8B -- The Michigan Daily - SPORTSTuesday - January 21, 1997
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Consistency is the key to more
'M' women's basketball victories
By Richard Shin
Daily Sports Writer
EAST LANSING -- In its back-to-back
losses this past weekend, the Michigan
women's basketball team looked like the team
that won only one game in the Big Ten last
season.
If you make that statement to anyone who
has watched the Wolverines play this season,
chances are you'll get laughed out of the room.
Even with the pair of losses, Michigan
owns a 3-4 conference record and is a
respectable 11-5 overall. Big strides for a
team that finished 10th in the league in each
of the last two seasons and was picked by the
Big Ten coaches to do the same this season.
Now, almost halfway through the Big Ten
schedule, opposing coaches will tell you that
the Wolverines are not the same.
Michigan lacks the consistency it had last
season, but in this case, that is an improvement.
Last season, the team was consistent - con-
sistently bad. In the past three seasons, the
Wolverines struggled to win a handful of
games in the Big Ten, compiling a 4-46 record.
With one more conference victory in the
current campaign, the Wolverines will match
their Big Ten win total for the past three sea-
sons combined.
Over the weekend, Michigan suffered con-
secutive losses for the first time this season.
Against Indiana on Friday, Michigan lost to a
weaker, less-talented team. The Wolverines,
playing without leading scorer Pollyanna
Johns, shot an abysmal 33 percent from the
field and only connected on two of 17 shots
from beyond the arc in the 72-59 loss.
The defense, which limited the Hoosiers to
38.5 percent shooting in the first half and kept
the Wolverines within three points at half-
time, broke down in the second half, allowing
Indiana to shoot at a 54.2-percent clip.
Inconsistency plagued the Wolverines on the
boards, as Michigan managed only three offen-
sive rebounds in the
first half, but ended the
game with 16.
"Offensive rebound-
ing is relentless pursuit
of the basketball,"
Michigan coach Sue
Guevara said. "We did
not start that in the
first half. I thought we
picked it up in the sec-
ond half."
Sunday's game against Michigan State
was also a study in contrast. The Spartans
torched Michigan in the first half, hitting on
20 of 30 shots, including 80 percent from
long range. The result was a 19-point half-
time lead.
The Wolverines showed flashes of bril-
liance in the second half, cutting a 20-point
deficit to seven in three minutes, while limit-
ing the Spartans to 31 percent from the field.
Michigan was threatening to run away with
the game, but instead, the clock ran out on the
Wolverines.
Guevara recognized the need for her play-
ers to play consistently for the entire gam
not just the last few minutes.
"We outplayed (Michigan State) inthe sec-
ond half," Guevara said. "I told the team, 'You
need to come out and you need to play for 40
minutes.
"The first 20 minutes against a team like
Michigan State - I mean, there's a reason
they are leading the Big Ten."
To Michigan's credit, the Wolverines did
not collapse after falling behind by 19 points
at halftime, and by as many as 22 in the sec-
ond half.
The Wolverines battled back with a valianT'
effort at the end, but ran out of time. Good
luck for the Spartans, who might have been 5-
2 instead of 6-1.
"I though we played real well in the first
half, and kind of let down in the second half,"
Michigan State coach Karen Langeland said.
"But maybe more importantly that's a credit
to (Guevara) and the Michigan team for stay-
ing in there and playing so hard and reall
pushing us until the very end."
So while Michigan is slowly earning the
respect it deserves with close losses to con-
ference opponents, the Wolverines are still
20 minutes away from the tough wins they
could have.
MARGARET MYERS/Daily
Catherine DiGlacinto and the rest of the Michigan women's basketball team will need to be more con-
sistent down the stretch If they hope to enjoy the same success they had early in the season.
New and improved Blue heats up rivalry
By Pranay Reddy
Daily Sports Writer
EAST LANSING - "What a great game it was -
wasn't it?"
These were the first words out of Michigan
women's basketball coach Sue Guevara's smiling
mouth following Sunday's 76-67 loss to Michigan
State.
And for once, it was.
Great for a number of reasons. Never mind the
usual Michigan-Michigan State hoopla, and that
Guevara served as assistant coach for the Spartans for
10 seasons before coming to Ann Arbor.
What Guevara was so excited about Sunday was
that finally, the game meant more than in-state brag-
ging rights.
"I think it's great for the state of Michigan that (it)
has two quality women's basketball teams to come out
and watch, Guevara said. "It was finally a good
show."
It was a game that had importance in Big Ten stand-
ings - the type of contest this year's Wolverines had
never really been in.
Up until now, it was Michigan who was failing to
keep up its end of the bargain in the showdown.
In the past 10 seasons, the Spartans had posted win-
ning records seven times to Michigan's one.
Not exactly a marquee matchup.
But this game was, since Michigan State was lead-
ing the Big Ten and the Wolverines were in the middle
of the pack.
And don't think the fans didn't appreciate it. The
Breslin Center drew a record-breaking women's bas-
ketball crowd of 7,519.
"It was wonderful," Michigan State coach Karen
Langeland said. "It (was) so exciting to see the Breslin
Center filled with this many people."
It was a sight for sore eyes for Langeland, and
Guevara was well aware of the crowd's impact on her
squad.
"If you don't think that crowd makes a difference -
it makes a huge difference," Guevara said. "I would
love to have this game at Crisler (Arena)."
However, the Wolverines will have to wait until next
season for that wish to come true.
The crowd support and the intensity of the rivalry
put the two coaches at odds, something neither
seemed to be fully prepared for as far as their profes-
sional and personal relationship was concerned.
"I'm glad this game is over," Langeland said. "To be
honest with you, the worst part of this was leading up
to the game.
"Once the game started, it was much easier, because
at that point you kind of click into automatic and you
coach and you forget who's on the other side"
From the looks of things, Guevara had the same
anxiety heading into her former stomping grounds.
"I purposely didn't come out of the tunnel because
I just didn't want to get caught up in everything,"
Guevara said. "It was fun though."
Fun - but still not satisfying for the ever-competi-
tive Guevara. Despite pre-game tension surrounding
the contest with her former allies, Guevara was still
hungry for more.
"Am I glad it's over? - yeah," Guevara said. "Do I
want another one? - yeah."
MARGARET MYERS/Dally
After only four Big Ten victories over her first three seasons, Michigan senior Silver
Sheliman can finally feel proud of her 11-5 team -- which has three league wins.
s
SWEPT
Continued from Page lB
been in the starting rotation, she has
been averaging 10.1 points per game.
The Wolverines cut the lead to six, but
a costly Michigan turnover with just
under a minute left in the game turned
out to be the straw that would break the
proverbial camel's back.
In the end, the crowd - the largest
ever to see a women's basketball game at
Michigan State - and missed free
throw opportunities proved to be too
much for Michigan.
"We missed 10 free throws and lost
the game by 10," Guevara said. "Of
those 10 free throws, I believe three or
four of them were on the front end of a
one-and-one."
Not only did Michigan shoot a paltry
12 of 22 from the line, the Spartans hit
four of six critical throws with less than
a minute to play.
Although Michigan's center
Pollyanna Johns managed to hold
Michigan State's leading scorer Nicole
Cushing-Adkins to eight points, other
Spartans stepped up in her stead. Guard
Tamika Matlock recorded a career-high
17 points.
"Matlock had a great game,'
Langeland said. "Michigan did a good
job of defending Cushing-Adkins inside,
and Tamika took the open shot that she
had and made them, all of them."
The trip was Guevara's first to East
Lansing as Michigan's coach, after
spending the last nine seasons as a
Michigan State assistant.
For the Wolverines, the biggest dif-
ference between the Michigan State
game and Friday's against the Hoosiers .
was that leading rebounder and feared
inside post-player Johns was unavail-
able due to the flu. The 6-foot-3 center
had 14 points and 12 rebounds against
the Spartans.
Her presence inside was sorely missed
on Friday because Indiana's Quacy
Barnes, the 6-5 center and leading shot-
blocker in the Big Ten, scored a game-
high 18 points.
The Wolverines came out flat to start
the game, falling behind 10-0 early. A
17-6 run brought them back into what
turned out to be a sedate game.
The turning point of the close contest
came with the score 46-51. Indiana's
Dani Thrush hit a lay-up and was fouled
by Willard. Thrush hit the floor, earning
a delayed intentional foul call.
After the resulting two free throws
and subsequent Indiana possession, the
Wolverines found themselves trailing by
10 points and without momentum.
"I think (the intentional foul) hurt us
because we were playing real well with a
chance to come back," Lemire said. "It
kind of slowed us down and gave them a
big advantage because they got the ball
out of bounds, too."
Lemire led Michigan in scoring with
18 points.
MICHIGAN (67)
FiF T REB
MIN M M-A 0- A F PTS
Thomas 32 5-16 1-5 3-9 0 4 11
Willard 21 2-7 0.0 2-9 2 4 5
Johns 36 642 2-3 6-12 2 3 14
Kiefer 15 1-3 0-0 0-0 1 0 2
Lemire 38 7-13 2-6 0-4 3 1 16
Murray 24 1-5 4-4 2-6 3 5 6
Franklin 7 0-0 2-2 0-1 2 1 2
Walker 3 0-2 0-0 0-1 0 0 0
Johnson 4 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Shellman 4 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 2
Poglits 4 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 2
DiGiacinto 12 3-4 1-2 1-1 1 1 7
Totals 200 27-65 12-2214431420 67
FG%: .415. FT%: .545. 3-point FG: 1-8, .125,
(Willard 1-2, Kiefer 0-1, Johnson 0-1, Lemire
0-2, Murray 0-2). Blocks: 2 (Thomas, Johns).
Turnovers: 23 (Johns 5, Lemire 4, Franklin 3,
Willard 2, Kiefer 2, Johnson 2, Thomas,
Murray, Poglits, DiGiacinto). Steals: 8
(Lemire 4, Thomas, Johns, Murray,
DeGiacinto). Technical Fouls: none.
MICHIGAN STATE (76)
FG FT REB
MIN M-A *4A 0}T A F PTS
Sanders 32 4-7 3-4 1-13 0 1 11
Euler 37 3-10 0-0 0-4 3 2 6
Cushing 23 2-8 462-4 1 3 8
Matlock 36 6-6 3-4 1-3 9 2 17
Wesley 23 6-10 2-2 0-1 2 4 15
Reese 14 2-3 0-0 0-0 1 3 6
Collier 4 0-0 0-0 0-1 0 2 0
Engen 8 0-1 0-1 0-000 0
Rasmussen 16 5-10 1-4 3-7 1 1 11
Winberg 7 1-4 0-0 0-0 0 0 2
Totals 200 29-5913-217-341818 76
FG%: .492. FT%: .619. 3-point FG: 5-7, .714
(Matlock 2-2, Reece 2-3, Wesley 1-2).
Blocks: 7 (Cushing-Adkins 3, Rasmussen 2,
Sanders, Matlock). Turnovers: 18 (Euler 4,
Sanders 3, Matlock 3, Reece 2, Rasmussen
2, Wesley 2, Cushing-Adkins, Collier).
Steals: 12 (Euler 3, Sanders 2, Reece,
Collier, Rasmussen). Technical Fouls: none.
Michigan ............30 37 -67
Michigan State ...49 27 -76
At: Breslin Center
A: 7,519
IL
INDIANA (72)
FO FT REB
MIN M-A M-A 01 A F PTS
Thrush 36 3-9 8-9 0-6 3 2 14
Morgan 5 0-2 0-0 1-1 0 0 0
Porter 19 2-3 1-2 3-7 0 4 6
Green 36. 2-7 6-9 0-1 4 1 11
Vesel 23 4-7 0-0 0-4 0 1 9
Malone 2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Barnes 30 8-14 2-4 2-6 0 3 18
Honeggar 24 4-6 0-0 1-4 0 4 8
Kerns 14 0-1 5-9 0-3 2 2 5
Maines 11 0-1 1-3 0-3 1 2 1
Totals 200 23-5023-369-411019 72
FG%: .460. FT%: .639. 3-point FG: 3-13
.231 (Porter 1-1, Vesel 1-3, Green 1-4,
Thrush 0-5). Blocks: 7 (Barnes 5, Porter,
Thrush). Turnovers: 20 (Thrush 5, Green 4,
Kerns 3, Honeggar 2, Morgan 2, Porter,
Vesel, Malone, Maines). Steals: 7
(Honeggar 2, Vesel 2, Green 2, Morgan).
Technical Fouls: none.
MICHIGAN (59)
FG FT REB
MIN M-A M-A 041 A F PTS
Willard 28 6-11 3-4 2-4 1 3 15
L-emire 38 7-15 3-4 3-10 4 4 "1$
DiGiacinto 24 3-8 5-5 4.6 0 3 1
Thomas 26 3-8 2-2 4-8 D 3 8
Kiefer 21 0-4 0-0 0-0 0 1 0
Murray 21 2-8 0-0 1-4 0 4 5
Franklin 13 0-5 0-0 1-3 0 3 0
Walker 2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Johnson 9 0-4 0-3 0-1 0 1 0
Shellman 8 0-1 0-1 0-1 0 1 0
Poglits 10 1-2 0-0 0-0 0 3 2
Totals 200 226613-1916.415 26 59
FG%: .333. FT%: .684. 3-point FG: 2-17,
.117 (Lemire 1-3, Murray 1-4, Franklin 0-1,
Shellman 0-1, Willard 0-2, Kiefer 0-3).
Blocks: 1 (Thomas). Turnovers: 18 (Thomas
5, DiGiacinto 4, Murray 2, Franklin 2,
Lemire 2, Shellman 2, Willard). Steals: 7 4
(Thomas 3, Johnson, Shellman, Poglits,
Murray). Technical Fouls: none.
Indiana ..............31 41 - 72
Michigan.....28A31-59
At: Crisler Arena
A: 2,793
pi
p
}I
AN ARMY SCHOLARSH IP COULD
HELP YOU THROUGH MEDICAL SCHOOL
The U.S. Army Health Professions
Scholarship Program offers a unique
A opportunity for financial support to med-
ical or osteopathy students. Financial
r .support includes tuition, books, and
Itnktc e r