The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - December 1, 1997 - 7B 'n S Bas etball Preview Blue will rely on mix ofexperieni By Tracy Sandler Daily Sports Writer So far, the Michigan women's basketball team is off to a good start. The Wolverines are 4-1 and looking to improve on last year's eighth-place finish in the Big Ten and 7-9 confer- ence record. They finished the season 15-11, which was Michigan's highest win total since the 1989-90 season. This season will mark coach Sue Guevara's first year with- out an interim title before her name. Last season, senior Pollyanna Johns M ichigan was named an All-Big Ten second- . team member for the second consecu- Preview tive year, and sophomore Stacey Thomas was last season's Big Ten Freshman of the Year. After a string of unsuccessful seasons, no one really expect- ed the Wolverines to be competitive last year. But after last year's performance, Michigan will take the floor as a more corffident team that still has a lot to prove. "Last year was pretty much everything I had hoped it would be," Guevara said. "It was a foundation year. I thought at theI beginning that we were going to surprise a lot of people, but we were the only ones that thought that way. "I think this year, the expectations are higher from the play- ers themselves, maybe as opposed to me. This team gained a lot of confidence. I think this year's team has a better attitude than last year's team, and last year's team had a pretty good atti-i tude." The Wolverines have four new players in freshmen Katie y Dykehouse, Mandy Stowe and Anne Thorius and sophomore l transfer Alison Miller, although Miller must sit out the season; to regain her eligibility. E!e, youth Already, against Michigan State in the Nov. 22 Michigan State University/Felpausch Holiday Classic, Thoris played 40 minutes in the championship game against the host Spartans. She scored 22 points and grabbed five defensive rebounds on her way to a spot on the All-tournament team. Aside from the newcomers, the Wolverines have the core of last year's team returning to the lineup. "We return our top seven kids," Guevara said. "We return the bulk of our scoring, and the bulk of our rebounding. "Of the top three teams, Illinois, Purdue and Iowa, we beat Illinois and we beat Iowa. We lost to Purdue twice, but we were in the game with them both times. We only play Illinois once for the second straight year, and we only play Iowa once." The Wolverines are more experienced, so they are more familiar with each other and with Guevara's coaching style. Experienced players know what is expected of them. Guevara says since the players know the offense and defense, they can now concentrate on improvement. "This team has been through it already" Guevara said. "This team knows what our coaching staff expects. We're not run- ning a whole lot of new things yet. We're just trying to refine some of the things we did last year." One of the biggest problems for the Wolverines last year was free-throw shooting. Michigan finished the conference season with a .602 percentage from the line. The Wolverines are look- ing to improve that aspect of their game, along with tightening up the defense. "Our defense will be better this year than what it was last year," Guevara said. "This team is not going to be last in the Big Ten in free-throw percentage. Right there, if our defense gets better, and we make some free throws, I think we can win some of those tough ballgames we were in last year." 42 Katie Dykhouse Freshman - forward/center KEVIN KRUPITZER/Dai evara paces the sidelines in the Wolverines' 93.81 victory over Illinois State last Wolverines - she hopes to make the Final Four by 1999. iate challenging id not necessarily do last year. Also key for Indiana will be Barnes' lay. She finished last season averaging 0 minutes and six rebounds per game, long with a .542 field-goal percentage nd a .664 free-throw percentage. "I have goals, game-by-game goals," ames said. "I think that will help keep a used." Iowa: The Hawkeyes lost five of their 2 players from last year's Big Ten title- haring team, yet are one of the most onfident teams in the conference. Why? 11 five starters are returning. With three players who averaged dou- le-digit points a year ago and three ore who grabbed more than five bounds a game, the Hawkeyes are sure be in the conference title hunt come & . Add two solid 3-point shooters in adine Domond and Tiffany Gooden, nd the Hawkeyes might have more than onference glory on their minds. Michigan State: As the defending co- sig Ten Champions, Michigan State will ave to defend its title with only two layers from last season's team. "We've got pretty good size, and we're better rebounding team," Michigan tate coach Karen Langeland said. 'nnesota: What optimism can there e a team that won only a single con- erence game a year ago? Well, the 'olden Gophers have one thing on their ide - their entire team is returning. That gives first-year coach Cheryl ittlejohn some experience to work with, .ven if the only experience they have is f losing. :Ohio State: First-year Buckeye coach eth Burns has a problem with sub-par a>tball teams. That's why she turnti h around. 'n 1989, she took over the San Diego ;tote program and posted a .233 winning >ercentage in her first year. By the time he left for Ohio State a year ago, she had 23-6 team that made four NCAA tour- lament appearances in her eight seasons. But she has her work cut out for her vith the Buckeyes, a team that finished 0th in the conference a year ago. ehave to attack ourselves and nvcto the point where we can be lame-ready," Burns said. "The confer- ,nee overall is our focal point. If you're he Big Ten champion, you can be the ational champion. That's how good our :onference is" .Northwestern: When you talk about 'othwestern basketball, one of the first hings mentioned must be Kristina )vjak. The freshman forward is the Big e top returning player in four cate- - scoring, 3-pointers made, 3- >oint percentage and free-throw percent- ge. Divjak leads a team that finished oburth in the Big Ten a year ago, includ- o- pmCOM ing its first NCAA tournament appear- ance since 1994. The Wildcats lost only two players from that team, but both were starters. Northwestern is a strong perimeter team - both Divjak and Megan Chawansky shoot better than 35 percent from beyond the arc. "I'm excited about this team," Northwestern coach Don Perrelli said. "Last year, I ran the team into the ground with the minutes that five or six players had to play. This year, we have depth, so I shouldn't have to do that" Penn State: A year ago, Penn State learned what it's like to be mediocre. After being at least 10 games above .500 every year they've been in the Big Ten, the Lions suffered an 8-8 conference sea- son and failed to make the NCAA tour- nament for the first time since 1989 and only the second time since 1983. Penn State coach Rene Portland doesn't intend to let that happen again. "Our goals are pretty clear, Portland said. "It's to keep our eyes on the prize - the NCAA tournament." Purdue: Not too many schools have three coaches in three years and are happy with the direction its program is heading. But Purdue's situation is a unique one. A year ago, Nell Fortner took over the Boilermakers and led them to a share of the conference title, despite pre-season picks placing them as low as eighth. But when the USA national team called, Fortner jumped at the opportunity to rep- resent his nation, leaving his top assis- tant, Carolyn Peck, in charge. Under Fortner, Peck helped land a recruiting class that was ranked in the top-five in the nation. "You're going to see a very similar team to what you saw last year," Peck said. "We may be more aggressive defensively, and we need some vital min- utes from the freshmen." Wisconsin: The Badgers were not happy to be left out of the NCAA tour- nament a year ago. After finishing tied for sixth in the conference and posting its second-ever string of three consecutive winning seasons, Wisconsin was over- looked by the selection committee for the first time in Jane Albright-Dieterle's three-year coaching tenure. That isn't likely to happen again. The Badgers return four of their starters and 12 players from last season's team, and were predicted to finish as high as third in the conference by The Sporting News. "Our goal is to finish in the top four of the conference and make the NCAA tournament," Albright-Dieterle said. "I'm very pleased with the team. We're pretty deep, and they're very hungry for success." 54 Tiffany Willard Senior - forward Sue Guevara Head coach Yvette Harris Assistant coach I KEVIN KRUPITZER/Daily Ann Lemire and the rest of the Michigan women's basketball team look to make the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1990. The Wolverines have jumped out to a quick start, posting a 4-1 record in non-conference games. 1996"97 in review Standings School Big Ten Record 1. Illinois 12-4 Michigan State 12-4 Purdue 12-4 4. Northwestern 9-7 Iowa 9-7 6. Wisconsin 8-8 Penn State 8-8 8. Michigan 7-9 Indiana 7-9 10. Ohio State 3-23 11. Minnesota 1-15 AIiSRi Ten Team 1997-98 schedule November 15 Sporitelna W, 95-67 Bratislava (ex.) 21 St. John's W, 72-55 at Felpausch tournament 22 Michigan State W, 89-72 at Felpausch tournament 25 Illinois State W, 93-81 28 Florida Intemat'I L, 69-67 at FlU tournament 29 Furman W, 104-72 at FIU tournament DeCmber 3 Central Michigan 7 p.m. at Grand Rapids 18 Michigan State 5 p.m. 23 at Wisconsin 7 p.m. 25 Iowa 2 p.m. February 1 Indiana 2 p.m. 8 at Purdue 2 p.m. 13 at Penn State 7:30 p.m. 15 Northwestern 2 p.m. 20 at Minnesota 7 p.m. 22 at Ohio State 2 p.m. 27 Big Ten tournament, first round at RCA Dome, Indianapolis 28 Big Ten tournament, second round Eileen Shea Assistant coach I= ..