-___ The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, January 24, 2001 -13
Duke, Heels to cruise
past ACC pretenders
By Charles Paradis
For the DIaOIY
Last year's selection day for the
NCAA Tournament is burning in the
minds of both No. 12 Virginia and No. 6
North Carolina. Despite two loses to
Virginia in ACC play, the Tar Heels
squeezed into the Tournament, while the
Cavaliers were left out.
Matt Doherty's _
Tar Heels are
strengthened by ACROSS THE
the addition of Top 25
point guard
Ronald Curry and forward Julius
Peppers. The two were occupied playing
quarterback and defensive end, respec-
tively, for North Carolina until the foot-
ball season ended.
Peppers adds size to an already
impressive lineup with the seven-footer,
Brendan Haywood, and 6-foot- 11 Kris
Lang.
Virginia's
weakness has
been lack of size
underneath the
basket. Travis
Watson, standingn
at 6-8, is the
board. le will also need to play solid
defense to prevent Jason Williams from
having a big game. Dixon must force
Williams to dish the ball off and let the
taller Morris try to stop Battier.
Duke 94, Maryland 87
INIANA AT No. 17 Iowx
SAIURDAY, 1:05 P.M. CBS
Bob Knight successor Mike Davis
put some worries behind him after win-
ning his first two games with Indiana.
People predicted a new era in the mak-
ing. The post-Knight era quickly
changed into the Mike Davis era.
The Hoosiers remained unproven
until they faced Michigan State at hone.
What should have been a win for the
Spartans ended with Kirk Haston's fade-
away buzzer-beater from beyond the art
to win the game, 59-58.
The season looked to be on the up anpd
up until Michigan dropped the Hoosier's
for a loss later that week. Speaking of
Wolverines, they
served Iowas
tating home
weekend.
a devas-
loss last
BRENDAN O'DONNELL/Daily
The future of the Michigan women's gymnastics team is looking up, thanks to a sensational freshman class: Elise Ray (above), Calli Ryals, Christine Mantilla and Alison Rudisi.
Tumblers' frosh Oursome bursting On scene
By Naweed Sikora
Daily Sports Writer
0 Although they may net compare to
Michigan basketball's, Fab Five of old,
the Michigar women's gymnastics'
"freshman four" are raising many eye
brows around the University communi-
tv and the Big Ten.
This quartet of freshn'mn gymnasts
has already significantly impacted the
;eam -- adding youth and talent to a
ineup overfiowing with e per ence and
onfidence.
Elise Ray, Christinu Mantilia, Call;
Ryals and Alison Rudisi.. already well
known around the nation as accom-
plished gImnrasts, have begun to win
the hearts of Michigan gymnastics tans
across Ann Arbor.
Each gymnast ha: the ability to add
different skills to the Michigan lineup,
enabling the team to develop a more
balanced attack.
The most influential freshman to this
oint has been superstar Calli Ryals. In
the past two meets, Ryals has recorded
two first-place finish:s on the floor
exercise and one second-place fin isi in
the all-around competition.
"From the moment we signed Calli,
we knew she was going to develop into
a terrific college gymnast,' coach Bev
Plocki said. "The artistry of her move-
ment is what stands out the most. Her
routines are incredible"
Ryals has demonstrated amazing
poise in her first three competitions.
Her ability to earn high scores consis-
tently in the floor exercise has been, and
will continue to be, a valuable resource
for the Wolverines this season.
"When I compete, I try not to worry
about the outcome," Ryals said. "That
way, the pressure does not affect me as
much."
Of course, last Friday marked the
highly anticipated debut of freshman
Elise Ray. It was her first competition
since the Olympics, and she did not dis-
appoint, finishing second in the all-
around competition, only .075 of a
point behind Iowa's Alexis Madav.
"I was nervous going in, but once I
got into the swing of things, everything
was great," Ray said.
Ray will be a tremendous all-around
performer for Michigan, but her
strength will lie on the uneven bars,
where she will be a major factor this
season.
For Mantilia and Rudisi, unfortunate
injuries have limited their performances
early in the season. Still, Plocki expects
these young stars to have very produc-
tive seasons.
"Christine is a hard worker and a
great kid," Plocki said. "Her strength
lies in her consistency, and she has
many great skills. We are just working
on polishing them up a bit."
Mantilia is expected to be an all-
around competitor once her foot heals.
She debuted for Michigan in the Super
Six Challenge, competing on bars and
the beam.s
"It was nerve-racking because the top
teams from the country were there,"
Mantilia said. "It really helped to have
the whole team there cheering for you."
Rudisi is also expected to evolve into
an all-around performer, but because of
knee problems, she has yet to compete
in a Michigan uniform.
"I've been in rehab since I got here,
but the team has been very supportive
towards me," Rudisi said. "Right now,
I'm hoping to make the beam lineup."
Although this has been a very stress-
ful time for the freshman, they have
As of Jan. 22, 2001
Team
1. UCLA
2. Alabama
3. Georgia
4. Utah
5. Michigan
6. Illinois State
7. Ohio State
8. Florida
9. Nebraska
10. Stanford
High Score
197.500
196.650
196.500
196.375
196.200
196.000
195.575
195.550
195.500
195.300
Pv
2
T-3
T-3
1
11
6
15
7
8
5
most talented big
man the
Cavaliers have in
the paint.
Combined
with the size dif-
ference, the
Dean Smith
Center is a hard
place to play for
opponents. Need
proof? Ask
Clemson, which
just lost its 47th
straight game
there. On top of
all this, North
Carolina is cur-
Watch for the
Hawkeyes to defend
their home court this
time - and don't
count on Luke
Reeker going 1-for-7
from beyond the are
again either. He has
posted 17.6 points
per game to lead
Iowa, and Reggie
Evans is also a force
with 15.1.
Indiana's hopes
rest with Freshman
sensation Jared
Jeffries with 13.3
points per game and
Kirk Hasten averag-
ing 17.3.
Iowa 74, Indiana
61
AP PHOTO
Shane Battler leads No. 2 Duke (14-1)
against No. 10 Maryland (14-4) Saturday.
managed to ease their transition into
college life by supporting each other.
"We all live very close to each other,
we eat together and we go to the gym
together," Mantilia said. "We are a very
close-knit group and we help each other
a lot."
With the exception of Rudisi, the
freshman will be showcasing their tal-
ent this Friday when Michigan travels to
Kentucky.
With its varied talents and unique
skills, this group should be a dominat-
ing force for Michigan women's gym-
nastics for years to come.
Two against one; men's gymnastics hosts Illinois
rently enjoying a
12-game win streak.
Donald Hand and Chris Williams
must step up and overcome size and
environment if the Cavaliers are going to
stay with the Tar Heels tonight at 7 p.m.
on ESPN.
North Carolina 85, Virginia 78
No.2 DUKE AT No. 10 MARYLAND
SATURDw8 P. . ESPN
When the Blue Devils travel to Cole
Field House to take on the Terrapins,
they will meet a team with tremendous
potential - a team which has not capi-
talized on that potential as of yet.
The Terrapins are third in scoring
offense, averaging 89.9 points-per-
game. Unfortunately for them, Duke is
No. I. averaging 94.2 per game. They
have cleared the century mark five times
this season.
Duke's Jason Williams and Shane
Battier and Maryland's Juan Dixon,
Lonny Baxter and Terrence Morris will
be the five key players in this game.
Maryland's big three combined for 68
points in the Terrapins' 81-71 win over
Wake Forest. But with Dixon's status
questionable for the game on Saturday,
Maryland may not be at its best.
The Terrapins rely on Dixon, their
sophomore guard, to put points on the
No.8 WKE FOREST Ar CINCINNATI
SAFTRDXA, 1 Pm..ABC
Wake Forest is coming off of a disas-
trous loss to Maryland (81-71) and a win
over Clemson. But before they play
Cincinnati, the Demon Deacons must
travel to Durham and face Duke and the
Cameron Crazies.
Cincinnati should watch out if Duke
wins that game, because Wake Forest
rebounded from a loss to North Carolina
by defeating Florida State by 23.
Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins has
lost a lot of talent to the NBA with the
departures of Kenyon Martin ard
DerMarr Johnson. His team has droppcd
two of its five conference games, iat
Conference USA.
The Bearcats of last year are no more,
and Cincinnati is in desperate need of a
win. A few of their remaining assets,
Kenny Satterfield and Steve Logan, will
have to achieve personal bests to beat the
Demon Deacons.
Watch for Wake to come into
Cincinnati angry and with a mission.
Road wins are hard to come by, and it
will be up to the team's leading scorers,
Darius Songaila and Josh Howard to
clinch the win.
Wake Forest 79, Cincinnati 64
Adam McQueen
al , Sports Writer
In what has been billed as the fea-
tured matchup of the season, No. I
will meet No 2 this weekend in
men's gymnastics.
After a thrashing of then-No. 3
Ohio State last Saturday, the top-
ranked Michigan men's gymnastics
team (1-0 Big Ten, 7-0 overall) looks
to continue its success in a marquee
atch up with the second-ranked
Oighting Illini (1-0, 7-1) this Friday
at Cliff Keen Arena.
Illinois is coming off an impres-
sive performance of its own, easily
handling Minnesota last Saturday,
208.150 to 204.350.
The Wolverines will have to prove
their worth against a high-quality
opponent for the third consecutive
week.
"Its been a real challenge for the
guys," Michigan coach Kurt Golder
said. "This will be the third week in
a row we have faced tough competi-
tion."
The teams met four times last sea-
son with Michigan prevailing in each
of those contests, including twice in
the postseason.
Illinois faced Michigan at the
Windy City Invitational in Chicago
two weeks ago, placing a close sec-
ond behind the Wolverines.
"Illinois beat us on the rings. No
one has beat us on the rings in two
years," Golder said. "That really
caught my attention."
Golder has his team focused on
maintaining consistency and upgrad-
ing the difficulty of its routines this
week in practice. The rings will sure-
ly be emphasized as Michigan looks
to avoid a repeated upset in its
strongest event traditionally.
Senior All-American Leo Oka --
the top all-around gymnast in the
nation - leads the Illinois team.
Adding to his efforts are senior Greg
Cook, the No. 2 gymnast in the
nation on high bar, and sophomore
Sean-Paul Crawford, a top performer
in thi vault.
Michigan's health continues to
improve, but it will still be without
senior tri-captain Justin Toman this
week. The date of his eventual return
will be determined in mid-February
when he is reevaluated. Until that
time, the Michigan athletes will have
to continue to step up in his absence.
As the top-ranked team in the
nation, the Wolverines are expected
to excel. All of their opponents,
including the I1lini, will be that
much more determined to pull the
upset.
"We're
"(Illinois)
for us."
the target," Golder said.
will be keying up big time
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