Men's Basketball vs. Bowling Green Tonight, 7:30 p.m. Crisler Arena SPORTS Ice Hockey vs. Kent State Friday and Saturday, 7 p.m. Yost Ice Arena The Michigan Daily Wednesday, December 9, 1992 Page 9 'M' looks to soar over Falcons Men cagers take on Bowling Green for first time since 1987 by Ken Davidoff Daily Basketball Writer Rice was the opener. Duke was the rematch. Detroit Mercy was the local rivalry. Bowling Green? Well, it's the only time all season the Michigan basketball squad will play 'We've got to do a better job of rebounding, especially at the defensive end. We still have not done a great job controlling the dribbler on the defensive end, too many dribble drives. Free-throw shooting is still a major concern.- - Michigan coach Steve Fisher a team with the word "Bowling" in its name. The Wolverines (2-1 overall) have only one item on their agenda when they host the Falcons (1-0) tonight at Crisler Arena - win. No special motivation factors exist to hype up the contest. The teams have no apparent connections in terms of personnel, and they haven't faced off since 1987, when the Bill Frieder-led Wolverines prevailed, 92-71. Michigan coach Steve Fisher confessed after Monday night's vic- tory over Detroit Mercy that he and his players knew close to nothing about Bowling Green, but he tar- geted several areas in which his team needed work. "We've got to improve on every- thing," Fisher said. "We've got to do a better job of rebounding, especially at the defensive end. We still have not done a great job controlling the dribbler on the defensive end, too many dribble drives. Free-throw shooting is still a major concern. But let's do it one day at a time, one step at a time, and stay with it." Forward Chris Webber acknowl- edged the team still needed work on foul shooting. The Wolverines fin- ished an improved, but still unac- ceptable, 17-for-28 from the foul line against Detroit. However, Webber also thought Michigan could take some positives out of Monday night's game. "(We realized) that we could just play hard and still have fun," Webber said. "Don't take the en- joyment out of the game." Bowling Green, expected to fin- ish in the middle of the Mid- American Conference pack by most experts, won its only game thus far join Kline-Ruminski in the Falcons' starting lineup. Like any college basketball team in this universe, the Falcons want to defeat the Wolverines simply be- cause they are Michigan. "We're not different from any other team," Bowling Green assis- tant coach Marc Iavaroni said. "We're very enthusiastic about play- ing Michigan. We just want to play to our ability and not get caught up in the hoopla. "It's so early in the season; our defense is way ahead of our of- fense," Iavaroni said. Bowling Green head coach Jim Larranaga, in his seventh year with the Falcons, could not comment, literally, on tonight's contest. He has been experiencing voice loss the last few days. Assistant coach Steve Merfeld explained that Larranaga has this problem every year around this time, forcing Larranaga to make sure he eats well and rests properly. With final exams approaching, Michigan will take the weekend off before hosting Cleveland State next Monday. This will mark former Wolverine assistant coach Mike Boyd's first visit to Crisler since he took over the Vikings last season. Webber against Division III Heidelberg College, 81-50. Center Shane Kline- Ruminski, who won MAC freshman- of-the-year honors last year, led the squad with 22 points. Forwards Floyd Miller (17.0 points per game last season) and Matt Otto (8.0) and guards Michael Huger (19.0) and Ray Lynch (8.0) Juwan Howard (left ), Jimmy King and the rest of the Wolverines hope to improve upon their rebounding and foul shooting tonight vs. Bowling Green. Monday, the Wolverines shot 17-for-28 from the line against Detroit. BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK by Ryan Herrington Daily Basketball Writer Many of the 13,169 fans watching Michigan's home opener Monday night against Detroit Mercy might have thought they were sitting in Reunion Arena rather than Crisler. The Wolverines' 92-77 victory over the Titans brought together several Detroit-area basketball players who had either competed against or played with each other in high school. In total, 13 players who played ball in Detroit were suited up for the two teams. The familiarity between the opponents was evident on the court. Many of the players have continued to play against each other since their high school days and spoke with each other before the game. There was no consensus, however, as to whether the friendship between players was a positive or a negative factor in the game. "It's a lot of fun playing with them," Michigan forward Chris Webber said. "You sort of get there and laugh a little bit and have fun. They've got some great players - Tony Tolbert, Dwayne Kelley, Mike Lovelace - and you know they're a good team. You don't want to be too friendly 'cause you don't want to get stabbed, but it's fun playing with people you know." "(Playing against your friends) makes it that much more fun to play," Titan guard Tolbert said. Tolbert's link with the Wolverines goes beyond simply facing old high school opponents. The 6-foot-4 guard played two seasons for the Wolverines before transferring to U of D two years ago. His first appearance in Crisler Arena since leaving was a bittersweet moment. "It brought back a lot of memories," Tolbert said following his team- high 22-point performance. "I got to see a lot of friends that I haven't seen in awhile, since during the summer." The local ties did not just end with the players. Michigan assistant coach Perry Watson, who coached at Detroit Southwestern from 1978 to 1991, got to see three of his former Prospectors play against each other Monday night. U of D's Michael Hamilton and Mike Lovelace as well as Michigan point guard Jalen Rose all played on Class A state championship squads while they were teammates in high school. Lovelace won the unofficial contest between the trio, scoring 13 points and grabbing five rebounds to Hamilton's seven points and Rose's 11. STILL BE-DEVILED: Even though it finished its contest with the Blue Devils on Saturday night, Michigan was still feeling the after effects of the 79-68 loss to Duke during the first half of the game on Monday. The Wolverines play was erratic at times as Michigan attempted to slow down the tempo of the game. Many inside shots did not fall for the Wolverines, as their 44 percent first-half shooting percentage would attest. It was not until the 6:10 mark that Michigan took its first lead of the night and never had an advantage greater than its six-point half time lead. Friends become foes at Crlsler reunion "We were surprised they came out so strong," Webber said. "After a loss _ like Duke, you just want to get on the court as soon as possible." A PRETTY GOOD FIRST WEEK: Despite the somewhat sporadic play of the Wolverines in their first three contests, Webber has compiled some impressive numbers during the first week of his sophomore season. While the 6-foot-9 forward drew jeers Monday night for his errant behind-the-back passes and showtime play, Webber has produced. His 24 points and.14 rebounds against the Titans helped bolster his early-season statistics. Webber leads the team in scoring and rebounding, averaging 19.3 points and 14.7 boards a contest. FRESHMAN ORIENTATION: With 4:04 remaining in the game, and the Wolverines holding a comfortable 21-point lead, Michigan coach Steve Fisher summoned Dugan Fife from the bench to replace Rob Pelinka. The rookie entered his first game at Crisler Arena to very loud applause from the crowd and managed to score his first two points as a Wolverine in the process. When asked what it was like to hear the cheers ofthe Crisler faithful, Fife answered, "It was like being at a concert." Not to be outdone by his first-year teammate, freshman Leon Derricks also scored the first point of his career in his three and a half minutes of play. NEW ADDITION TO CRISLER: Without much fanfare, the Michigan athletic department added in the 1992 NCAA Finalist banner to the rafters of Crisler Arena last week. The banner was placed along side the one commemorating the Wolverines' 1986 Big Ten championship. I he top zu teams in the Associated Press 1992 men's college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses. Team Team 1. Duke (36) 11. Georgetown 2. Kansas (29) 12. Arizona 3. Kentucky 13. UCLA 4. Indiana 14. Oklahoma 5. North Carolina 15. Purdue 6. Michigan 16. Arkansas 7. Seton Hall 17. Georgia Tech 8. Iowa 18. Michigan State 9. Louisville 19. Tulane 10. Florida State 20. UNLV Early Deadlines for Display Advertisin this January?. Publication: Deadline: Wed., Jan. 6 Fri., Dec. I I Thurs., Jan. 7 Fri., Dec. I1 Fri., Jan. 8 Fri., Dec. I 1 Enjoy the Holiday Season? 0rje 3PhftI$gan waii HAVING TROUBLE BALANCING YOUR FINALS WORKLOAD? NEED EXCITEMENT IN YOUR LIFE? FIND IT IN THE DAILY FINALS PAGE - I Take the Plunge /* l t " I * L 7' DEPARTMENT OF RECREATIONAL SPORTS Color! INTRAMURAL SPORTS PROGRAM THANKS!!! TO ALL THE STU3DENTS. FACULTY. unWIA ifiA TF.rn1AP'rA11T r IR!