SP R FSMODY
Sports desk: 763-2459
sportsdesk@umich.edu
SECTION B
I
I_ -~'~ ''j~w
I
Searight not with team in Indiana
By Michael Kern
Daily Sports Editor
BLOOMINGTON - Three Michigan
freshmen guards Maurice Searight, Avery
Queen, and Bernard Robinson were repri-
manded for violation of unspecified team
rules before the Michigan basketball
team's 72-59 loss to Indiana yesterday.
Queen and Robinson sat out the first
half. Searight, who was suspended indefi-
nitely as of Saturday, did not travel with
the team to Indiana.
Michigan coach Brian Ellerbe said that
he was not sure whether Searight would
return to play this season.
"He is suspended indefinitely and I'll
evaluate it each and every day," Ellerbe
said.
Searight traveled with the team to Penn
State last Wednesday but did not play in
the game.
At the time, it was announced that
Searight had the flu.
After splitting time evenly at the point
guard position with fellow freshman
Avery Queen earlier in the season,
Searight saw his minutes diminish signif-
icantly in the latter portion of the non-
conference season.
Against Eastern Michigan, Michigan's
final non conference game, Searight did
not play a single minute. He also played
only in the waning moments of the
Wolverines' 80-60 Big Ten season-open-
ing loss at Purdue.
At the time, Michigan coach Brian
Ellerbe simply stated that Searight had a
lot to learn and that the team was better
with Queen on the court.
In the last few weeks, Searight had
seen his minutes begin to once again
increase.
Ellerbe was not sure if Queen and
Robinson, who CBS Sports reported were
benched for showing up late to a practice,
had served the length of their punishment
or would see further repercussions.
Big House could see another
contest in the 2001 season
By Joe Smith
Daily Sports Editor
The 110,000 fans that grace Michigan Stadi-
um every fall may have another reason to get
excited for this upcoming season.
There has been some progress made on the
possibility of Michigan adding a 12th game
onto this year's football schedule, which also
would mean a seventh home game.
"Michigan had submitted for a preseason
exemption contest called the 'Michigan Chari-
ties Classic,' said Dennis Poppe, the NCAA
senior director of football and baseball.
This preseason game would take place
before school starts, on August 25th in Michi-
gan Stadium, and would not be a part of the
student ticket package - having a similar
setup to the 1995 Pigskin Classic in which
Michigan defeated Virginia, 18-17.
The main difference is that the University
would sponsor the game, with a specific chari-
ty or charities being beneficiaries of the event.
But before fans start buying tickets, they
must realize the process still has some way to
go - Michigan hasn't even contacted any
school about being its opponent.
Since Michigan's application has been sent
in, the NCAA football certification subcom-
mittee has reviewed Michigan's and as many as
nine other applications.
"We made the application simply to get the
application process underway, knowing that
there had to be some blanks to fill in," said
Keith Molin, a former senior associate athletic
director who has been working directly with
the NCAA on making sure Michigan's applica-
tion is accurate, complete, proper and timely.
The blanks that needed filling are a $1.5 mil-
lion letter of credit, a copy of a lease for the
building in which the game will take place and
a letter of intent from a potential opponent.
Since the University owns Michigan Stadi-
um, and Molin said the letter of credit would
be a mere formality, that leaves Michigan's
potential opponent as the only mystery.
"We made the decision not make those types
of contacts until we found out that the commit-
tee would certify us," Molin said.
But after meetings last week, the subcom-
mittee gave Michigan "provisional approval"
according to Molin - meaning that Michigan
now has the go-ahead to discuss pursuing a
possible opponent for the game.
Molin said it's still a possibility that Michigan
might change its mind and decide against host-
ing the extra game, and he emphatically stated
that no teams have been contacted thus far.
"I can tell you under oath, for the record,,
See GAME, Page 38
AP PHOTO
Michigan's loss to Indiana may put its postseason hopes out of reach.
*Suspended
11iWtot
BRENDAN O'DONNELL/Daily
The Wolverines couldn't figure out North-
em goalie Craig Kowalski on Saturday.
Blackout:
'M' falUs to
Northern
SA Vi i U 1AY h HIN
& W D 2. M t fllaA N 0
By Arun Gopal
Daily Sports Writer
The more things change, the more
they stay the same.
This adage could easily be the
slogan for the Michigan hockey
team this season.
The opponents change from week
to week, but the storyline for the
Wolverines never varies - Michi-
gan plays a team situated in the
lower half of CCHA standings, and
Michigan only manages to split the
series.
The latest chapter in this season-
long tale of underachievement was
written this past weekend. Northern
Michigan - which came to Yost Ice
Arena fighting for its' CCHA play-
off lives in seventh place - earned
a split of the weekend's games with
a 2-0 shutout of the Wolverines on
Saturday night, thanks to some sti-
fling defense and 25 saves from
freshman netminder Craig Kowals-
ki.
Although Michigan (15-6-2
CCHA, 21-8-4 overall)Awas able to
See WILDCATS, Page 4B
Ellerbe cause
oBle three-
ueyear demise
BLOOMINGTON - The Michigan bas-
ketball program has three things going
for it right now: sophomore LaVell
Blanchard hasn't transferred, football coach
Lloyd Carr publicly supported coach Brian
Ellerbe and the program, and Rick Pitino
hasn't signed a contract to coach UNL or any
other school.
The Wolverines (3-8 Big Ten, 9-13 overall)
are going to miss the postseason for the sec-
ond time in the last three years. For them to
qualify for the NIT (who ever thought they'd
see the day when Michigan is hoping for an
NIT bid three years in a
row), they'll need to win
their next four home
games, and either win at
No. 3 Michigan State, or
win two games at the Big
Ten Tournament.
Since Michigan will face
RAPHY either the Spartans or No. 7
Illinois in the
GOODSTEIN second round, its season
DAVID KATZ/Daily
The football teamn may get one more chance for a Big House victory as a 12th game is under consideration.
Slippery beam lets Bulldogs slide by
AP iPHOTO
chigan forward Chris Young proved to be one
o the Wolverines' lone sources of energy.
No style points,
but Indina
h n"A
hanl.es cagers
By Michael Kern
Daily Sports Editor
By Naweed Sikora
Daily Sports Writer
For three events Saturday night, the Michi-
gan women's gymnastics team looked like the
best in the nation. With a commanding lead
over Georgia, the Wolverines were on their
way to beating the Bulldogs, the one team that
has proven over the years to be a true thorn in
their side. But, with everything going their
way, Michigan took an unexpected U-turn as it
gave away a victory already in its hands.
With three consecutive falls on the beam,
Michigan opened the door for Georgia's
Suzanne Sears, who finished with a 9.975 on
the floor exercise to help No. 4 Georgia
squeeze past the eighth-ranked Wolverines,
196.675-196.625.
Michigan head coach Bev Plocki could not
help but feel mixed emotions after the meet.
"I am really proud of how the kids came in
and approached this meet," Plocki said. "It
was our best meet of the season until the end.
We just kind of gave it up."
The Wolverines began flawlessly on the
uneven bars, where five gymnasts posted
career-highs. Senior Bridget Knaeble finished
first in the event with a personal-best score of
9.975.
On the vault, the Wolverines posted three
new career-highs and increased their overall
lead to over half a point.
Michigan continued its dominance on the
floor, as it posted four scores of 9.9 or better
to pull ahead of Georgia by 1.325.
See BEAM, Page 3B
On
Point
is done.
That's right, another year
of bad basketball on South
BLOOMINGTON - Listening to Indiana coach
Mike Davis after his team's 72-59 victory over
Michigan yesterday,
you wouldn't have
ICHIGAN 59 thought his team had
INDIANA 72 won the game at all.
"This was our
poorest outing of the
whole season;" Davis said. "Our guards didn't hit
any shots, and that didn't free anything for us. It's
tough to win in a clean fashion when your guards
shoot like that."
That poor shooting showed early in the first half,
Campus.
"Anything can happen in Chicago (home of
the BTT)," Ellerbe said. "There have been
three Big Ten Tournaments and we've won one
of them."
Anything can happen.
But one of two things will happen.
At best, Michigan wins its play-in game,
and lose in the second round.
At worst, and most likely, the Wolverines
suffer another embarrassment in East Lansing,
and loses in the first round of the BTT.
Sound like a third straight year of depress-
ing basketball? It is.
IF YOU'RE
LIKE MOST
MICHIGAN
STUDENTS,
YOU ~
PROBABLY
KNOW
NOTHING
ABOUT
n WATER POLO.
Welcome to the limelight
By J. Brady McCollough
Daily Sports Writer
-< -.
What the heck is water polo?
The Michigan women's water polo team hopes to
provide the answer to that question this spring, as it
becomes the University's 25th varsity program.
Not only is this the inaugural year for varsity
water polo at Michigan, but this is also the sport's
first year in the NCAA. The Wolverines are mem-
bers of the Eastern Conference, which is comprised
Before water polo became an NCAA sport, 16
teams got the opportunity to play for the national
title in a playoff, but now just four teams will quali-
fy for the NCAA Tournament, making the compe-
tition even more fierce.
"There's a huge level of competition, and to be
one of those four teams - to be able to play in that
game during my first year on varsity would be
great," junior captain Delia Sonda said. "But we're
all just going to work hard - it's all we can do."
Water polo features seven players from each
t~aty in the wxrt~r qt rnnPutime- Twn o~f whrh n rP nt
WE'RE
GOING TO
CHANGE
I
C
I