Scorebward NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Seattle 118, PHILADELPHIA 94
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE Charlotte 107, VANCOUVER 91
OAKLAND 26, Kansas City 7
NCAA BASKETBALL
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE ARIZONA 83, Texas 78
Anaheim 5, BOSTON 2 KENTUCKY 90, Wright State 62
N.Y. Rangers 5, PHOENIX 2 BOSTON COLLEGE 59, Vanderbilt 52
Toronto.3, CHICAGO 1 Home teams in CAPS.
14"
Tuesday
December 10, 1996
Icers look to continue GLI dorninance'
Wolverines hope to stretch tournament title-run to nine after extended vacation
By Mark Snyder
Daily Sports Writer
How dominant can one team be?
The Michigan hockey team can answer that question.
It has been a model of consistency, not to mention
success, in the Great Lakes Invitational.
For the past eight seasons, Michigan (15-1-1) has
competed in the GLI every year just after Christmas.
And for the last eight seasons, Michigan has won the
tournament - every time.
The annual holiday pilgrimage for the two-game tour-
nament to Joe Louis Arena in Detroit will take place
Dec. 27-28.
During the GLI's 32-year history, no team has been as
successful as Michigan.
The team has captured 10 championships and record-
ed seven runner-up finishes during its tenure.
The last eight MVPs of the GLI have been Wolverines
and current Michigan captain Brendan Morrison has
taken home the last two trophies.
But according to Michigan coach Red Berenson, this
season's GLI will be no cakewalk.
"All four teams (competing) are as good or better than
they were last year," he said.
Traditionally, three of the four teams in the field are
the same, and the fourth team is the wild card. Michigan
and Michigan Tech will once again serve as co-hosts and
meet in the opening contest.
The winner of that game will advance to face the sur-
vivor of the Michigan State-Lake Superior matchup
which will take place a couple of hours earlier.
The Spartans, who joined the fray on a permanent
basis in 1979, have been Michigan's championship vic-
tim the last three years.
This season, the field is more difficult for the
Wolverines, Berenson said.
"(Northern Michigan) wasn't nearly as strong (last
year) as Lake Superior is (now)," Berenson said.
History remains on Michigan's side, however. And
because of its success over the past few years at the tour-
nament, the GLI is now a circled date on the calendar.
"At the start of the year we talk about the GLI," he
said. "It's becoming a part of Michigan hockey tradi-
tion."
But tradition won't help get Michigan into shape after
a 20-day layoff.
"(The time off) not beneficial to your conditioning
because you lose an edge," Berenson said.
Not only is Michigan without a game during that time
span, but also will not be practicing as a team. But that
can be viewed as a positive for the Wolverines.
The time off will give Michigan time to heal.
"(The G LI) is becoming
a part of Michigan x
hockey tradition
- Red Berenson
Michigan hockey Coach
I
i
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i
With defenseman Peter Bourke on the bench with a
separated shoulder and forward Greg Crozier sidelined
with a broken arm, Michigan has two players who are
questionable for the tournament.
"We won't know until the week of the (L . i
(Crozier) can consider playing:' Berenson said. .
After the two-game tournament, it's back to business
as usual for Michigan.
With a contest against Ferris State on New Year's Eve
and another the night before classes resume on Jan. 8'
Berenson sees the period as a prime opportunity to gair(
his players' full concentration.
"We're treating it as kind of a training camp and kind
of a pre-season type preparation for the second pat'6f
the season, Berenson said. '
"4" rMAR IEDILMAN/D~aily
Wolverines like Louis Bullock will have to play the kind of defense they did against
Duke on Sunday if they want to return to classes next semester undefeated.
Blue hopes hangover
doesn't hit tomorrow
' s ; =T
r
I
14 4
+3^4
pi
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 1
11 A.M. ESPN
No. 15 MICHIGAN
VS.
By John Leroi
Daily Sports Editor
The word hangover was tossed around
quite-a bit in Crisler Arena yesterday.
That's understandable, after a huge
win ^over Duke in Cameron Indoor
Stadium. But it wasn't because the
Wolverines had one too many celebrato-
ry drinks on the plane ride home.
Rather, Michigan coaches and players
were,all cautious that Sunday's emotion-
al victory would have a negative impact
on the Wolverines preparation for a
matchup with St. John's in Nassau
Coliseum (ESPN) tomorrow night.
"'ll be real honest, I'm concerned,"
Michigan coach Steve Fisher said.
"Human reaction is it was such a euphor-
ic high after we won that game for all of
us, myself included
that there is a natur- Who's nex
al letdown the
morning after. Michigan's next
"I've started on all traditional bas
St. John's. St. John's
is important to me. Whc
Our kids are in WhI
there reading the
Free Press, News, Wh
The Michigan
Daily ... about Who: Louisiana S
themselves beating When: Sunday, 3K
Duke. So, we've Where: The Palac
got to make sure we Auburn Hit
say that's yester-
day's news, which
i$ easier said than Who
4one. Whe
Regardless of hen
how many fine
newspapers the
Wolverines get their oversized hands on,
most realized the task at hand this week.
The Red Storm are no slouch. Though
unranked, St. John's (2-2), has the same
core of players that upset Michigan two
seasons ago in Crisler Arena.
So, while a letdown might seem prob-
able from this bunch, Michigan players
say that whatever hangover they've had
has been slept off.
"It all depends on how we handle it,"
said Michigan center Robert Traylor, the
most emotional Wolverine of all. "But
this team is so much more mature than
last year's that I think we'll be fine.
"We never have won a game like we
did (Sunday) last year. We've grown a
lot. I
Though the Red Storm aren't the Blue
Devils and the Nassau Coliseum in
Uniondale, N.Y. - St. John's third home
court - isn't exactly Cameron Indoor
Stadium, No. 5 Michigan (5-0) won't
have it easy.
St. John's junior guard Felipe Lopez is
thr
skel
finally playing like the All-American he
was in high school, averaging nearly 20
points a game. Inside, 6-foot-11 junior
Zendon Hamilton, the only Big East
player to average a double digits in both
points and rebounds last season, is a ter-
rific scorer.
Throw in senior forward Charles
Minlend, and St. John's have three dou-
ble-digit scorers.
New coach Fran Fraschilla brings a lot
of success with him to St. John's.
Fraschilla had a .708 winning percentage
in four seasons with Manhattan College,
leading the Jaspers to their first two
NCAA tournament berths since 1958.
Fraschilla installed an aggressive,
attacking defense and a running offense
that keys on the transition game - bad
news for the weary
p Wolverines.
But the Red
ee opponents are Storm don't have
tba## schools: anyone who even
looks like an out-
St. John's side shooter, and, so
: tomorrow, far, their defense
7:30 p.m. has been anything
e: Nassau Coliseum but stellar, giving
up more than 73
e points in three of
M. their first four
of games.
Michigan's
biggest asset will
be its motivation to
c 21, 3:45 p.m. avenge the 82-77
The Palace of loss St. John's
Auburn Hills handed them two
seasons ago when
both teams boasted
one of the nation's most heralded fresh-
man classes.
"This is another team we have to get
back at because they beat us freshman
year," Michigan guard Travis Conlan
said. "It's hard to get up for games like
Ball State, but with this one on TV, it
shouldn't be difficult.
"It's like the (ESPN) commercial says,
every game counts."
Michigan's biggest test before the Big
Ten season will come Dec. 21, two days
after final exams end, when the
Wolverines take on No. 8 Arizona at the
Palace of Auburn Hills, a game that will
be nationally televised by CBS.
The Wildcats, playing without their
best returning player, guard Miles
Simon, have gotten a huge boost from
freshman Mike Bibby. Arizona upset
then-No. 3 Utah last weekend.
Before it can focus on Arizona howev-
er, Michigan will tangle with Louisiana
State - in the heart of finals nonethe-
See HOOPS, Page 16
The Matchups:
Looki ng i n the
Tide w*lroll
over Blue in
deensi1ve battee
By Barry Sollenberger
Daily Sports Editor
If two teams were ever destined to meet each other
in a bowl, they are Alabama and Michigan.
The Crimson Tide and Wolverines are extremely
similar. How so? Consider:
Alabama averages 24.9, and Michigan averages
23.9 points per game.
The Crimson Tide surrender 15.1, and the
Wolverines give up 15.2 points per game.
Alabama averages 173.$ yards, and Michigan
averages 171.9 yards rushing per game.
With these statistics is mind, Michigan and
Alabama fans can be thankful that the game can't
end in a tie. Because with two teams as similar as the
Crimson Tide and the Wolverines, overtime might be
needed:
MICHIGAN RUSHING OFFENSE vS. ALABAMA RUSH-
ING DEFENSE:
Part of the reason the Wolverines will play in the
Outback Bowl and not the Rose Bowl is because
their running game took an extended siesta at mid-
season.
Fortunately for Michigan, however, the running
backs revived in time to help the team to its stunning
upset of previously-undefeated Ohio State on Nov.
23. In fact, the Wolverines' Chris Howard became
the first back this season to rush for more than 100
yards against the Buckeyes.
How Howard and his running mate, Clarence
Williams, fare against the Crimson Tide could be the
game's key. And unfortunately for Michigan,
Alabama doesn't give up much yardage on the
ground. Opposing teams have rushed for only 92.5
yards a game against the Tide, and no one rushed for
more than 158 yards in a game against coach Gene
Stallings' team.
Advantage:
~1
No. 16 ALABAMA
mirror
: A
ire:
JOE WESTRATE/%Dily
When the fifteenth-ranked Wolverines face No. 16 Alabama in the Outback Bowl on New Year's Day, senio
nosetackle William Carr will play a large role in what will certainly be a defensive battle.
MICHIGAN PASSING OFFENSE VS. ALABAMA PASS-
ING DEFENSE:
Alabama doesn't give up much yardage to anyone
through the air, either. That is if your name isn't
Danny Wuerffel.
The Florida quarterback torched the Tide for 401
yards and six touchdowns passing in this weekend's
Southeastern Conference championship game. But
in fairness, Wuerffel has done that to almost every-
body this season, and Alabama certainly isn't used to
giving up those types of numbers.
You can bet the Tide's Kevin Jackson is happy
he'll face either Michigan's Scott Dreisbach or Brian
Griese after the Wuerffel debacle. Jackson leads
Alabama with seven interceptions.
Dreisbach started every game this season for
Michigan but was hurt in the Ohio State game, and
Griese came in and led the Wolverines to the vitto-'
ry.
Whomever starts for Michigan in the bowl griie
needs to take advantage of Alabama's cornerbacks,
who were burned repeatedly by Wuerffel
Advantage:
EVEN
ALABAMA RUSHING OFFENSE VS. MICHIGAN
RUSHING DEFENSE:
Against the Buckeyes, the Wolverines not only
ended national championship hopes, they probdbl9 '
squelched Heisman hopes as well
See OUTBACK, Page 16
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