EN'S NCAA AKETBALL (9) New Mexico at UNLV, inc. (24) XAVIER 96, (23) G. Washington 86 iiB (19) West Virginia 71, MARSHALL 58 (22) T. CHRISTIAN 79, Southern Methodist 70 (4) Kansas at Colorado, inc. WOMEN'S NCAA BASKETBALL (1) Tennessee 91, (13) VANDERBILT 60 (2) CONNECTICUT 98, Maine 70 (8) N.C. STATE 75, Maryland 53 U~be AidtI~jm kiq Tracking 'M' teams The Michigan women's swimming team has a big weekend coming up. The Wolverines will try to win their 12th-straight Big Ten Championship when the three-day meet starts Thursday in Bloomington. (17) SYRACUSE 69, PENN STATE 90 Villanova 64 Ohio State 81 generous lets Turco Tuesday February 17, 1998 9 defense Round two shine By f ed Unk Daily Sports Writer S~imetimcs life as the goaltender for e;ulichigan hockey team can be a little Wrnig. If the Wolverines are playing welZhe goaltender might not face many she He might not get the opportunity to show his teammates what he can do. Fortunately for Michigan netminder Marty Turco, his teammates look out for him, and every now and then, they let him face a good scoring chance. Last weekend against No. 9 Miami (Ohio) and Northern Michigan, his ammates gave up no less than six Ireakaways. Turco responded, stopping all six opportunities. "On that whole breakaway stuff... the defense never gets to see Marty make saves," Michigan defenseman Bubba Berenzweig said. "So we wanted to let a few go by because it's fun watching him make those saves." And fortunately for his teammates, it doesn't bother Turco when defensemen et a player slip past them. "I don't mind," Turco said about stop- ping breakaways. "That's just my job" In last weekend's victories over the RedHawks and the Wildcats, Turco made just 34 saves. But thanks in part to his teammates giving up so many excel- lent scoring chances, Turco was named CCHA defensive player of the week. A sprawling save he made late in the third period against Miami's Tim Leahy, preserve Michigan's one-goal lead, as good enough to appear on ESPN's "Plays of the Week" But although Turco's play earned him recognition, it isn't anything out of the ordinary for the Michigan netminder. four weekends ago against Miami, Turco played poorly, giving up seven goals, as the Wolverines were swept by the RedHawks. Since then, the senior netminder has played exceptionally, giv- g up just seven goals in his past five Aines. In that time, the Wolverines have gone 5-0 and extended their lead in the "... we wanted to let a few go by because it's fun watching him make those saves." - Bubba Berenzweig Michigan hockey defenseman on goaltender Marty Turco's play CCHA to three points over second-place Michigan State. Turco hasn't been bombarded with shots, but he's been a factor in most games, keeping opponents off the board until Michigan's offense can build a lead. Turco again figures to play a key role this weekend as the Wolverines take on Michigan State twice. Against the Spartans, the games figure to be close checking contests - the kind of games that can come down to goaltending. Michigan State likes to slow things down, playing the neutral zone trap. And while the Wolverines will need to keep their mistakes to a minimum, when they do give up good chances, Turco will be called on to do his job - to keep the puck out of the net. "Michigan State doesn't give up very many goals," Berenzweig said. "So if we want to win that game we can't give up very many goals. It's going to come down to discipline. We're not going to get away with the stuff that we got away with against Northern - unless, of course, Marty comes up big again" On several occasions this year, Turco's play has been the difference between winning and losing. After the Northern game, Berenzweig was asked about Michigan's goals against Northern goal- tender Duane Hoey. Berenzweig responded simply, "Well, their goalie isn't as good as Marty." In most games this season, the oppos- ing goalie hasn't been as good as Turco. And that's been a big edge for Michigan. Cleaves, rowdy faerans await 'M' By Jim Rose Daily Sports Editor The last time Michigan played Michigan State, Spartans point guard Mateen Cleaves did not play well. So, Michigan State lost. Since the 79-69 Michigan victory on Jan, 10, Cleaves has elevated his game, and with it his team, to the top of the Big Ten. The Spartans, at 11-2 (18-5 overall), lead the conference. And, as Michigan coach Brian Ellerbe said yesterday, Cleaves "could be one of the three or four best point guards in the country. He would probably be your MVP right now in the Big Ten." Strong praise, indeed, but ------------------ Ellerbe is not alone in his Tonight's game assessment of the Spartans' Who: Michigan vs. sophomore leader. Coaches Michigan Statc and players around the Big Where: Breslin Center Ten are heaping praise on When: 730 the dynamic point guard, TV: ESPN and the rule seems to be that Notables: The Wolverines are as Cleaves goes, so goes Oflc of only two teams to beat the Spartans in Big Ten play. Michigan State. Michigan handled the "He's what makes their Spartans easily onjan. 10, team tick," Louis Bullock 79-69. said. "Everyone feeds off of him." All of this makes the job ahead of Michigan (8-4, 18-7), if not an easy one, at least one that is clearly defined: stop Cleaves. The task presents itself tonight at 7:35, as Michigan travels to East Lansing to face th6, Spartans at the Breslin Center, And while Cleaves gets plenty of attention for his tendency to score in spurts, there's another, less promi- nent statistic that's far more impressive than his 153 points per game. Michigan State is 18-1 when Cleaves has at least six assists. When he has five or fewer, the Spartans are winless in three games. But as the assists-to-victories ratio suggests, the Spartans have not vaulted to the top of the Big Ten on one set of shoulders alone. In fact, the opposite is true. In their past six games, the Spartans have been led in scoring by five different people. Cleaves, Jason Klein, Antonio Smith, Morris Peterson and Charlie Bell have all taken on some of the scoring burden in recent weeks. And this, more than any other reason, is why Ellerbe is so concerned with Cleaves. "What you want to do is keep him from creating to make the other guys better," Ellerbe said. "The othr guys can hurt you when you only think about him." On Saturday, against Minnesota, it was Klein that See SPARTANS, Page 10 AP PHOTO Michigan State guard Mateen Cleaves has the uncanny ability to make his teammates better. The Spartans have lost just one game in which Cleaves has collected more than five assists. Healthy Cleaves leadsSte The State News Mateen Cleaves has something he's never had during his Michigan State basketball career. Good health. When Cleaves, a sophomore point guard, announcedin 1996 - during his senior year at Flint Northern High - that he would attend Michigan State, he was projected to continue a strong point guard tradition in East Lansing. Cleaves was supposed to etch his name next to Michigan State point guard elites Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Scott Skiles, Mark Montgomery and Eric Snow. But it wasn't going to be an overnight success. "I had been a confident player all my life until last year," Cleaves said. Cleaves was hampered through most of last season with the lingering effects of a back injury. After recovering from the back injury last sum- mer, Cleaves got what he describes as the scare of his summer when he injured his shoulder during a pickup game with teammate Morris Peterson in August. "It was another one of those trash-talking games,' Cleaves said. "I was scared for a quick second there. I was thinking, 'Not again.' I worked too hard to get hurt again." See CLEAVES, Page 10 I dI HI I I PAUL TALANIAN/Daily hen Michigan is controlling the puck, as sophomore Andrew Merrick is here, arty Turco has a tendency to get lonely at the other end of the ice. Turn a smart career decision into a brilliant one. Enter the technical arena with Northrop Grumman in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Our Electronic Systems Integration division is a world- wide leader in smart electronic systems research, design, development and manufacture. As a member of the Northrop Grumman ESID-ES team, you will have a chance to make real contributions to leading edge projects, from day one. In other words, you will be given the opportunity, introduction and support for project specific responsibilities, such as leading edge Software Development, Digital Design, RF Systems, Integration and Test. 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