4 - The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - Monday, March 7, 1994 Jackson's actions big in tough loss Junior forward nets a career-high 22 points against Boilermakers By RACHEL BACHMAN DAILY BASKETBALL WRITER As any presidential candidate can tell you, valiant campaigns are usu- ally overlooked if they do not result in victory. Yesterday at Crisler Arena, Ray Jackson became a walking example of that truism. His career high of 22 points in Michigan's 95-94 last-second loss to Purdue was all but forgotten amidst the mourning of a loss that let the Boilermakers back into the Big Ten championship race. "It's sad for him to play that well and for us to lose," Michigan center Juwan Howard said. "(His perfor- mance) would've looked even better if we would have won." Jackson said the outcome "defi- nitely" tarnished his best game of the season. "Regardless of what I do or any individual player does, it doesn't matter unless you win a game," Jack- son said. "We had it in our hands and we ... let it slip away." His teammates credited Jackson with keeping Michigan in the race. "Ray Jackson did a good job of carrying his load and then some," Jalen Rose said. "If I could've carried my load, we probably would've had a better chance of winning." "He played outstanding. He put us back in the game when we were down 12 points," Howard said. Jackson had a 16-point surge that spanned the end of the first half and the beginning of the second. During his streak Michigan went from being down, 40-28, to leading, 59-53. The junior forward scored his land- mark 22nd point with 2:31 to go, on a free throw earned by drawing Boiler- maker Glenn Robinson's fourth foul. His shot put the Wolverines up eight. "I wasn't thinking about anything, really," Jackson said. "Just getting a victory." Indeed, it appeared the Wolver- ines had sealed the victory, as they led 94-87 with 1:37 left. But just like the infamous "Dewey Defeats Truman" headline, the celebration was prema- ture. Purdue caught up, and the best game of the year for Jackson became the one he'd most like to forget. Jackson is not new to untimely heroics. He scored 19 points - his previous personal best -against both Coastal Carolina and UCLA in the NCAA tournament, only to see his team suffer a heartbreaking loss to North Carolina in the finals. V In the Wolverines' matchup at Iowa Jan. 8, Jackson's 14-rebound, 13-point showing was upstaged by the drama of teammate Jimmy King's game-winning three-pointer in the fi- nal seconds. While he may not command the headlines of a Rose or a Howard, Jackson's ability is not lost on King. "He's a 6-foot-6 player down there fighting with 6-foot-9 and -10 play- ers. That just shows his versatility," King said. "If we all would've played like him, we would've won." EVAN PETEDally Ray Jackson (21) shares the joy of his fine afternoon with teammate Juwan Howard. Jackson scored 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting. PURDUE Continued from page 1 missed a prayer as the clock ran down, and Juwan Howard converted a putback after time expired. "With 1:30 to go, we thought we had won," Michigan coach Steve Fisher said. "I'm sure they say justice prevailed." Earlier in the contest, Purdue must have believed justice was peering through a Maize-colored blindfold. The Boilermakers started strong, lead- ing by as much as 15 in the first half. Michigan encountered numerous problems getting the ball inside against a lineup that, at times, boasted four players at least 6 feet 7. Robinson was a monster in the opemng stanza, leading his team in scoring (22), rebounding (7), free- throw shooting (6-of-6) and three- point shooting (2-of-5). But Michigan came back in a flash, going on a 13-0 run from 3:58 to the 1:29 mark. Jackson scored six of the 13 points and finished the game with a career-best 22 points. At the half, Purdue was up by just two points, 49-47. Michigan stormed out of the locker room with a purpose. It quickly manu- factured a lead that grew to as many as 10 points. Howard, who led Michigan with 27 points (13-of-19) and six re- bounds, keyed the charge. Late in the game, Michigan seemed to believe it had the contest sewn up. "They were talking trash like the game was over," Martin said of the Wolverines. "We felt we let it get away from us in our house," Robinson said. "They thought they had the game won." But it was not enough, as Michi- gan committed the mistakes that cost it the game. "We had a situation where we didn't execute on late-game situa- tions - right to the end," Fisher said. "It hurts - for all of us." PURDUE (5) FQ FTRE MIN MA WA OaT A F PTS Robinson 37 11-24 11-11 1-9 2 4 37 Martin 33 7-12 2-3 1-1 3 4 21 Brantley 13 2-4 00 1-1 0 3 4 Waddell 26 4-7 4-5 2-2 4 4 15 Roberts 33 2-2 04 1-3 5 3 4 Stanback 26 3.5 1-1 4-10 3 2 7 Dove 14 1-2 1-3 3-5 2 2 3 Darner 12 1-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 2 Jennings 4 1-2 0-0 0.0 1 2 1 Williams 1 0-0 0.0 00 0 0 0 iFoster 1. 0-0 00 000 0 0 Totals 200 3240 ±123 1435 2023 95 FG%..533. FM% .826. Throe~oln t goals: 12- 25, .480 (Martin 5-9, Robinson 4-10, Waddell 3- 5, Darner 0.1). Blocks: none. Turnovers: 14 (Robinson 5, Roberts 3, Stanback 2, Dove, Martin, Waddell). Steals: 2 (Dove, Roberts). Technical Fouls: Dove. MICHiGAN (94) FO FRU MN MA M-A OT A F PTS Jackson 29 9-12 4-7 3-4 3 4 22 King 39 6-12 44 2-3 4 2 18 Howard 27 13.19 1-2 2-6 3 4 27 Fife 39 1-4 2-3 3-5 3 2 5 Rose 37 4-17 5-6 1-5 9 4 13 Ndiaye 2 0.0 0-0 0001 0 Saint-Jean 11 3-3 0-0 1-2 0 5 7 Derricks 4 1-1 0-0 0-0 1 2 2 Totals 200 37488 16-22 13.30 2324 94 FG%:.544. FT%:.727. Thre-olt goals: 4-20, .200 (King 2-7, Fife 1-4, Saint-Jean 1-1, Jackson 0-3, Rose 0-5). Blocks: (Ndiaye). Turnovers: 7 (King 2, Rose 2. Fife, Howard. Jackson). Steals: 3 (Fife, Jackson, King). Technical Fouls: none. Vlsltors......... 49 46 - 95 Home........47 47 - 94 I At: Crisler, A.' 13,562 SAFRAN Continued from page 1 other Boilermakers. Prior to the game against Purdue, Fisher spoke of not allowing the "others" to hurt his club. He must have forgotten to follow through on his policy. I guess the Wolverines are more like the U.S. government than I originally thought. Fisher's players must also have had a major memory lapse during the game as well. Here's a refresher - the game is 40 minutes, not 38. Certainly the Wolverines know the length of a college basketball game, but they did not play defense that way. With 1:37 remaining in the second half, Michigan appeared headed to victory and clinching at least a tie for the conference championship, taking a 94-87 lead. Yet, appearances are deceiving - another government likeness. The Boilermakers reeled off eight consecutive points, including Robinson's game-winner. An incredible comeback, if you play for Purdue. A shameful letdown if you are a Wolverine. When the Boilermakers were setting up their winning shot during a series of time outs, Michigan set up its defense. After the first two time outs, Fisher placed a defender on the inbounds man. Then, he changed his mind, SUGIURA Continued from page 3 "If you don't know Asher, then you don't know Michigan basketball," summarizes Matt Kulekofski, an LSA sophomore Asher has befriended through the line. "Everyone knows Asher." But a free -shirt, a small amount of fame and the chance to watch a few practices does not - cannot -explain away three weeks of living out of a car without showering. "The whole reason I came to school here was only for sports," he says, without any hint of sarcasm. "I told everyone if I wanted to get an education I could basically go anywhere. Michigan's got a good education, but I basi- cally came here to see hockey, basketball and football." Don't get him wrong, though. Asher car- ries a 3.5 GPA which would probably be higher if he didn't have this time-consuming hobby. It is a fact he pointed out on his -application to Nebraska's medical program, where he intends to enroll next fall. He plans to come back to Ann Arbor, though, and hopes to find that what he has helped establish in Crisler - which is slowly becoming a louder, more intimidating place for opponents- will still be flourishing. As do most students, Asher looks at Duke, with its "Cameron Crazies," as an example of presumably to set up a double-team on Robinson. Yet, Robinson somehow got the ball dribbled it and made the dramatic shot. Michi:O gan had to know that Robinson was getting the ball because everyone else in the arena did. The double team never appeared. "When I started to drive, I had to spin away from (Ray) Jackson," Robinson said. He should have had to spin away from Jackson and someone else, perhaps even a third defender. Jalen Rose came off his man to help out, but that was after Robinson had already received the inbounds pass. Michigan should have made sure that never happened in the first place. Although it appears the Wolverines will have to share a conference title if they want any part of the Big Ten crown, their poor defensive performance in the, two-game los- ing streak has doomed any chance they have for a number one seed in the tournament. They have also severely damaged their chances for a two seed. As everyone knows, a lower seeding weak- ens a team's security in reaching the next round. Michigan's chances of making a third straight trip to the Final Four, while already tough, have been made more difficult. Maybe not as difficult as winning three elections, perhaps. what the student section can become. "I don't want to say we have bad fans. As it is, we have really harsh conditions compared to Duke," he explains. "But if they stay out for seven days, we can stay out for two or three." And once inside Cameron Indoor Sta- dium, students ring the court, relegating the alumni to the seats in back. At Crisler, stu- dents have only a part of the lower section. "(As an alumnus), I'd much rather sit in the back as long as it's a loud stadium." And he would also like to see Fisher rein- state Midnight Madness, the basketball cel-0 ebration that occurs on the first official day of practice. "The fans would really like to see a dunk- ing contest, a three-point shooting contest," he reasons. "With me, this is half the reason I'm coming out. When am I ever going to be able to see this kind of talent? Never, espe- cially being from Nebraska." Which is likely where he will return next fall, even though the ticket office has offered him a job. But before that, there is his final home game Wednesday, and if the student ticket lottery is kind, the NCAA tournament. And still, despite the notoriety, he doesn't quite understand all the fuss. "Basically, I think I'm pretty average. If I was at North Carolina or Duke, it wouldn't be that special," he says. "Except that I could probably camp out much longer." Losing streak goes on for women cagers By SCOTT BURTON DAILY BASKETB ALL WRITER EVANSTON - If you are not one who believes in curses, then you prob- ably haven't seen the Michigan women's basketball team play a sec- ond half lately. Befuddling coaches and players alike, no matter how well the Wolver- ines (0-16 Big Ten, 3-22 overall) play in the first half, anything that can go wrong in the second half does. Wolverine shots roll over rims. Rebounds fall into the welcome hands of the opposition. Even something as simple as dribbling up the court be- comes a challenge. It's called "the second-half curse", and Michigan fell victim to it twice this weekend. Both Illinois (4-11, 9-15) Friday and Northwestern (8-8, 16-9) yester- day overcame second-half deficits and rode remarkable 20-point turnarounds to defeat Michigan. "This has been a puzzling team all year," Michigan coach Trish Roberts said. "What happens in the second half is that they are so tired, they pace themselves and a lot of times you catch them standing around." Michigan's 82-70 loss to North- western was an enigma worthy of the pages of Mysteries of the Unknown. The Wolverines had taken a 47-35 lead on the Wildcats - their biggest lead of the year - and had com- pletely captured the momentum. But after a Northwestern timeout at 18:03 of the half, the Wildcats whittled away the lead, and after go- ing on a 24-7 run to take a 61-55 lead, Michigan simply collapsed. Underlying Michigan problems in the second half was improved defen- tant to the turnaround, she drew a fourth foul on Michigan center Jenni- fer Brzezinski, sending the Wolver- ines' hottest player to the bench at 14:16 of the half. "There was a sense of urgency there," said Babcock, who finished with 28 points. "They denied the post real well in the first half. I think we took our time a lot more in the second and really looked inside." In remarkably similar fashion to the Northwestern loss, the Wolver- ines played two contrasting halves against Illinois. In the first, Michigan executed offensively as well as they have all year, and took a 32-28 lead into the locker room. In the second half they collapsed, watching the Illini outscore them 45-24 - including a 17-2 run in the last 7:19. "This has been a tradition of our season this year," Roberts said. "We thought we had a good game plan, but in the second half we made little men- tal mistakes." Indeed, even as they took a lead into the second half, foul trouble loomed as a strategic problem for the last twenty minutes of the game. Lead- ing scorer Amy Johnson and forward Silver Shellman began the half on the bench with three fouls. But the most damaging foul trouble belonged to Brzezinski. She had kept opposing center Anita Clinton, Illi- nois' lone post option, honest all game, registering two blocked shots. She also came with a much-needed big game in the post, hitting for 16 points, helping Michigan to a 47-46 lead at 11:37 of the second half. "Clinton was prone to foul trouble so I really tried to take it at her - if Jimmy King goes up for a layin during yesterday's game with Purdue. King scored 18 in the 95-94 loss. S ~ Despite few w ins, Blue shows talent By J.L ROSTAM-ABADI DAILY BASKETBALL WRITER EVANSTON - Nobody likes to lose, especially 17 times in a row. Just ask the Michigan women's basketball team. But like it or not, the seven lone Wolverines are dealing with this massive losing streak. For each loss, there are the age old excuses - youth and fatigue. But after playing 25 games, the inexperience line has gotten a little weak. Of course, when matched against opposing lineups of upperclassmen, they don't exactly have the upper hand, but let's not forget about the Fab Five. In spite of a dismal record, Michigan does show potential. After each game, the opposing coach has acknowledged the individual talents on the Wolverines, predicting that they will become a force to be reckoned with and a Big Ten contender in the near future. "(Jennifer Brzezinski) was making some shots in there that were just incredible in that first half," Northwestern coach Don Perrelli said. "I mean she was just turning around and shooting. She was making everything. "(Amy) Johnson's a great shooter from the outside and a great penetrator, and (Jennifer) Kiefer can certainly run the offense. "I felt that in watching some of their games and looking at some of their scores, that they can certainly play," Perrelli said. "If they can keep that group together and play...they'll give a lot of teams trouble. They've got a good group to build on and we'll see them moving up in the Big Ten." But until that day arrives, it is crucial that the Wolverines