Women's Basketball
vs. Michigan State
Tonight, 7:30 p.m.
East Lansing
S
S
Men's Basketball
vs. Ohio State
Tomorrow, 8 p.m. (WXON)
Crisler Arena
Wo"m"n
hope to
*snap long
losing skid
By BRENT McINTOSH
DAILY BASKETBALL WRITER
It hasn't quite been four years since
the Michigan women's basketball
team last beat Michigan State. No,
that anniversary won't arrive until
Feb. 23.
But the Wolverines will avoid that
distinction if they can buck conven-
tional wisdom and earn a road victory
at 7:30 p.m. tonight at the Breslin
Student Events Center in East Lan-
sing.
The three years and 10 months
-What have passed since the last Wol-
verine triumph over Michigan State
have ushered in a world of change.
When Michigan last beat the Spartans
(0-1 Big Ten, 5-5 overall), Bud
VanDeWege was the head Wolver-
ine, current skipper Trish Roberts was
coaching Maine to a 23-7 record, and
four of the Michigan's 1993-94 start-
ers were freshmen at their respective
high schools.
.Even Michigan's captain, junior
Shimmy Gray, was a senior in high
school. In fact, the only member of
the current program who was involved
with that victory is assistant coach
Kathy LaBarge Miles.
And yet, the Wolverines (0-1, 3-
8) can't afford to count themselves
out of today's contest because it is a
winnable game. It is one of the essen-
tial contests for the young team if it
wants to avoid a finish in the Big Ten
basement. And, of course, the game is
important because it is the Spartans.
"It's a big state rivalry and in any
case, you don't want to lose to them,"
Roberts said. "I think that our kids are
going to really get up for the game. I
think the kids from the state of Michi-
gan are a little more sensitive to the
P rivalry than the kids from out of state,
sp I'm hoping that that's going to rub
dff throughout the team."
The Wolverines need it to rub off
on freshman guards Amy Johnson
and Jennifer Kiefer, both of whom are
ftom Illinois. Roberts had said earlier
in the season that quickness on the
perimeter was a Wolverine asset, but
Michigan is last in the Big Ten in
turnover ratio at -6.5. The pair will
have to cut down on the Wolverines'
frontcourt foul-ups if they want to be
smiling on the ride home from East
Lansing.
"I don't know if it's now that we're
playing quicker teams that we're look-
ing slower, or it's just fatigue, but it
just seems like right now, other teams
are alot quicker than we are," Roberts
said. "We're not able to push the ball
down the court like I wanted us to."
Johnson, who shot a dismal 1-14
against Detroit-Mercy Sunday, will
also be focusing on the defensive end.
"I really need to work on my de-
fense - it's very, very poor," she
said. "That and taking care of the ball
are the two major things we need to
take care of going into Michigan
State."
While the Wolverine guard play
has been less than consistent, the Spar-
tans are experiencing frontcourt
trouble of their own: An injury to
starter Paula Sanders has forced coach
Karen Langeland to fill the line-up
with freshman guard Cheri Euler, who
is averaging 4.4 turnovers per game.
State will probably focus on pres-
suring the perimeter to fluster the
Wolverine rookies, and Roberts says
she has had the team working hard to
improve its frontcourt game.
"If they put a lot of pressure on our
guards and make it tough for us to get
into our offense, they're saying it's
going to make a difference in our
game," Roberts said.
Another thing that could decide
the contest is the Wolverines' ability
to stop Spartan junior forward Kisha
Kelley, who leads State with 19.0
points and 8.1 rebounds per game.
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Ndiaye arrives: 'I'm glad to be here'
ANASTASIA BANICKI/Daily
Freshman transfer Makhtar Ndiaye meets the media yesterday at Crisler Arena. Ndiaye, from Dakar, Senegal,
enrolled at Wake Forest last fall before the NCAA found the Demon Deacon program guilty of violations in his
recruitment. Ndiaye will suit up for his first game tomorrow against Ohio State.
SWIMMING NOTEBOOK
Sharp could miss
rest of season
By TIM RARDIN
DAILY BASKETBALL WRITER
Not often is an athlete able to
generate so much interest and so much
excitement in such a short time with-
out playing as Makhtar Ndiaye has in
the last week and a half.
Since recruiting violations were
announced Dec. 30 against the Wake
Forest basketball program, and Ndiaye
was declared eligible to play immedi-
ately wherever he transferred, he has
captured the imagination of basket-
ball fans, not to mention the concen-
trated attention of some big-time bas-
ketball programs.
"I thought we'd never have any-
one after the Fab Five have so much
written about them before they even
shot a basket," Michigan coach Steve
Fisher said.
Yesterday, all that hoopla came to
rest-at least temporarily--as the 6-
foot-8, 230-pound freshman Ndiaye,
decked out in an elongated gray Michi-
gan sweatsuit, made his first appear-
ance before the media since signing
with the Wolverines Monday.
Ndiaye (in-JI), a native of Dakar,
Senegal, and the first African basket-
ball player to don the maize and blue,
shared his elation at being part of the
Wolverine squad that he saw for the
first time from a television in Paris,
when Michigan played Duke in the
1992 NCAA championship game.
"I'm glad to be here. I can't ex-
press what I feel right now," said a
beaming Ndiaye, who opted for
Michigan over his second choice,
UCLA.
The rest of the team had no prob-
lem expressing how they felt about
their newest acquisition, who began
practice Monday.
"It's a big help. He's probably the
missing piece we have on this team
with his shot-blocking ability and his
rebounding ability," Wolverine cen-
ter Juwan Howard said. "But it's go-
ing to take him some time to adjust."
That's exactly what Howard and
his teammates have tried to help him
do, on and off the court.
"He went through a lot with the
illegal recruitment," Howard said.
"We just first want to be his friend.
We are like a family here.
"Basketball comes second."
Still, after the Michigan State
game last WednesdayMichigan play-
ers and coaches apparently made it
clear to Ndiaye just how much they
needed him from the basketball stand-
point.
"I just told him I didn't want to
play inside too much longer," said the
displaced Ray Jackson, who has
moved from his natural small forward
position to play inside for the Wol-
verines this season. "I told him, 'See
how they beat me up inside, big boy?
Why don't you come and save me?"'
"Not to put much pressure on you,
but we need you," Howard told
Ndiaye. "It doesn't take a rocket sci-
entist to see we need you."
Michigan's need appears to have
been a factor in Ndiaye's decision.
"I knew that it was the right place
for me," Ndiaye said. "I was comfort-
able with the players and coaches. I fit
in better (than at UCLA)."
After last Wednesday's snow-
storm in Ann Arbor, though, no one
was quite sure where he would go,
thinking the weather might play into
his decision.
"I think the only thing UCLA had
on us was the weather. I'm glad he left
before the snowstorm," Howard
joked.
Contrary to popular belief, Ndiaye
claims the weather did not concern
him.
"I got used to the snow down
there," Ndiaye said, referring to Vir-
ginia, where he spent his senior year
at Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of
Wilson. "Besides, if Jimmy King can
survive here, I can survive here."
King hails from the perennially
sunny Plano, Texas.
Fisher hopes Ndiaye can survive
more than just the weather. Asked his
reaction to Ndiaye's 8.1 block-per-
game average at Oak Hill, Fisher re-
sponded, "Those blocks came against
players my size."
Indeed, while he possesses a world
of potential, the coach knows that
Ndiaye, who began playing basket-
ball seven years ago as "an experi-
ment," will need time to develop.
"Everyone knows one of our con-
cerns going into this season was our
lack of size and depth. He brings both
to the table," Fisher said. "He has
great upside potential, but it will take
him some getting used to what we
want to do and how we want to do it.
"In time, he'll be a really good
player. How soon, how much early, I
don't know."
And how does Makhtar feel about
his role?
"I'm not here to take anyone's
spot," Ndiaye said. "I just want to
contribute, and play as hard as I can."
He is scheduled to get his first
chance to do that tomorrow night
against Ohio State, where the hoopla
around Makhtar Ndiaye will likely
begin again.
Then, however, the intriguing
question will not be which school will
he choose, but how much impact will
he have?
By BRETT JOHNSON
DAILY SPORTS WRITER
The Michigan men's swimming team has taken a hit,
but it is still unclear just how severe. Sophomore Royce
Sharp has temporarily been put on the ineligible list
pending a decision by the University.
Sharp, a crucial member of the Wolverine squad, was
unable to compete this past weekend against UCLA and
USC and is waiting for a response from the Academic
Performance Committee. Although Sharp could not com-
ment on the review, he said that he expects to know more
as early as today.
"He's petitioning to be eligible in some capacity,"
coach Jon Urbanchek said. "A decision has not been
made yet. We're hoping to work out a proposal where he
has conditional eligibility.
"We're not really concerned about his swimming right
now. Royce needs to establish his academics first."
Sharp's ineligibility stems from problems with Michi-
gan standards, not NCAA rules.
Sharp claimed All-American honors in three events at
last year's NCAA Championships - 200-yard back-
stroke, 400 individual medley and,400 medley relay -
and if he is unable to compete, it will create a hole in
Michigan's lineup. Sharp is the team's only outstanding
backstroker.
"We'll suffer a lot, especially in the dual meets,"
Urbanchek said. "We'll have to do better at other things
and not worry about the backstroke."
HERE WE Go AGAIN: Wolverines continue to domi-
nate the Big Ten Swimmer of the Month award. Last year,
the men, and the women for that matter, won every award
throughout the season. Freshman Tom Dolan continued
the streak by winning the first Swimmer of the Month
award (December) of this season.
Dolan won three U.S. Open titles - 400-meter
freestyle, 1500 freestyle and 800 freestyle relay - Dec. 3-
5 at Canham Natatorium and then set a Canham Natato-
rium record in the 1000-yard freestyle in a dual meet
against Harvard Dec. 12. Dolan also captured the 500
freestyle at the Harvard meet.
HEADS OR TAILS: One of the nation's top recruits will
come to Michigan this weekend for an official visit. Derya
Buyukunchu is the current high school record holder in the
100-yard backstroke. Although this weekend constitutes
Buyukunchu's official visit to Ann Arbor, it is not the first
time he will have stepped foot in Canham Natatorium. In
December, he swam at the U.S. Open, where he won both the
100- and 200-meter backstroke events.
RECRUIT RECAP: Michigan signed one recruit during
the early signing period, Jason Lancaster of Carmel
High School in Carmel, Ind. Lancaster is the top-rated
high school butterflyer in the nation as he won Swimming
World magazine's mythical national title in the 100-yard
butterfly with a time of :48.39. He is also highly ranked in
the 200 individual medley. Lancaster won the Indiana
state title in both the 100 fly, where he set the state record,
and the 200 IM.
Lancaster also has four victories to his credit from the
1992 Long Course Junior Nationals. He won the 100
backstroke, 100 butterfly and both the 200 and 400 indi-
vidual medleys. All were swum in meters.
Black Coaches Association
considering boycott of season
I
SAN ANTONIO(AP) -The head
of the Black Coaches Association,
upset over the NCAA's decision to
cut scholarships, said yesterday he
expects his group to boycott men's
college basketball games, possibly
for the rest of the season.
The boycott could begin as early
as Saturday, Martin Luther King's
birthday.
"In all likelihood there will be a
boycott but I am reluctant to give you
a time and date," said Rudy Wash-
ington, head of the BCA and basket-
ball coach at Drake. "Players and
coaches are expected to participate.
And they're talking about the rest of
the season, like the baseball strike."
On Monday, the NCAA voted
down a proposal to restore a 14th
basketball scholarship two years after
it voted to cut scholarships from 15 to
13. The BCA says minorities are par-
ticularly hurt by cutting scholarships.
The Presidents Commission cited
costs and the need to hold firm on
reform measures. The presidents also
indicated to the BCA the scholarship
could be added next year if savings
could be found elsewhere.
NCAA executive director Cedric
Dempsey and Joseph Crowley, the
NCAA president, both said they had
talked with BCA representatives twice
in the previous 24 hours and hoped to
talk with them again.
The boycott was approved by the
BCA's legislative committee, which
includes coaches George Raveling
(USC), John Thompson (George-
town) and John Chaney (Temple).
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