The Michigan Daily- Sports Tuesday- January 21, 1992- Page 7 WATSON Continued from page 1 Watson finally decided that the time was right to move up a level. Detroit's loss is Ann Arbor's gain. "I've watched him grow and de- velop the Southwestern program," Fisher said. "He is good at what he does. He is a smart, intelligent man who can think on his feet. But more importantly than the X's and O's, Perry cares about people and kids. That's what I want in the pro- gram." Fisher lost top assistant Mike * Boyd, who left to take over the Cleveland State program 18 months ago. The coaching vacancy remained throughout last season as rumors flew. Ignorant stereotypes insist that every team requires a Black assis- tant to recruit Black basketball players. Boyd dealt with such as- sumptions throughout his 10 years in Ann Arbor. Watson repels im- *plications of a similar role for himself. Watson's job description en- tails many duties, and that's just the way he likes it. He bristles at the thought that he was brought to Michigan merely to recruit blue- chip Black basketball stars. A prime reason Watson turned down the UNLV job was because his nar- row role would have been just that - a Black salesman of the Rebel ILLINI Continued from page 1 from the Wolverines - missed free throws. Ray Jackson missed two, Rose missed two, and Webber missed two. After Webber missed two, Jack- son redeemed himself by putting away two free throws with 0:15 left, putting the game out of Illi- nois' reach for good. "After Duke, I told our kids, 'Do not believe everything that is being said. You're not as good as people are telling you."' Fisher said. "After Purdue (a 65-60 loss), I said, Don't believe everything that is be- ing said, you're not as bad as people are saying.' We are going through peaks and valleys. Nothing helps as much as victories." Michigan's next Big Ten matchup is tonight in Bloomington against the Hoosiers. Indiana leads the Big Ten with a 4-0 record and stands at 13-2 overall. program. When Fisher promised him much more participation, Watson jumped at the chance. "Fisher wanted someone who is proven as a coach, and has national exposure," Watson said. "If we see a great player in Detroit, I should initiate the ties because of what I bring to the table. Not because I'm Black, but because of what I've done in this state. "None of the assistants will be labelled - that limits you and nar- rows your growth. I see an impor- tance in growth in all areas. All of (Fisher's assistants) have responsi- bilities during the game. I like the concept." Fisher's goal is to create as much versatility in his coaches as in his players. "When you get good people, you give them responsibility and let them carry it out," Fisher said. "Everyone has a say, everyone is in- volved." At the time of Watson's hiring, rumors drifted down from MSU coach Jud Heathcote. The Spartan sour grapes suggested that recruits Jalen Rose and Chris Webber had signed with Michigan due to an il- licit agreement that Watson would soon join them in Ann Arbor. "(The rumors) were tough, but you can't control that," Watson said. "Steve and I had talked and said we'd see at the end of the sea- son. (An agreement) had not oc- curred." Fisher's 1991 prep class was the greatest defense against the theory of Watson's hiring purely as a re- cruiting tool. Why would Michi- gan bring in a recruiting coach when the program is already set for the next few years? The program does not need more players, it needs to concentrate on those already here. "Recruitment is not such a great priority right now," Watson said. "Coaching is the top prior- ity." The Folklore Perry Watson the man became Perry Watson the urban legend in an old building in the heart of his native Southwest Detroit. This is where he built a name for himself, but more importantly, he built a name for his players and school. "The man is an institution in this building," Southwestern prin- cipal Betty Hines said. "He has done a lot for the school. When you win a lot you have a positive im- age." Since Watson took over the Southwestern program in 1978, the Prospectors went to the state fi- nals nine times, winning champi- onships in 1990 and 1991. Watson's astounding record of 302-34 in those 13 seasons was boosted by a Who's Who of Michi- gan high school stars. Leslie Rock- ymore and Antoine Joubert starred for the Wolverines in the mid- 1980s. Alumni Anderson Hunt helped UNLV to the 1990 NCAA title by winning the Final Four MVP trophy. And now Jalen Rose has begun a career amid high expec- tations in Ann Arbor. Last season's Prospector squad, led by Rose, ended their season as state champs and the No. 1-ranked high school team in USA Today's national poll. Every one of the se- niors on the club earned a college scholarship. "Basketball is like a religion to a lot of people here," Watson said. "There is a lack of a lot of other available activities, so a lot of kids realize basketball would be their ticket to get out. "We reached out to kids. We found success because the coaches live in the Southwestern area. Young kids came to camps and games. Kids began to think about basketball at a young age." As a basketball coach, Watson was generally the sole father fig- ure in the lives of his players - 14 of last season's 17 players had no father at home. Many Southwestern players find success inside and outside the gym, because they listen to Wat- son, and they learn. "Coach Watson and the parents did a good job of teaching together- ness," Rose said. "Through sports we could learn teamwork and heart. On the streets we could learn the same things, but could get killed. "He emphasized being a well- rounded person, so you could han- dle all situations." Coach Watson often acted as an adviser, teacher and friend to many people in Detroit. And one could see it was no act. "Perry had a vested interest in Southwest Detroit," Hines said. "He has a knowledge of and sensi- tivity to children enrolled here. He knew the young people and the forces going on within the commu- nity. He was so active. "I have watched him work with young men. Some with serious problems and concerns in their family or society. He was able to reverse the directions of those stu- dents. Perry was a vital part of their lives and knew what was hap- pening at home and in the streets. Perry had expectations of them, and they were aware of those. They knew he would accept nothing less." Watson's expectations were simple: teach kids to be strong people outside of the gym, and they will become even stronger inside. "We tried to make kids under- stand that basketball could be the ticket, but they must be prepared academically," Watson said, "Our kids bought into that and accepted the challenge. They trusted me a lot, and things worked out." Things worked out so well in fact that one senses that he could make a strong run in Detroit's next mayoral election, if he so desired. One That Got Away Five years ago, Watson did lose an election in one Detroit home. A talented eighth-grader living in the Southwestern district decided to attend high school out in the sub- urbs. Watson spoke with Chris Web- ber's family before the 14-year-old chose to study and play basketball for Detroit Country Day School. He emphasized Southwestern's strong academic standards. He stressed the program's success in athletics. But Country Day was able to sing the same tune. Watson could not convince the family to choose the home neighborhood over one of the finest college-prep schoojs in the state. "Chris wanted to come to Southwestern, no doubt," Watson said. "But his parents really wanted (Country Day)." Webber remained close to the Southwestern program. He main- tained contact with Watson and played AAU ball with Rose in the summertime. The loss of Webber, who con- tinued to live in Detroit, could have grown into a source of fric- tion for all involved. But Watson and Webber refused to let it dis- turb their close relationship. "I didn't want to lose a friend- ship by saying 'bad choice'," Wat- son said. Whatever remorse Watson felt after the Webbers took their son out of town was quickly salved by the presence of two other eighth- graders, Rose and Voshon Lenard (now at Minnesota), who may comprise the backcourt on the 1991-92 All-Big Ten Rookie squad. "We knew we'd be successful anyway," Watson said. "Without Chris Webber, we won a national championship. What more could we have done?" What more could anyone have done in his position'? Watson earned even more victories off the court than he did on it, and his move to big-time college basket- ball was only inevitable. MICHIGAN (68) FG FT Reb. Min. M-A M-A O-T A F Pts. Webber 31 8-13 0-2 6-16 1 4 16 Voskuil 23 4-5 1-2 1-2 2 5 10 Howard 29 6-9 1-3 1-5 1 4 13 Rose 36 4-13 9-15 4-4 4 1 17 Talley 29 1-5 2-2 1-1 3 2 4 Pelinka 3 0-1 0-0 1-2 0 0 0 Jackson 16 1-1 3-6 2-2 0 1 5 King 15 1-2 0-0 0-3 0 3 3 Riley 10 0-2 0-0 0-2 0 5 0 Mclver 8 0-0 0-0 0-1 0 3 0 Totals 200 25-51 16-30 16.42 11 28 68 FG%- .490. FT%- .533. Three-point goals: 2-5, .400 (King 1-1, Voskuil 1-1, Rose 0-2, Talley 0- 1). Team rebounds: 4. Blocks: 5 (Mclver 2, Webber 2, Voskuil). Turnovers: 19 (Webber 4, Howard 3, Mclver 2, Riley 2, Talley 2, Voskuil 2, Rose). Steals: 4 (Rose 2, Talley 2). Technical fouls: 0. ILLINOIS (61) FG FT Rob. Min. M-A IM-A O-T A F Pt. Michael 35 4-11 0-0 1-3 2 4 10 Bennett 27 0-3 3-7 1-4 1 2 3 Thomas 40 5-8 8-11 1-1 0 2 18 Clemons 37 0-3 0-0 0-1 3 4 0 Taylor 22 3-7 1-2 1-4 2 5. 7 Wheeler 27 4-8 8-9 0-3 2 4 17 Pierce 9 1-3 4-7 2-3 1 2 6 Tuttle 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 Roth 2 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 Totals 200 17-44 24-36 6-20 11 23 61 FG%- .386. FT%- .667. Three-point goals: 3-9, .333 (Michael 2-4, Wheeler 1-3, Taylor 0- 2). Team rebounds: 1. Blocks: 0. Turnovers: 14 (Clemons 4, Thomas 3, Bennett 2, Wheeler 2, Michael, Taylor). Steals: 7 (Thomas 3, clemons I2, Bennett, Wheeler). Technical fouls: 0. Michigan............32 36 - 68 Illinois ................ 24 37 - 61 U MONEY FOR COLLEGE Every Student is Eligible for Financial Aid " Over 200,000 listings represent over $10 billion in private sector financial aid. " Easy to Use- Awards based on career plans, family heritage and academic interests and more. Unique Awards- we locate scholarships for golf caddies, left- handed students, cheerleaders, non-smokers, and more. 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