigan and lost at Iowa. This year, Michigan swept Indiana and also lost to the Hawkeyes in Iowa City. But even if the Wolverines are unsuccessful in West Lafayette and Champaign, Michigan fans can take heart. The Hoosiers got shot down at both those sites last year and still managed to dance the night away on Bourbon Street. Even though Westport - the party place in Kansas City - isn't known for being quite as lively as New Orleans, Frieder and his forces would have no problem staging a celebration there. This year's Wolverines are remarkably similar in personnel to last year's national champions. When speaking of last year's Indiana team, one has to start with All- American Steve Alford. The senior guard's name was synonymous with the Hoosiers. His play made him the second most popular person in Indiana and the most imitated player in backyards scattered around the cornfields. As he went, so went Indiana. FOR THE WOLVERINES, it's the same simple equation - Michigan basketball equals Gary Grant. Like Alford, when Grant is in control, Michigan soars. Indiana also relied on two junior college transfer players, Dean Gar- rett and Keith Smart, to stabilize the front and back courts. Garrett came into his own as the season went on, ending the season averaging 11.4 points per game. Smart was a defensive demon, ending the season with 30 steals and the shot seen 'round the world. Vaught scores 22 off bench (Continued from Page 1) bundle of their points," said Frieder. But the 38-point victory margin was still the Wolverines' biggest ever over Northwestern, a fact not lost on Michigan's coach. "We played hard, especially early, and that's what I wanted to see," said Frieder. Terry Mills chipped in with 13 points and Loy Vaught came off the bench to score 22, giving the Wolverines five players in double figures. Senior Steve Stoyko made the first Big Ten start of his career, scoring four points in 11 minutes of playing time. The game was out of reach almost as soon as it began, with Grant setting up Rice with a picturesque alley-oop to open the scoring. The second-place Wolverines did not miss a shot or a free throw for the first three-and-a-half minutes of the game en route to taking a 29-6 lead. Included in that early run was a rare four-point play by Grant, who earlier in the day was named first-team All-America by Basketball Weekly. While driving in for a lay-up, Grant was hammered by Jeff Grose. Since it was ruled an intentional foul, Grant was given two free throws in addition to the basket. He hit both. There were plenty of other highlights such as a variety of three-point plays and dunks, but there was one slam that Frieder was not happy about. Vaught received a technical foul for hanging on the rim after one of his dunks. "We have to get that corrected immediately because it can be very, very costly," said Frieder. Michigan held a 53-26 lead at halftime, but Northwestern's Grose scored seven of the first nine points of the second half. Grose led the Wildcat scorers with 14. Shon Morris added 13. "Our performance wasn't good," said Northwestern coach Bill Foster., "Michigan beat us at every position... there's just no other way tQ describe it". The game served as a tuneup for Saturday's showdown with league-leading Purdue. "I feel good about the fact that we weren't lethargic and we played hard. We got some things accomplished and now we can start concentrating Purdue," said Frieder. Knight ... last year's champ Michigan counts on its own first- year players for help at forward and guard. Terry Mills has progressed with each passing game, tallying one more point per game than Gar- rett did last season, while Robinson is currently two steals behind Smart's total and waiting anxiously to prove himself to the nation. The Hoosiers counted on small forward Rick Calloway to score both inside and outside. The Wolverines have their own finesse front-line man who can sizzle like no other Rice. Indiana had Daryl Thomas and whipping-boy Steve Eyl to bang the boards inside and provide occasional scoring. Michigan counters with Loy Vaught and Mark Hughes to do the same. Knight had Joe Hillman, his 2.5 ppg., and his defensive hustle to. come off the bench to spell the guards. Frieder has Mike Griffin, his 2.4 ppg., and his great acting skills in drawing offensive fouls. Same schedule? Similar teams? T H E Universty of Mchigqan The University of Michigan SCHOOL OF MUSIC Loy Vaught drives to the hoop. Vaught scored a career-high 22 points coming off the bench last night. SCIhOOl of Nusic Thurs., Mar. 3 Sat., Mar. 4 U-M Percussion Ensemble and Pro Musica Nipponia. 'Music from Japan - Orchestra Encounters, Pt. IT' Program includes music of John Cage for traditional Japanese instruments, and world premiere of "Rakuichi-Nanaza" by Kaoru Wada Rackham, 8:00 p.m. FREE. Workshop with Lester Bowie, trumpet Co-sponsored by Eclipse Jazz Rm. 2044, School of Music, 4:00 p.m. FREE. Frieder .. . this year's champ? Ready to make your reservations for Missouri? Frieder, coincidentally, is having a book written about him this sea- son, to be called Basket Case. Knight also had a book written about him that has become almost as legendary as huckleberry Finn. Little more has to be said about Knight's outbursts and antics. He throws temper tantrums, chairs, and anything else he can to relieve .ten- sion. Now, Bill Frieder has gotten into the action - throwing punches. Earlier this season when Michigan marched off the court at halftime holding a commanding 61-28 lead over Iowa, Frieder reared back and landed a jab that would have made Mike Tyson proud. Though his punch lacked pinpoint accuracy, it still managed to connect with the television camera. Once the post-season play got underway, however, Knight managed to keep his hands to himself. It's likely Frieder will as well - until he can throw his arms around his players and drag them to Westport to celebrate - just like Indiana. For up-to-date program information on School of Music events call the 24-Hlour Music Hotline, 763-4726 March .Madness Sale-- 20% -40% OFF: Uof M: shirts, sweats shorts, jackets, sweaters night shirts, pins suspenders, posters rugby & sport shirts wu ° ,(f Y qt~ infant & toddler wear Crazy Shirts Champion football jerseys... And Much, Much More! sorry, excludes graduation cap & gowns Now through Saturday, March 19th 8:30-5:30 Monday-Friday 9:30 -5:00 Saturday 11 ** in*** A CLASS ACT * **American Israel. Public Affairs Committee MIDWEST POLITICAL LEADERSHIP TRAINING SEMINAR for COLLEGE STUDENTS March 6,1988 University of Michigan Hale Auditorium University of Michigan Business School 904 Monroe Ann Arbor, MI SENIOR PLEDGE PROGRAM BUILD A TRADITION