0 The Michigan Daily - Thursday, February 7, 2001
t Conference match-ups second best to heated rivalries
V0

By Mike Hensch
For the Daily

points per game.
Syracuse 75, Boston College 64

Rivalry week is over, but with a new team atop
the polls, an exciting week of basketball is
ahead.
ToNIGHT, 7:30 P.m., No. 7 SYRACUSE AT No.
20 BoSTON COLLEGE
Boston College is off to its best start in 34
years, with its only two losses to Duke and St.
John's. But the Eagles may not be as good as
their record indicates. Their schedule contains
such teams as Quinnipiac. Wofford and Marist.
Syracuse escaped last Saturday with a 54-53
_ victory over North Carolina State with a basket
in the final 20 seconds of play. Damone Brown
and Preston Shumpert hold the key to the
Orangemen's success. They lead the team in
points-per-game and rebounds.
Boston College is atop the Big East-East
rvgion and Syracuse is tied for first with Notre
Dame in the Big East-West region. The winner
of the game will have bragging rights in the con-
ference.
Look for the Orangemen to turn red hot on the
ill try defensive end, shutting down Boston College's
king. leading scorer Troy Bell, who is averaging 21.1

FEB. 10, CBS I P.AL., No. 13 MARYLVND T:
No. 1 NoRTH CARoLINA
North Carolina took over the top spot in the
polls this week after an impressive win over
Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium. North
Carolina now has a large target on its back -
everyone will be gunning to shoot it down.
Maryland is on the rebound after two embar-
rassing losses. The Terrapins blew a 10-point
lead in the final minute against Duke. They fol-
lowed that performance with a 99-78 loss to
Virginia. This past weekend, the Terrapins were
finally able to overcome their "shell shock."
defeating Clemson on Sunday.
North Carolina has not missed a beat under
first-year head coach Matt Doherty. The Heels
have won 16 consecutive games and are 9-0 in
the fierce ACC for the first time since 1986-87.
Surprisingly, as the best team in the nation, the
Tar Heels lead the ACC in just one category-
rebounds with 38.9 per game. But North
Carolina also owns the worst free-throw percent-
age in the league. North Carolina will lose the
game, along with its No. I ranking, at the chari-

ty stripe.
Maryland 75, North Carolina 73
FEB. 10, ESPN-Pvus 8 P. ., No. 4 MIccAN
STATE AT XIINNFSOTA
Michigan State is flying high after defeating
in-state rival Michigan in a game that was over
shortly after the opening tip. The Spartans' team
manager even suited up for the game, scoring
four points against the dismal Wolverine
de fense.
Minnesota has lost four straight and the future
does not look bright. The Golden Gophers will
have to play without one of their most promising
young players, Michael Bauer, who broke his
forearm against Purdue.
The Golden Gophers have struggled from the
tipoff as of late, digging themselves into a hole,
forcing them to play catch-up for much of the
game.
The "Izzone" has begun to tour from game to
game, following the Spartans on the road like the
Deadheads. Look for the Spartan fans to fill the
arena because, quite frankly, they do not do
homework in East Lansing.
Michigan State 94, Minnesota 60 (the Spartans'
team manager will have a double-double)

FB. 11, 2 P.mi., No. 23 NOTRE DANE X WEST
VIRGINIA
On Monday night, Troy Murphy's 34 points
led the Fighting Irish to a come from behind vic-
tory against St. John's. Notre Dame went on a
39-10 run during the second half to take the lead
and the game. The Irish have won a school-
record six straight Big East games.
West Virginia's Chris Moss will play in his
third-straight game after returning from suspen-
sion for spitting on a Notre Dame cheerleader in
the team's earlier meeting this year. Luckily for
Moss, the game will be played on the
Mountaineers' home court, where he will not
have to face a hostile Notre Dame student sec-
tion.
The game will be a showdown between two of
the top rebounders and scorers in the conference
in Murphy and West Virginia's Calvin Bowman.
The player with the more prolific numbers may
be the difference in the game.
The Fighting Irish are hot while thA
Mountaineers are not. Their last two names
include blowout losses to Pittsburgh and
Georgetown. Look for Notre Dame to win its
seventh conference game in a row.
Notre Dame 78, West Virginia 62

. ..A
Joeseph Forte and North Carolina w
to defend the team's new No.1 ran



Down to
the wire,
grappler
fights on
By Job Singer
Daily Sport,, Writer

"

It all came down to the last match of
the night on Friday.
The Wolverines sent out a redshirt
freshman, 157-pounder Pat Owen. The
capacity crowd at Cliff Keen Arena
held its breath knowing that Owen was
about to face Iowa's top-ranked T.J.
Williams. The score stood at 18-13 -
a 6-point pin by Williams would rescueW
the dual meet for the visiting
I lawkeyes.
Owen was prepared.
"When they drew 165, I knew that
I'd be last." Owen said. "Judging from
the last time, I knew that it would come
down to the last match."
It would not have come down to the
last match, though. if Michigan's 149-
pounder, Mike Kulczycki had pulled
out his match against All-Americaiu
Mike Zadick. The Wolverines would
have taken a 21-10 lead and clinched a
victory.
"I was hoping the dual wouldn't all
depend on my match," Owen said.
When this became inevitable, he
wrestled the top-ranked 157-pounder
extremely tough, losing just 7-4.
"I just wanted to go out and compete
and put myself in a position to win the
match." Owen said.
By pushing Williams to the limit.
Owen displayed his excellent competi-
tiveness. Ilis coach, Joe McFarland.
was not surprised by Owen's perfor-
mance.
"Pat is getting better by the week,"
McFarland said. "Ile went out there
and competed hard."
Owen has faced greater pressure in
his life. Minutes after he was born.
Owen was in acast with a clubbed foot
that resulted in a deformed achilles ten*
don. He had numerous correctional
surgeries from birth until he was seven-
years-old.
"They thought I would never be able
to run or jump or do anything of that
sort." Owen said.
Owen himself never had any doubt.
"It was really a motivating factor,"
Owen said. "People told me I couldn't
do something. and I'd want to prove
them wrong. I didn't like listening to
the doctors or my parents telling me to
.slow down.
As a student-athlete at Polson
(Mont.) High School, few things
slowed Owen. fie captured three state
championships in wrestling while also
achieving all-state honors in the high
jump and pole vault for the track team.
On the football field. the scrappy Owen
led the team in tackles his senior sea-
son. Owen also achieved a 4.0 grade-
point average en route to being name*
valedictorian.
Owen's achievements caught the eye
of McFarland, but his tale of toughness
demonstrated something more promis-
ing.
"When I was recruiting Pat, his uncle
told me that Pat is special because of all
the adversity that he has overcome."
McFarland said. "He is a great student.
Everything he does, he does 110 per4
cent."
Owen is just happy to be on the mat,
not worrying about his birth defect. le
looks forward-to the challenges that
wrestling brings.
"It makes you put things in perspec-
tive." he said. "There are a lot more

11UP" AYU'e;
.. l 1