The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday, April 14, 1997 - 3B Jump to Draft leaves holes in 'M' Cagers need to step up to deal with subpar recruits, Taylor's departure Ny Danielle Rumore Daily Sports Editor Michigan forward Maurice Taylor announced Friday afternoon that he was foregoing his final year of eligibility at ichigan to make himself available for e NBA Draft. And although Taylor's status for the future seems somewhat certain, the sta- tus of the Michigan basketball team is up in the air. As it stands, losing Taylor lowers Michigan's already thin rotation for next season. Throw in a paltry recruiting class, in which the Wolverines only signed two players, and the Wolverines Spear to have some depth problems for ext season. "I think we'll be a pretty good team,' forward Maceo Baston said. "We're still a pretty young team, and we've got a lot of experience from the guys who played this year." Taylor's best season was arguably his freshman campaign, when he averaged 12.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game, earning 'Big Ten freshman of the year &nors. He hasn't made a gradual ascen- ion in three years, though, and this sea- son averaged just 12.3 points and 6.2 rebounds, culminating in a nine-point, eight-rebound effort at Madison Square Garden in New York in the NIT. On the surface, he shouldn't be badly missed -he ranked third in rebounding and scoring average on the team this season. But keep in mind that the pres- ence of a 6-foot-9, 250-pound frame is not easy to replace, and the Wolverines might have some work cut out for them- selves next season. For the second straight year, the Wolverines' recruiting class is not one of the tops in country. Recruiting expert and draft analyst Bob Gibbons ranks it in the bottom third of the Big Ten. Taylor's departure leaves the Wolverines with six available scholar- ships, but Michigan has signed just two players for next season, both in the early signing period. Six-foot-I1 center Josh Asselin of Caro who is described as a project - similar to freshman Peter Vignier's situ- ation this past season - and 6-7 swing- man Brandon Smith of Amarillo, Texas are Michigan's two recruits. "I only know of the two players that signed early," Gibbons said. "I think, obviously, that is not sufficient to fill all of their needs now." The Wolverines are still looking to grab a few more players during the late signing period, but the prospects look bleak at this late juncture. Michigan has its eyes on another swingman: Leon Jones of Battle Creek. Jones made a recruiting trip to Michigan last week but is also looking at Cincinnati and Big Ten champion Minnesota. In terms of the two definite recruits, Smith should be able to come in and offer immediate help. But the shoulder of the load will rest on the returning frontline, led by sophomore center Robert Traylor. Traylor made considerable improve- ment from his '95-96 inaugural season and from the early part of this season. He increased his ball-handling skills and expanded his moves in the paint, making him a formidable threat down low. He was named the NIT MVP, lead- ing the Wolverines to the title over Florida State. He averaged a combined 16.5 points and 9.5 boards in wins over Arkansas in the semifinals and over the Seminoles in the championship game. And that's when people started to not only question Taylor's future as a Wolverine, but Traylor's, too. Since the speculations, Traylor has restated time and again that he does not plan to join his frontcourt mate in the draft this year. "I am 110 percent sure that I will not join (Taylor)," Traylor said. Baston will return to join Traylor in the paint. After an early-season heel injury, Baston came on strong toward the end of the year. He averaged 10.4 points and 6.8 boards per game and earned an offi- cial spot in the starting lineup late in the season, replacing junior swing- man Jerod Ward against Purdue. But the player with the biggest chance to get both more playing time, and to make an impact, is Ward. Ward has metaphorically played his position to a tee, swinging from moments of greatness to moments of mediocrity. He missed most of his first two sea- sons with knee injuries. After earning a spot in the starting lineup this sea- son, falling numbers and lack of pro- ductivity relegated him into a sixth- man role. "I don't know if (Taylor's departure) means more minutes for me," Ward said. "I'm still going to go all out and do the things that I need to do to help myself." Nine seniors bid farewell at hockey banquet BARRY SOLLENBERGER Sollenberger in Paradise Thnkes, Mickzgan, i owe yu formy pde I t's a phrase I've uttered - we've all uttered - a thousand times. I go to Michigan. We've said it to employers, relatives, friends and friends of friends. And each of us has said it with a varying degree of pride. Some of us are proud we go to Michigan. Others are not so proud. I, myself, am extremely proud to say, "I go to Michigan," mainly because I don't think there is a better academic/athletic institution in the world. Sure, it would be impressive to say, "I go to Harvard," but this also carries a stig- ma. Whether fair or not, people often think you balance chemistry equations for fun if you go to an Ivy League school. At Michigan, we have no such problems. When you say, "I go to Michigan" people think academics. They think Fab Five. They think football. They think ... wow, this person deserves respect. A few down years in football and basketball don't change that. This is why I don't understand some Michigan students' indifference toward their school. Being a Phoenix resident, I'm asked twice a month, "You're from Arizona? Then why'd you come to Michigan?" Politely, I always say I wanted to go away for college and was attracted by Michigan's academic reputation. But something inside me always burns ... "What is this person thinking? Isn't it obvious why I came to Michigan? The academics. The athletics. The whole package." I bet if I went to Pennsylvania, or Brown or Cornell nobody would ask me why I left Arizona, and Michigan compares favorably to these schools academically, not to mention athletically. Indeed, in-staters don't know what they have in their own backyards. Sometimes, of course, it may not seem like much to go to Michigan. After all, the school has some 35,000 students. But trust me. It's a big deal. Nationwide, people know the name Michigan. With apologies to E.E Hutton, when Michigan talks, people listen. A few years ago, I was at a party in Flagstaff, Ariz. Some guy asked me where I went to school, and I said to him (perhaps a little too loudly), "I go to Michigan." So many heads swiveled I thought 'I was watching I he Exorcist. Immediately, everybody was interested: "What's it like? How's the weather? Have you ever met Jalen Rose?" Etc., etc. Maybe I got this attention because I was in Flagstaff, but would people have been as interested if I said, "I go to Columbia?" I don't think so. A couple of summers ago, I was in Ufa, Russia, a city about 750 miles east of Moscow - in other words, on the other side of the world. One day, I ran into a teen-ager wearing a Michigan hat, and in case you didn't know, they don't have a school named Michigan in Russia. "Ya uchus v Michigane (I go to Michigan)," I said. "Da?! Eto prekrasno! (Yes?! That's terrific!)," he said. Of course, this guy had no clue that Michigan has more football wins than any team in history. He was excited to talk to an American. He didn't care what about. Still, here was someone in the middle of Russia wearing a Michigan hat. For the rest of my two months in Ufa, I didn't see another Russian wearing American sports apparel. No Notre Dame shirts. No Michael Jordan jerseys. Only a Michigan hat. My days here at Michigan are numbered. I've spent much of the past 30 weeks or so criticizing the men's basketball and football programs. Now, it's time for me to thank them. In less than three weeks, I'll no longer be able to say, "I go to Michigan.' But thanks in part to the illustrious basketball and football traditions, I'll carry a certain amount of prestige into the real world. I'll be in good shape for years to come, and it will be thanks to four simple words. I went to Michigan. - This is Barry Sollenberger'sfinal column for The Michigan Daily. He can b. reached over e-mail atjsol@umich.edu Mark Snyder ly Sports Writer At the end of Saturday's Michigan hockey banquet, the nine seniors were called to the stage to sing 'The Victors!' It was the symbolic end of an era. The Michigan fight song, sung by that group after every victory throughout its four 'seasons, became the standard. Those seniors won more games than any of their predecessors. The banquet was their chance to be cognized and honored. But the team awards were presented first, and there was a mixture of classes "among those honored. Five of the seven awards went to seniors, but more important to Michigan coach Red Berenson, this season's recip- Tents earned the honors. Berenson said this season there were not enough awards to recognize everyone. '-ut there was a time in the past that, "we sed to give the same number of awards and no one was deserving of them." 'Two underclassmen were honored on a night that became a farewell to the senior class. Sean Peach won the Deker Club Award given to the most colorful rookie. He thanked his "competition" - fellow 'freshmen Andrew Merrick, Krikor Arman and Kevin Magnuson - for the Award. *The Alton D. Simms Award for the most improved player went to sopho- "more Justin Clark. Seniors were honored with the Howard Colby Award for sportsmanship, which Mike Legg carried home, and the Vic Heyliger Award for the top defense- man, won by Harold Schock. Michigan captain Brendan Morrison totaled the most awards, as usual, gar- nering two trophies. The first was the azel M. (Doc) Losh Award for leading "he team in points. Moments after return- ing to his seat, Morrison was again called to the stage to accept the Hal Downes Award as Michigan's Most McCAHILL Continued from Page 11B Taylor as I have this year. He's a great guy, smart and with a sharp sense of humor. O)ne of the things he said Friday was that ' once NBA teams get to know him per- sonally, they'll like him even better. Certainly true. We all have our hopes and dreams. At one time, many of us wanted to be pro- fessional athletes, to be adults getting paid to play children's games. A dream that died fairly early on, when we real- ized we weren't getting any taller, that we weren't quick enough. 1 envy Taylor, because his dream is still alive. I envy him because, at age 20, he's much closer to fulfilling his dream than I am to fulfilling mine at age 23. Just as in the past we looked to Chris Webber, Juwan Howard and Jalen Rose to make their dreams reality, we now Valuable Player. Morrison, honored as the Hobey Baker Award recipient two nights earlier in Minnesota, described how much this particular award meant to him as he thanked his teammates. It was the sec- ond consecutive season Morrison was voted as the most valuable player by his teammates. A recurring theme in the senior speeches centered on the University and its academics. The emphasis of hard work on and off the ice has been a focal point of Berenson's philosophy as he has rebuilt the Michigan program. Morrison began his thank-yous by acknowledging the University as a whole. "It has been our pleasure to attend this university," he said. Chris Frescoln was especially adamant with regards to how the stu- dent-athlete is perceived on campus. His comments were steered toward the lack of respect accorded to Michigan athletes. Frescoln said that there is no differ- ence between the student and the athlete. "The two exist in perfect harmony,"he said. "The definition of the student is the definition of the athlete." To the younger players, he offered advice about life away from the rink. You need to "prove that you're not just a hockey player,"he said. Jason Botterill, the Carl Issacson Award-winner as the top academic ath- lete, more than likely has a professional hockey career ahead of him. But pro prospects were the least of his worries. "This team has been dedicated to aca- demics," he said. "We've done a good job of preparing for the future." While the seniors' futures seem to be secure, the prospects for the Michigan program now rest in the hands of juniors Matt Herr, Bill Muckalt and Marty Turco. Herr was voted next season's captain by his teammates, while Muckalt will serve as the assistant captain. should have those same hopes for Taylor. Just as he's gone out and represented all of us on the court for three years, he now goes out into the NBA. And still he will, in some part, be representing us. When we see him in a professional uni- form, we will be able to say that we were at Michigan at the same time as Maurice Taylor, to relate to our friends and fami- lies our favorite Taylor jam and to tell them how good a player he could be. He's going to the pros to try to achieve a dream. But it's not just his dream, not just his fantasy. It's a little bit our dream, too. Taylor said he's still a Wolverine, and he's right. He's just moving along to richer hunting grounds in the NBA. Good luck, Maurice. Get out there and kick some ass. You're getting to do some- thing that many of us may never get to do. Go out and make that dream a reality. - Will McCahill can be reached over e-mail at wmcc@umich.edu. Turco, who will resist the lure of the professional ranks to return for another season at Michigan, was also voted as a captain, but cannot officially serve due to league rules. "Next year, we'll look at the leader- ship (these seniors) gave" Herr said. "We're going to look for that next year. Guys like Ritchlin, Crozier and that whole sophomore class, we're going to need them, because (the juniors) are a small class." Morrison, Botterill will wait for NHL Botterill recovering after shoulder surgery By Dan Stillman Daily SportsWAiter Graduating Michigan hockey players Brendan Morrison and Jason Botterill do not expect to leave Michigan early to play in the NHL. Morrison, this season's Hobey Baker "We've been talking for the last few days. We're pretty far apart on numbers right now. It'll probably be a long summer." Botterill underwent surgery last week to tighten up tendons in his right shoulder. The shoulder, which has been a recurring problem the past two sea- sons, has not affected his talks with the Stars, he said. Dallas "is having a lot of success right now," Botterill said. "I'm con- fident we'll be able to find a deal during the summer." The Devils and Stars have both clinched berths in the Stanley Cup playoffs. New Jersey has clinched the Eastern Conference title, while Want to earn credit this summer without stepping foot on campus? University of Michigan_ Summer Honors Reading Program Open to Honors students or students with at least 3.0 GPA Enrollment deadline: May 9 Independent Study Correspondence Program Open to ALL Students No enrollment deadline Engine Council having ering it is its annual ... .f!/ Join us on April 22 5 (last day of classes) Q) J on the North Campus Dian for a stress-.freeIIId.l ~JJI Call Academic Outreach at 764-5300 or email aocourses@ umich.edu Room 1210 Buhr E day of Volleyball. Velcro Olympics, Tug of War. and more... ubwffalmoA U -------~ I jOBoS& WTH FRIENDS. CATCH A FEW RAYS.47 lemn A 51AAE R io t .u ..vvruavv ..-- ... .,. ......... I I H,