The Michigan Daily - Friday, November 13, 1998 - 11
THE MATCHUPS
MICHIGAN PASSING OFFENSE VS. WISCONSIN PASSING DEFENSE
Lloyd Carr, per his usual routine, has made Wisconsin's
defensive backs sound like an entire group of Charles
Woodsons. We know better. Tai Streets is on a roll.
Edge: Michigan
---------------------M-R----S-----------------------
MICHIGAN RUSHING OFFENSE VS. WISCONSIN RUSHING DEFENSE
The Badgers are the nation's No. 1 team against the run,
and Michigan's offensive line has never fully recovered
from early season injuries.
N
'1 J
V 'y
Staff Picks
- all picks made against the
spread.
* Guest selectors have been
rotating throughout the season.
Last week's guest selector was
University President Lee
Bollinger.
Game (HOME TEAM IN CAPS)
MICHIGAN (-3) vs. Wisconsin
PENN STATE (-24) vs. Northwestern
TENNESSEE (-10) vs. Arkansas
Florida State (-26) vs. WAKE FOREST
FLORIDA (-31) vs. South Carolina
Purdue (-1.5) vs. MICHIGAN STATE
INDIANA (-4) vs. Minnesota
TEXAS A&M (-5.5) vs. Missouri
Ohio State (-25) vs. IOWA
KANSAS STATE (-10) vs. Nebraska
UCLA (-7.5) vs. WASHINGTON
OREGON (even) vs. Arizona State
Best Bet
Last Week (best bet)
Overall (best bet)
SHARAT
RAJU
MARK
SNYDER
JIM
ROSE
I
Edge: Wisconsin
---------------------------------------------------------
WISCONSIN PASSING OFFENSE VS. MICHIGAN PASSING DEFENSE
Michigan's suspect defensive backfield has one thing going for it this
weekend: the erratic arm of Wisconsin quarterback Mike Samuel. If the
Badgers could throw the ball, at all, they'd get the edge here. They can't.
Edge: Even
---------- ---RI---------- --------------- MIC A R N D
WISCONSIN RUSHING OFFENSE VS. MICHIGAN RUSHING DEFENSE
Michigan
Penn State
Tennessee
Florida State
South Carolina
Purdue
Indiana
Missouri
Ohio State
Nebraska
UCLA
Oregon
Indiana
6-5-1(1-0)
59-4&2 (6-3)
Michigan
Penn Statt
Tennessee
Florida State
South Carolina
Michigan State
Indiana
Missouri
Ohio State
Nebraska
Washington
Oregon
Nebraska
3-8-1(0-1)
44-63-2 (3-6)
Michigan
Northwestern
Tennessee
Florida State
Florida
Purdue
Indiana
Texas A&M
Ohio State
Nebraska
UCLA
Arizona State
Nebraska
6-5-1(1-0)
51-56-2 (5-4)
Guest Selector
Provost NANCY CANTOR
Michigan
Penn State
Tennessee
Florida State
Florida
Michigan State
Minnesota
Texas A&M
Ohio State
Kansas State
Washington
Oregon
Michigan
6-5-1(1-0)*
53-55-2 (3-4)*
With everything you hear about him, you'd think Ron
Dayne was Ron Powlus. The truth is, he's equally
overrated. It'll be apparent when he finally plays against a
decent rush defense this weekend.
....: Michigan
-l ww nfl - - - - fi * w0w f - - - ---------------- wwwarw---
Women's basketball two-steps to Vanderbilt
SPECIAL TEAMS
The time has come for Jay Feely to start getting the credit
he deserves, after a 49-yarder against Penn State ... and
Hayden Epstein is terrific ... but Wisconsin's Matt
Davenport, a former walk-on, Is the best kicker in this game.
f- , i .,,
Edge: WsconsIn
+ "I eS a a - fM/M M~lIMM----tM-MI-MM---UM "r b"--+#i-- IS- -w-Mwl--- -- - M-
INTANGIBLES
Michigan's overflowing with momentum after last week's
win. And let's be honest: If the Wolverines had opened with
San Diego St., Ohio and UNLV, they'd be 9-0, too.
F Edge: Michigan
PREDICTION: MICHIGAN 27, WISCONSIN 21
Ellerbe signs four
F4ornstaffreports
On the first day of the early signing
period for college basketball recruits,
the Michigan basketball team snagged
four top recruits.
The newest class of Wolverines
includes forward Leland Anderson
and guards Jamal Crawford, Kevin
Gaines and Gavin Groninger. All four
players are rated among the nation's
top 100 seniors by a number of
recruiting publications.
"Our coaching staff is ecstatic that
these young men will be a part of the
Michigan basketball family,"
Michigan basketball coach Brian
Ellerbe said. "All four are what I
would call 'Michigan Men' in that
they are good players, good people
and good students.
"We really like the chemistry of this
group as it is very athletic and very
versatile. Each player offers a specific
skill to the table."
In Anderson, the Wolverines get a
6-foot-8, 260-pound forward from
Attleboro, Mass., who averaged 27.6
points and 11 rebounds per game last
season for Attleboro High.
"Leland Anderson is one of the
strongest players in his class, is a
tenacious rebounder at both ends of
the floor and can play both forward
spots" Ellerbe said.
Gaines, from Las Vegas, gives
Michigan a true point guard. Listed at
6-foot-4 and 180 pounds, Gaines is
one of the top five at his position in
the country.
Gaines "has great quickness, is an
intense competitor and seems to be a
natural leader" Ellerbe said.
Crawford, a fifth-year senior from
Rainier Beach High in Renton, Wash.,
averaged 23 points, seven rebounds
and nine assists per game in 1997-98
as a guard.
Crawford "excels in the transition
game and is at his best in the open
court," Ellerbe said.
Groninger, another guard, is 6-foot-
5 and 190 pounds, and is one of the
best players in Indiana.
"Groninger is probably the best
perimeter shooter in the class,"
Ellerbe said. "He has good size for his
position, can create his own shot and
can shoot the ball under pressure.'
By Urns Subramanan
Daily Sports Writer
Though midterms are mostly over, the
Michigan basketball team has its first
exam tonight. For the test, the
Wolverines must leave the friendly con-
fines of Ann Arbor and instead head to
the home of country music, to take on
No. 20 Vanderbilt.
It's hard to imagine two more differ-
ent teams. The Commodores are an
experienced team that has just five
underclassmen. They are also a team that
has had plenty of success in the 1990s,
making eight consecutive trips to the
sweet sixteen before last year's first-
round upset at the hands of UC-Santa
Barbara.
On the other hand, this season's
Wolverines are a young and inexperi-
enced team - even the veterans have
only seen one NCAA tournament game.
But when the teams take the court
tomorrow night, past records won't mat-
ter.
But what will matter is the element of
experience - an area where Vandy
holds a definite edge.
"I think (this game) is going to be the
same old story," Michigan coach Sue
Guevara said. "We're going to be a little
bit smaller and more inexperienced. But,
this team isn't afraid of anybody."
Michigan heads to Nashville having
played two games - well, almost. Last
Monday, in a closed exhibition,
Michigan scrimmaged the Free Agents
- a team of former NCAA players that
included three WNBA players.
The scrimmage simulated actual
game conditions as the teams went head-
to-head in two 20-minute halves. They
also tacked on some extra game time
playing a couple of eight-minute peri-
ods.
Even though the competition was
tough, Guevara was pleased.
"I'm happy with the way we played,"
Guevara said. "We were executing our
offense well and our pressure defense
created a lot of opportunities for us. We
also cut down our turnovers by more
than half."
In its first exhibition game, the
Wolverines faced a hapless Swiss
National team that didn't present much
of a challenge. Consequently, the game
against the veterans gave the team a
chance to see how it would actually hold
up in the face of competition.
"We're getting reading to play against
a 2-3 matchup and a pressure defense,"
Guevara said. "That game was good
practice for us. But, like I told the team,
the exhibitions were quizzes; (today) is
our first exam."
Another disadvantage for Michigan is
that it is leaving two critical players at
home in the windy weather. Anne
Lemire, the lone senior, is serving the
second game of her three-game suspen-
sion for a team violation, and junior
Kenisha Walker severely sprained her
ankle and may not make the trip.
Walker has suffered a season-threat-
ening injury early in every season
throughout her career at Michigan.
The biggest threat from the
Commodores' side of the court will
appear in the form of a 6-foot-4 center
named Katie Janky. Janky, who compris-
es the majority of Vanderbilt's post
game, is not only dominant in the paint,
but can shoot from just about anywhere.
In the first minute of the
Commodores' exhibition game against
Klub Levice - a team from Slovenia --_
Janky scored six points that came from a
lay-up in the paint, a shot from the free
throw line and a jump shot from just
inside 3-point range.
Her versatility, good for a big player,
makes Janky a dangerous threat to a
small Wolverine team that doesn't have a
single player over 6-2.
But "our post game is starting to come
together," Guevara said. "On Monday
we were playing against (former
Michigan star) Pollyanna Johns and
Cheryl Williams. But you never know
till you're in a game ... Now it's time to
go. It's time to play."
FILE PHOTO
Michigan guard Stacey Thomas may have already finished her midterms, but her
biggest test Is yet to come. The Wolverines face No. 20 Vanderbilt on the road
tonight - no more time for cramming.
Al
lION*
SENIOR HISTORY
CONCENTRATORS
Colloquium sign-up for winter term 1999 is Tuesday,
November 17, 9:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. In 1024 Tisch Nab
Women's swimming
eads to Evanston
By Philip Maguran
For the Daily
Judging from the weather outside
this past week, it is a good thing that
the pool in Evanston is indoors for the
Big Ten All-Star meet to be held
omorrow at Northwestern.
This will be the Lady Wolverines'
second trip to Evanston in two weeks,
With the previous trip being for the
Northwestern relays on Nov. 1.
The defending Big Ten champion
Wolverines have a lot to live up to this
year. But following an impressive per-
formance at the North Carolina
Invitational, the team is ready to
defend the title, and also to have a stel-
lar performance at the NCAAs this
pring.
Strong meets were had by junior
- Shannon Shakespeare, who took home
first place in the 100 free, and sopho-
mores Missy Sugar and Jen Crisman
in the 200 free and 50 free, respective-
ly.
Michigan won one of the three dual
meets, beating South Carolina, but los-
ing to powerhouses North Carolina
and Minnesota.
*9 The Michigan-Minnesota show-
down could be a preview of the top
two teams in the Big Ten this year.
Other Big Ten results posted thus far
by Michigan include victories over
both Northwestern and Illinois.
The majority of the team will get the
weekeprind ff- with a*cit fe'w swim.
Freshman Kerrianne Kalbko will be
competing in the backstroke and free,
while fellow freshman Lindsey
Carlberg will swim in the back and
IM. Senior Jennie Eberwein will also
be competing in the 100 free.
Each swimmer is looking forward
to proving herself as one of the Big
Ten's best, and it is a unique opportu-
nity for the freshmen to start making
an impression early in their careers.
The general consensus amongst the
Wolverines is that while this year's
team may not be the best in recent
years, it is definitely the closest.
"We are a smaller team this year,
but we have more unity. This is the
closest we have been in the four years
I have been here," Olivadoti said.
time to
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