6 - The Michigan Daily - SPORTSThursday - Thursday, January 5, 1995 ,Jackson and King grow into new leadership role By RYAN WHITE Daily Basketball Writer Jimmy King found himself in a familiar position after Tuesday night's game against Purdue. Sitting in the glare of television lights, King fielded questions from the media about his team. There was, however, something different about this press conference. This time it was King having to answer the tough questions. Not Chris Webber, not Jalen Rose, not Juwan Howard. It was King's turn. Later, in the Michigan lockerroom, Ray Jackson would sit with reporters circled around him OU RT responding to the same questions. It may not seem like much. After * all, King and Jackson are the team's E seniors and captains. But it's a good sign. It's an indicator that the two are growing into their leadership roles. Too often this season King and Jackson have been among the first out of the lockerroom, leaving the underclassmen to answer questions about why the team was faltering. The best sign, however, has been the pair's play on the court as of late. Against Purdue, King scored 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting; Jackson finished with 12 points and shut down the Boilermakers' top scorer, Cuonzo Martin. Against Portland Dec. 29 at the U.S. West Cellular Air Time Tournament in Seattle, King and Jackson hit late, back-to-back three-pointers to bring Michigan back and help force overtime. King finished the game with 20, Jackson with 23. Even in the Wolverines' disappointing loss to Washington, the low point of the season thus far, the two took charge for Michigan. "We've shown (the on-court leadership) in spurts," Jackson said. "As captains we just have to be more consistent." Before the Wolverines left for Seattle, King went home to Plano, Texas to try to find some of the missing consistency. What he got was advice from his father. What did the elder King say to his son? "Just shoot (the ball)," Jimmy said. King was told that he was doing too much second guessing, and hesitating on his shot. All he really needed to do was shoot the ball. King also got another piece of advice, have a team meeting. He did so right after Michigan lost to Washington on Dec. 30. No coaches,just King, Jackson and the rest of the players. The meeting may turn out to be what turns around the Wolverines' season. "We laughed, and cracked jokes, and came together as a team," Jackson said. "But we also got some things accomplished." Among other things, King and Jackson impressed on the younger players what it takes to win at the collegiate level. Michigan responded by playing easily its best game of the season against Purdue. The Wolverines' 15 assists was their second highest total of the season. And the defense, which hasn't been bad, shut down the Boilermakers and sparked the Wolverines to a 15-point lead in the second half. Furthermore, over the past three games, when Michigan has needed a basket, King or Jackson have been able to get one. That's going to be important as Michigan enters its "second season" - the Big Ten schedule. The Wolverines went 6-5 in their non-conference games, and if they are going to make it to what they consider the "third season," the NCAA tournament, they will probably have to finish the season by going at least 12-6 in the Big Ten. "The first (part of the season) was average at best," King said. "For us to get to the NCAA tournament we're going to have to play better." And King and Jackson are going to have to play every game like they have the last three. The two have been through the Big Ten wars three times already and are still looking for their first conference crown - a goal they have been talking about since the beginning of the season. So, has their recent success been more what King and Jackson had been hoping for this season? "It is the least we expected," King said. "The past three games have been all right - but it can only get better." If it does, King and Jackson will again find themselves in the media spotlight of another NCAA tournament. Michigan drops two in. difficult holiday break By ANTOINE PITTS Daily Basketball Writer Just when the Michigan basketball team thought things couldn't get any worse, they didoverthesemesterbreak. First, the Wolverines fell on Dec. 13 to Pennsylvania, 62-60. The loss knocked Michigan out of the top 25 for the first time since the 1990-91 season. A week later, after taking final ex- ams, the Wolverines struggled to get by Jackson State, 87-81. Anyone who thought those games werebad was about to get a shock. Things got dramtically worse last week at the U.S. West Cellu- lar Air Time Tournament in Seattle. The Wolverines had to go over- time to get by Portland of the West Coast Conference, 88-84. The next night, Michigan fell to Washington, 65-61. The Huskies were playing on their home floor at the Hec Edmundson Pavillion, but they have been picked by many to finish in the cellar of the Pac 10. The lackluster play that finished off the non-conference portion of Michigan's schedule droppedtheWol- verines to 6-5. It was time toput an end to it and seniors Jimmy King and Ray Jackson knew one way to start. Following the Washington game, in which the Huskies shot 35 percent but still won the game, the Wolverines had aplayers-only meeting back at the hotel in Seattle. "It was a positive meeting," Jack- son said. "It was something we just had to do to get everybody's head up:" The Wolverines sat in that hotel room and discussed some of the things that have been troubling the team so far this season. "We felt we were getting outplayed every time out," Jackson said. "We need to bring the physical and mental toughness to the table every night." Michigan did have afew highlight in the tournament, but the 55 turn- overs it committed in the two games overshadowed them. King put to- gether consecutive 20-point games, and Jackson scored 23 against Port- land. King and Jackson made the all- tournament team. MICHIAN (61) UN *AM*A 0-T A FP4 Mitchell 13 0.1 00 01 0 0 C)0 Jackson 26 3.6 3.4 140 5 9 Taylor 29 6412 0.0 2-9 1 3 12 Fife 20 0-2 040 03 13 0 King 34 7411 5-6 06 1 2 20 Ndiaye 20 4.8 1- 4-603 , 9 Baston 17 3-5 0.1 2-4 0 "3 6 Ward 18 1-2 2-2 0.6 1 1 5 Crawford 13 0-2 0G0 1-1 1 3 0 Conlan 10 0.2 0-0 0-0 1 1 ,e0 Totals 200 2451 1114 1043 6 24 61 FG%: .471, FT%: .786. Three-point goals:2-7 .286 (King 1-2, Ward 1-2, Crawford 0.1, Fife 0-2) Bloc v4 (Baston, Ndiaye, Taylor. Ward)). Turnovers: 26 (King 7. Fife 3. Jackson 3, Ndiaye 3, Ward 3, Mitchell 2, Taylor 2, Baston, Conlan, Crawford). Steals: 5 (Crawford 2. Conlan, Ndiaye, Ward). Technlcal Fouls: none.c WASHINGTON (65) Fe FT an U -A U*A OT AFPiO Sanford 29 5-12 1-2 3.5 3 4 -,13 Amos 20 0-1 0-1 032 0 0 McClain 30 2-5 3 4 0-1 3 1 8 Hamilton 35 2-10 5.6 2-5 4 1 11 Boston 34 9-23 3.5 3-4 0 2 21 Hawken 21 2-4 44 0012 8 Bergersen 6 0-0 2-2 0-0 2 0 2 Hartman 11 1-3 00 00 0 1 2 Booker 12 0.1 M0-0 03 1 0 0 Lopez 2 0-1 0-0 1-1 0 1 .,0 Totals 200 21.60 1.24 10.25 1612 _6 FG%:.350. FT% .750. Three-point goals: 5-12.41 (Sanford 2-4, McClain i-3, Hamilton 2-3, Boston - Hartman 0.1). Blocks: 3 (Sanford 2. Boston). Turnovers: 9 (Boston 2, Hawken 2, McClain 2, Booke. Hamilton, Sanford) Steals; 9 (Booker 2, Hamilton 2, Hawken 2. Sanford 2, Boston) Techn cal Fouls: non MNch .an..29 32 - 61 Washington....26 39 - 65 At: Edmundson Pavillion, Seattle A: 6.123. JONATHAN LURIE/Daily Wolverines Willie Mitchell, Jerod Ward and Maceo Baston battle with a Portland player for the ball in Michigan's 88-84 overtime victory over the Pilots. Ndiaye posts big gaies - Center improves his play in recent contests By SCOTT BURTON Daily Basketball Writer Although Makhtar Ndiaye's de- but as a Wolverine last year was highly anticipated, the early returns were less than stellar. His defensive play was marred by lots of silly fouls. He provided little more than put-backs and chippies of- fensively. And for a man standing 6- foot-9, his 2.2 rebounding average was modest at best. But after Michigan's victory over Purdue Tuesday night, senior captain Jimmy King called Ndiaye the team's best rebounder, coach Steve Fisher praised his game and Ndiaye had one huge smile on his face. Why? Because Ndiaye finally pro- vided the strong low-post play the Wolverines are so dearly counting upon. Although he played only 19 minutes against the Boilermakers, he scored 10 points and grabbed nine rebounds with one blocked shot. This improved play followed an impressive performance at the U.S. West Cellular Air Time Tournament. He scored 19 points in two games, with three blocks and 11 rebounds. "What you saw tonight (against Purdue) is what I am expecting from Makhtar," Fisher said. "He is not go- ing to be a 20-point scorer, but he gives us toughness inside. He'splayed exceptional both ends of the floor." Ndiaye has been Michigan's most dependable low-post defender and rebounder this season, despite con- tinued foul problems. But what has caught Fisher's attention even more is Ndiaye's improved, albeit, unpol- ished offensive repertoire. "He is just a baby. He is just a little kid learning how to crawl," Fisher said. "If he stays with it, he can turn himself into a pretty good basketball player." "It just comes naturally," Ndiaye said. "In practice, my teammates keep telling me, 'Shoot, shoot, shoot.' Now I am comfortable do- ing it in the game." The sight of Ndiaye lining up for 17-foot jumpers - as he did twice Tuesday - may not be exactly what Fisher is looking for. But as long as he hits them, which he did against Purdue, Fisher will reserve criticism. "He is a decent 15-foot perimeter shooter when he is not guarded," Fisher said. "He made one tonight that I didn't want him to shoot. But he can make that shot." Here is the latest AP Top 25 basketball poll. Team 1. North Carolina 2., UCLA 3. Arkansas 4. Massachusetts 5. Kansas 6. Connecticut 7. Maryland 8. Kentucky 9. Arizona IO.Syracuse 11.Duke 12.Georgetown Record 9-0 6-0 11-1 5-1 8-1 7-0 10-2 6-2 9-2 8-1 8-2 7-1 Pvs. 1 2 3 4 - 6 8 9 5 10 11 7 12 Team 13. Florida 14. Michigan St. 15. Arizona St. 16. Iowa St. 17. California 18. Wake Forest 19. Nebraska 20. New Mexico St. 21. Indiana 22. Iowa 23. Stanford 24. Georgia Tech 25. Pennsylvania Record 6-2 7-1 9-2 10-1 7-1 7-1 11-1 9-2 8-4 10-2 9-0 8-3 6-1 Pvs. 13 15 16 21 14 18 23 22 24 17 JONA"N'"U Makhtar Ndiaye has moved back into Michigan's starting lineup. L Forward By RYAN WH Daily Basketball W Oh, how things change. On Nov. 21 Olivier Saint bench and scored 13 points tot basketball team over Tulane in 1 Maui Classic. On Dec. 20, Wo Fisher announced that Saint-Je to San Jose State. "The decision to leave Mi easy one for Olivier, but this i was best for him," Fisher said.' him go, but certainly wish him the way in his endeavors." Saint-Jean says goodbye to ITE Saint-Jean, a 6-foot-7 sophomore forward, had play, when y riter spent most of this season recovering from off- was playing season knee surgery to remove bone spurs. without pra -Jean came off the Aside from his 13 minutes against Tulane, he Fisher sa boost the Michigan had played in Maui games against Utah and Arizona into staying,, the first round of the State. Saint-Jean also played seven minutes against a medical re lverine coach Steve Arizona at the Palace of Auburn Hills in November. "I tried to an was transferring Saint-Jean may have felt threatened by the (at Michiga Wolverines' five freshmen, and as a result decided not to go mi chigan was not an to go to another school where he would get more start somew s something he felt playing time. Lastseas "We are sorry to see Fisher, however, hoped that playing time wasn't 3.6 points p success the rest of a factor in Saint-Jean's decision. first career "How can you know how much you're going to against Mic Wolverines you don't practice?" Fisher asked. "If it time, then it was a conclusion drawn cticing." aid that he attempted to talk Saint-Jean and Michigan was attempting to get hip* dshirt for the remainder of the season. o say that the best thing to do was to stay n)," Fisher said. "And if he did go - d-year when it becomes much harder to here new." son, as a freshman, Saint-Jean averaged er game. His season best came in his start on Feb. 5 when he scored 11 higan State. wanted to put that Washington gams behind us." The Wolverines play their first conference road game Sunday after- noon at Penn State. PURDUE Continued from page 1 Wolverine to score in double fig- ures in every game this season. "We had excellent team defense. We've been trying to put it together all season. "We beat agood Purdue team. We can't rest on this one, though." A win in the first conference game gave the Wolverines a chance to shed some of the frustration that has domi- nated their early season play. "We're tired of losing," Taylor said. We have to come out and play hard to win in the Big Ten." Purdue opened up a 14-7 lead six minutes into the game. Seven of those points came from one player-on the same possesion. Waddell hit two tech- nical free throws followed by two more free throws. On the ensuing inbound, Waddell hit a 3-pointer to finish off the possesion. The Wolverines went on a 14-6 run to even things up. The teams traded baskets to go into the half tied at 33. Michigan then went to work in the second half. "You always get confidence with a win," King .said. "We definitely i Pub E(61) MNMA A lO.TAF PM Hairston 22 59 1-5 1.3 1 2 11 Martin 33 311 4-5 0131 13 Brantley 30 2-9 3-4 4-8 1 5 7 Roberts 29 2-7 0-1 38 4 2 4 Austin 15 16 0 1-3 1 1 3 Jennings 14 4-8 0.2 460 2 8 Wadden 26 2-9 4-5 02 2 1 10 Dove 7 00 00 1-1 02 0 Foster 12 0-2 0-0 0-3 03 4 Minler 12 2-2 (}0 -a20 3 4 Totals 200 21683 13.24 19.43 1220 61 FG%: .333. FI%: .542. Threepoint goals: 6.22. .273 (Waddell 2-3, Austin 1-3, Martin 3-10, Foster 0-2, Hairston 0-2, Roberts 0-2). Blocks: 2(Brantley, Hairston).Turnoves: 1 r .airt .. at w U3.Robrts 3 Austin .v . WWHW6AN (71) Ia Oa A F PTS Jacks1 35 59 0610633 2 12 Taylor 32 8.14 1-2 2-7 0 4 18 Ndiaye 19 4-7 2-3 4-9 1 4 10 King 376-10 56 16 4 1 18 Fife 24 0-2 2-2 16 55 2 Crawford 19 1-5 2 0 114 Baston 8 0.1 1-2 1-4 00 1 Ward 15 1-4 2-2 14 10 4 Mitchell 10 1-4 1-2 01' 0 3 4 Conlan 1 GO GO GO 0 0 0 Tots 200 26-56 14-20 1142 1523 71 FG%: .464. FM%:.700. Three-pontgoals: 5-14.357 (Tay Ior 1, Jackson 24, Mitchell 1-2, King 13, Fife 1, Crawford 0-3). Blocks: 4 (Jackson, Ndiaye, Taylor, Ward). Turnovers: 14 (Jackson 5. Taylor 4, Baston 3, Fife, King). Steals: 3 1 _ 1 Hr I i