6- The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - Monday, December 12, 1994 Freshmen steal the spotlight Duke trio outperforms.Blue rookies in big moments A_ 1 /"'rY l ' ____ --- -- - / "" ./ . -1. By PAUL BARGER Daily Basketball Writer DURHAM, N.C. - In a game billed as the last battle Michigan se- niors Jimmy King and Ray Jackson would have against Duke senior Cherokee Parks and the Blue Devils, the freshmen stole the spotlight. Wolverine forwards Maurice Tay- lor and Willie Mitchell were the key elements in Michigan's astonishing 24-0 first-half run. Mitchell's 3- pointer with 8:20 remaining in the opening stanza cut the Duke lead to 11 and provided the spark for the Wolverine explosion. Taylor led Michigan in scoring with 15 points but had only one re- bound. The Wolverines were never the same after Taylor picked up his fourth foul with 12:04 to play in the contest. "Taylor is going to be a great player," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "They're going to be a hell of a team, this year. I don't think there's any question." Jerod Ward also started for Michi- gan, hitting a 3-pointer for the Wol- verines' first points of the evening. Ward was kept on the bench in the critical moments of the game and his frustration was quite obvious. The Duke freshmen handled the big-game pressure in impressive fash- ion. Point guard Steve Wojciechowski scored only four points but played outstanding defense and settled the Devils down during Michigan's first half run. Trajan Langdon came off the bench to score 13 points including three 3-pointers. He ignited the Dev- ils early in the game, scoring eight points in under three minutes of play. Langdon's spurt ended with a 3- pointer to put Duke up by 13 with 11:15 to play in the first half. Freshman guard Ricky Price was enthused after the game and made a bold prediction about the future of Duke's newcomers. "We are learning more and more everyday," Price said. "We are all great players. I see what we can do now and I think of what we can do a year or two or three from now. I see a national championship." The depth of both teams was high- lighted by the fact that 18 players had significant playing time Saturday. Michigan received 13 points from its bench, and Duke answered with 23. Down the stretch Krzyzewski al- lowed his freshmen to guard Michigan's top players, including Wolverine senior Jimmy King. Wojciechowski was a constant pest, forcing King into many difficult shots. "I have confidence in every one of the players we put into the ballgame," Krzyzewski said. "I don't look at f, Yr Ilk I - NI Wojciechowski I. t rC r:, :}:}r " "f: f " r If ijf"i : '4 i:ate ". . f i;75;{:ti :Yrltll::' S'l." r:. {"r::" ti: :Iri tl: ' :1"r:."ltr: iir i:"':'r ": ii 1%r:.. .rrr. '"r.:"i:4t::rf: "r""":: "fd"ii i - .t. ;.tl.f . :%sir .":: ". :°f }: I" Y{}r}:":t:i "^T"Jt Jl : ". . r. 00N B /larr13- 22 For: Movies them as freshmen. I just look at them as three of our guys." The Duke freshmen have not got- ten the same hype as their counter- parts from Ann Arbor, but clearly deserve it. Wojciechowski and Price are becoming fixtures in the Devils' starting five, and many feel that Langdon will develop into one of the deadliest shooters in the nation. With the continued improvement and maturity of the first-year players at both Michigan and Duke, the ri- valry should continue at its high in- tensity level. The contract for the Michigan- Duke series is signed through the next few seasons so fans can expect some classic battles in the near future. Join Us -FreeN BEDEVILED Continued from page 1 quickly as it had fallen behind, Michi- gan took the lead, 29-28. When all was said and done, Michigan had outscored the Blue Devils 24-0 over an eight-minute stretch and held a 35-28 advantage. "All of a sudden we had a huge stretch where we played the best we've played all season," Fisher said. The Blue Devils regrouped to score five points in the last minute to trail by just two at halftime, 35-33. " "I've never seen a team come into our gym and for an eight-minute period, totally dominate us the way Michigan did in that first half, Krzyzewski said. "We played well the last two minutes, and I think we just settled down. I don't think I coached well during those eight min- utes." "The last couple minutes we did a good job of keeping composure," Parks said. "Instead of letting them run away with it, we settled down and went down just a couple at the half. 'I've never seen a team comeinto our gyrmand for an eight-minute period, totally g oiaeu h a domiateus he way - 1 Michigan did In that first half ..lidon't° think I coached well during those eight minutes' - Mike Krzyzewski Duke basketball coach pN The Wolverines took an early 5-2 lead in the game but quickly fell be- hind. Duke reeled off nine straight to take a seven-point lead. A 10-0 run increased the Blue h Devils' lead to 28-11 midway through the half.,,,- " Taylor led the Wolverines with 15 points. Jimmy King had 14 while Ray Jackson grabbed a game-high 11 re- bounds. For Duke, Parks tallied 16 points, and freshman guard Trajan Langdon added 13 off the bench. Meek came through with 1I points and seven boards for the Blue Devils. -Popcorn -Cool Gifts (At our Michigan Union location only) also check out our location at the North Campus Commons Bookstore --,,1 REMEMBER: Receive Cash On The Spot Or Credit Your Entree Plust. MICHIGAN (59) MIN M-A MA 0T A F PTS Jackson 32 4-14 2-2 7-11 0 1 10 Ward 20 3.9 0-0 3-5 0 3 7 Taylor 23 7-14 1-2 1-1 2 4 15 Fife 22 0-2 0.0 022 0 King 35 6-12 2-2 36 2 3 14 Ndiaye 20 1-5 00 17 0 5 7 Baston 16 1-3 0-0 1-5 03 2 Crawford 16 0-5 0-0 0-0 0 1 0 Mitchell 16 3-6 2-2 1-3 3 1 9 Totals 200 25.70 74 2043 923 59 FG%: .357. FT%: .875. Threepoint goals: 2-11, .182(Ward 1-2, Mitchell 1-2, King 0-3, Fife 0-2, Crawford 0-2). Blocks: 3(Baston 2, Ndiaye). Turnovers: 19 (King 6, Jackson 5, Ndiaye 3, Fife 2 Baston,Taylor,Ward). Steals: 8 (Fife 2, King 2, Taylor 2, Baston, Mitchell). Technical Fouls: none. DOUGLAS KANTER/Daily Duke center Cherokee Parks attempts a shot as Michigan's Maurice Taylor (left) and Maceo Baston defend. Parks scored 16 points and collected eight rebounds, f ....,. .... .. ! ..,.i. ,..«.6 .i.lw... R !I . w.4 ' 'snt r . r, yn n i r r+ .>rs # . i t i rsru n i tit_.