Ueie
*Michigan
too much
By Richard Shin
Daily Sports Writer
On a night when the Michil
:women's basketball team-had trou
:getting the inside game start
~1ichigan's guards were off to
aces.
As the maestros on the basketb
GOlirt, the Michigan guards conduc
~masterpiece against Rice.
"In the first half of the Wolverin
;8ji55 victory, Michigan's guards ci
yistently beat their Rice counterp~
aff the dribble and to the basket. 1
.Luickness of the guards also aloy
'thm to beat Rice to rebounds
*nit the Owls to
idry few second
chances.
Wit h -
Michigan coach
Sue Guevara's a
rotation of five
Jennifer Kiefer, e
Stacey Thomas, *
Akisha Franklin,
ann Lemire and Amy Johnson -
olverines were able to keep a fr
pair of legs in for virtually the en
first half.
'Rice is the most athletic te
we've played," Guevara said. "TI
are very quick on the perimeter. B
think that one of the strengths of
team is the depth we have at peril
ter.
"When you put fresh legs in th
eatl akes it real tough."
T ckeffectiveness of the guard
magnified considering t
Michigan's main interior thre
Pollyanna Johns, Tiffany Willard
Catherine DiGiacinto combined
only nine first-half points. The re
of the guards taking charge was a
point halftime lead that Michi,
would not relinquish.
Leading the way for the Wolveri
as freshman sensation Thomas,
howed flashes of brilliance, grabb
key rebounds and turning three st
into quick points that sta
Michigan to an early 23-17 lead.
In the first half, the Michi
guards contributed 2of the
Wolverines' 39 first-half points.'
1Iefense
By Will MeCahill
Daily Sports Editor
Picture this.
You're the Michigan men's bask
ball team
You're ranked seventh in the co
,magifid cnsierig '
I cb aetlg
Scoreboard UTAH 108, New Jersey 92
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE NCAA BASKETBALL
Pittsburgh 24, MIAMI 17 Massachusetts 59, CHAMINADE 48
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE NORTH CAROUNA 86, Richmond 75
MONTREAL 4, Tampa Bay 2 BOSTON COLL. 82, N. Hampshire 40
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION Wake Forest 86, THE CfTADEL 52
Milwaukee 100, ORLANDO 88 Kansas 82, LSU 53
WASHINGTON 105, Minnesota 98 Home teams in CAPS
Tuesday
November 26, 1996
90
guards way
for Owls
gan
ble
ed,
the
ball
ted
es,
*on-
arts
The
wed
and
the
esh
tire
am
'hey
ut I
the
me-
ere,
Is is
hat
ats,
and
for
suit
10-
gan
nes
who
Bing
:eats
ked
gan
the
The
backcourt also was responsible for 13
of the team's 25 rebounds.
Rice guards, however, had trouble
finding the basket because of
Michigan's depth advantage and tight
defense. In the first half, Rice's
guards scored only six points on 2 of
8 shooting from the field.
"(Rice's) perimeter players were
really aggressive and they were pene-
trating," Kiefer said. "It was a good
matchup. But we have a lot of depth
and I think that they got a little tired.
"I don't think we lose a whole lot
when we substitute, and that definite-
ly works to our advantage."
In the second half, Rice responded
to Michigan's dominance on the
perimeter by moving out on the
guards and playing tighter defense,
which allowed the guards to find
Johns and Willard in the post for easy
baskets in one-on-one situations.
In the second frame, Johns, Willard
and DiGiancinto combined to score
25 points, almost three times their
first-half output.
The guards now shifted gears and
looked to pass.
Michigan's guards were at their
best running the floor on fast-break
opportunities created by steals and
tight defense. Several times the
guards passed to wide-open team-
mates for easy scores while running
the floor.
Guevara's assessment of the guards
performance was positive.
"I think that we needed to establish
an outside games to get our inside
game going," Guevara said. "(Against
Rice) I thought we were much more
aggressive on the perimeter."
With teams keying on Johns,
Michigan's leading scorer last season,
it is more important for the guards to
attack the basket to prevent oppo-
nents from double-teaming her in the
post.
Even though it is early in the sea-
son, Guevara is pleased the perfor-
mance of the guards' play, and she
should be. And while teams may
think that focusing on Johns is
enough to stop the Wolverines,
Michigan's guards will be running
and gunning to prove them wrong.
'M' hunger
satisfied by
Rice, 15
By Pranay Reddy
Daily Sports Writer
It was a back-and-forth game for the Michigan women's
basketball team last night - in a sense.
The Wolverines crushed the visiting Rice Owls, 81-55 at
Crisler Arena.
In a contest dominated by Michigan, it wasn't the lead that
fluctuated back-and-forth, just which Michigan player'sturn
it would be to set the tempo of the play.
However, from the outset of the contest, it looked like Rice
center Debi Williams would present herself as an offensive
threat in the paint. The Owls worked the ball down low to
Williams for their first two baskets of the game, as they pro-
ceeded to score their first eight points in the lane.
However, Michigan responded with a strong penetration of
Rice's defense, as junior forward Molly Murray drove to the
basket twice for Michigan's first two scores.
At that point in the game, neither team challenged their
opponent's penetration - that is, until the quickness of
Michigan freshman Stacey Thomas came into play.
"The hardest thing to defend is penetration," Guevara said.
"When you put the ball down and are looking to make a
move - that is tough - and that is what we had trouble
defending."
Thomas provided a spark for the Wolverines on both sides
of the court. Following her own missed shot, Thomas
grabbed the rebound and put the ball in for an easy layup. On
Rice's ensuing sequence, Thomas darted into the passing lane
for a steal and a break-away layup. The steal was one of
Thomas' four on the night.
Thomas' finishing ability also helped Michigan along
through the few doldrums it encountered during the course of
the game. Her eight points buoyed Michigan's offensive
efforts in the first half.
And it was the play of Thomas and the rest of Michigan's
guards that was desperately needed to pick up the slack for
Michigan center Pollyanna Johns, who had a relatively quiet
first half.
Johns, who had been averaging 15.0 points per game head-
ing into the contest, scored only four points in the first half.
So it was Johns, more than anyone, who appreciated the help
from the backcourt.
"(The guards) were wonderful," Johns said. "They did
great on defense, their shots were on, and all of them were
driving (to the basket).
"That releases pressure on the post players, and it sort of
opens it up."
And Johns had every reason to compliment them, when
one takes into consideration the aggressive play of Jennifer
Kiefer, Amy Johnson and Ann Lemire.
See CAGERS, Page 10
JEANNIE SERVAAS/Daily
Penetration by Michigan guard Stacey Thomas on plays like this helped the Wolverines fry Rice, 81-55,
last night at Crisler Arena.
a major issue as Wolverines ready for Ball State
et-
fun-
try, and you're facing a team tat you
&at by 28 last year, and is picked to
inish third this season in its confer-
ence - the MAC.
A no-brainer, a creampuff, a gimme.
Right?
Wrong.
"I don't feel it's a tune-up game,"
Michigan forward Maurice Taylor
said of tonight's meeting with Ball
State. "After losing to Athletes in
Action, I don't think we can look at
1y game as a tune-up game."
Indeed, after finishing up the exhi-
bition part of their schedule with a
104-96 loss to AlA last Monday, the
Wolverines have much to work on if
they are to begin the regular season
on a winning note. Defense in partic-
ular.
"We made it perfectly clear
(against AIA) that our defense is not
up to snuff," Michigan coach Steve
Fisher said.
Not only is the defense slightly
under par, Taylor said, but downright
poor.
"Right now our defense is a liabil-
ity, really," Taylor said.
That's not good news considering
that the Cardinals return the Mid-
American Conference's leading scor-
er in senior forward Bonzi Wells.
"He's a great scorer," Taylor said.
"He's the guy we have to key on."
Although Wells averaged more
than 25 points per game last season
- good enough for fifth in the
nation - Michigan held him to a
mere 13 points in the Wolverines'
80-52 victory at Ball State.
Taylor said the responsibility for
keeping Wells firmly in check this
time around will fall squarely upon
junior guard Travis Conlan.
"You're gonna see (Conlan) on
Bonzi a lot," Taylor said. "He has the
size to check him down low, and the
quickness to check him on the
perimeter."
Both Wells and Conlan are 6-foot-
5, but both play different positions
on their respective teams.
Conlan said Ball State will not
only draw motivation from last year's
blowout, but also the extra boost of
being the visiting underdog.
"(Last year's game) was disgrace-
ful for them," Conlan said. "They're
going to come in here and be as hun-
gry as possible.
"Any time someone comes in here,
they want to beat Michigan."
In addition to Wells, three other
hungry starters return for the
Cardinals.
Senior center Robert Martin, at 6-
foot-10, is the only Ball State starter
likely to present any problems for
Michigan's front line.
Also returning are senior guard
Randy Zachary and sophomore for-
ward Marcus Mason.
Zachary tossed in nine points
against the Wolverines last season,
four fewer than Wells, and seven
fewer than LaSalle Thompson who,
unfortunately for the Cardinals, has
graduated.
Ball State coach Ray McCallum, a
former Michigan assistant coach, is
dubious about his team's ability to
keep up with the Wolverines.
"Who can match up with
Michigan?" McCallum said.
"They're big, they're physical,
they're skilled.
"I hope we can go out and compete
and give a much better effort than we
did a year ago."
And that, for the Cardinals, means
stopping Taylor, who tore through
the exhibition season, averaging
almost 35 points per game.
One reason for Taylor's scoring
spree has been the absence of junior
forward Maceo Baston, who is out
with an Achilles tendon injury.
Taylor won't be able to let up yet.
Baston is expected to be out at least
until Saturday's game at Cleveland
State.
I
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Prospective Teacher Education Meeting
Tuesday, December 3, 1996
6:00 p.m.
Whitney Auditorium
Room 1309 School of Education Building
Call 764-7563 for more information.
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.. '.. a
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29 & SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 30
Friday, November 29
Michigan vs. Minnesota 0 4:30 pm
Michigan State vs. Wisconsin # 8:00pm
Saturday, November 30
Michigan vs. Wisconsin * 4:30 pm
Michigan State vs. Minnesota * 8:00 pm
I v I
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