"0 bre Mid igwt daIl SPORTS michigandaily.com/sports sportsdesk@umich.edu THURSDAY OCTOBER 18, 2001 8A.1 BENJAMIN SINGER Ryznar adds unexpected firepower By Naweed Sikorar__ Daily Sports Writer- Want results? Try filling Cris r firs t One week ago, new Michigan coach Tommy Amaker con- ducted his first public order of business for the 2001-02 season by for- mally introducing himself and his team to the press on media day. He described the experience as "another new begin- ning." There have been plenty.of firsts for Amaker already and there will be plen- ty more to come. His first team meet- ing surely was significant to the players, his first verbal commitment meant something to his coaching staff and his first burp while sitting at his desk in his office likely meant nothing to no one. (I have absolutely no idea if Amaker has ever in fact burped in his office, it's just an assumption). But today's first will be the one most salient to the fans, and as such, perhaps the most important. One of Amaker's goals is to endear himself and the team to the student body in an attempt to rebuild the program. He is taking his first step in bridging the gap with the fans. It won't be at midnight, but the Michigan basketball team is opening Crisler's doors at 3 p.m. tomorrow to allow fans to come watch the Wolver- ines practice for the first time. No one went to watch them play actual games, last year. Now people are supposed to go watch them practice? Yes. It may sound a little backwards, ask- ing fans to make the trek down to Crisler before Michigan has proven itself. But in an extended metaphor that would make my 11th grade English teacher proud, Amaker explains why it is that he is asking for excitement from the students before the Wolverines have earned it. "My grandmother once said that peo- ple need love and understanding, most probably when they least deserve it," Amaker said. "It's kind of like when you think of a game, an opponent is making a run and we struggled maybe the last five possessions. Turned the ball over or missed shots. Sometimes you hear the crowd get more involved in it to try to help the team get going. That's one of those moments for us now. We need the students to help us get going." The Wolverines had plenty of those moments on the court last year. Some- times those droughts lasted for an entire half (see last year's game at Duke). Now Amaker's challenge is get- ting enough people in the stands to be able to pick them up. Traditionally, schools with strong followings (and more often than not, poor football teams) start their basket- ball frenzy as soon as the clock strikes 12 on the first day of official practice. Amaker passed on that chance last week. He did have a midnight practice for his team, but no Midnight Mad- ness. He said a Midnight Madness didn't fit "our situation." What he didn't say was "our situa- tion" meant a basketball team that can't win a game and can only muster inter- est from a little less than two percent of the student body. And with the home- coming football game against Purdue scheduled for 12 hours after the start of the would-be Midnight Madness, it was reasonable to fear that most stu- dents would opt to get a good night's rest for their long day of drinking and screaming. A Midnight Madness would have looked pretty silly without the madness. While Michigan students may always play favorites, giving special attention to football, there's no reason that bas- ketball has to be the neglected son. There's enough drinking and screaming to spread around for both children. (Somehow I feel like this analogy has gone awry - I guess Amaker is better at this whole metaphor thing than I am.) Michigan basketball is making its first strides in reconnecting with the fans, and if there is going to be any immediate impact, the students have to meet the Wolverines halfway. If you are going to sit around and wait for Michigan to be a power again before you go to Crisler, you may be waiting awhile. After all, Amaker did say the goal for this year was showing improvement. That's the same thing Northwestern's Bill Carmody said. If you want the first and only Midnight Madness since the freshman year of the Fab Five in 1991, you don't have to pack the house tomorrow, but a pres- ence should be felt. Amaker said the power in the Big Ten was "outside of Ann Arbor." That may be true as long as the fans are out- side of Crisler Arena. Benjamin Singer can be reached at basinger@umich.edu. Before the start of the Michigan hockey sea- son, nobody - including coach Red Berenson . - knew who would supply the offense after the premature departure of Hobey Baker Award finalist Andy Hilbert. Most expected junior Mike Cammalleri to shoulder the load, with help from last season's third leading scorer John Shouneyia and new team captain Jed Ort- meyer. Although those veterans have done their part thus far, the Wolverines have received an offen- sive boost from a surprising and unexpected source - freshman forward Jason Ryznar. "Jason's gotten off to a strong start," Beren- son said. "From day one of practice, he has shown a lot of confidence, desire and hustle. He fit in right away because he was in sync with the speed of Division I hockey." Ryznar's early-season success began at the "Cold War" against Michigan State two weeks ago when he recorded three points - a goal in the first period to tie the score at one, and an assist on each of Cammalleri's two goals. He also added another goal in Michigan's 6-3 win over Providence this past weekend and is currently second on the team in scoring with four points. Ryznar attributes most of his success to his linemates.Cammalleri assisted on his goal against Michigan State, and Ortmeyer assisted on his goal against Providence. "When you're playing with guys like Cam- malleri and Ortmeyer, you're destined to get some points out there," Ryznar said. In order to stay relaxed and focused on the ice, Ryznar says that he focuses on the basics. "I just try to play every game like it's a nor- mal game. It doesn't matter who the opponent is, I just have to keep it simple and play hockey. I think that once you get that first goal, it becomes a lot easier because you can just play your game." "He's done all the things that he's good at," S DANNY MOLOSHOK/Daily. Michigan entered this season with many questions, especially on offense. Thanks to the performance of freshman forward Jason Ryznar, the Wolverines already have an explosive first line to count on. Berenson said. He's been strong along the boards, he's been able to control the puck down low, and he's passed the puck well. Also, he's taken advantage of his scoring chances." With the addition of Ryznar, the Wolverines' first line has the potential to be one of the best offensive lines in the CCHA. Already, the line has tallied six goals and six assists. Having already responded well in high-pres- sure situations, Ryznar is looking forward to the upcoming weekend against Western Michi- gan, which should prove to be a very demand- ing series for both clubs. "I think it will be a good chance for us to have a good game and to work hard," Ryznar said. "Western is not a team to be taken lightly, and we will have to play our best if we want to win." Buckeyes lose Johnson, move focus to outside By Benjamin Singer Daily Sports Editor Last year, Ohio State was antici- pating a letdown after the loss of its backcourt that featured Michael Redd and Scoonie Penn. The Buck- eyes found that big man Ken John- son, a Detroit native, was able to carry the load as he led Ohio State to a third-place finish in the Big Ten and 20-11 overall record. Based on some predictions for Ohio State - as low as eighth in the conference - it may need to brace itself for a hard fall from grace again. The Buckeyes aren't prepared to put too much stock in the preseason predictions, but will put it on their bulletin boards. "We lose one player and add three pretty good players and we drop BIG TEN PREVIEWS As the college basketball season approach- es; the Daily basketball writers will give you the ,l inside scoop on every Big Ten team as they HIT N count down the days until they release their CONFERENCE special section "Tipoff" in November. per game) and Boban Savovic (8.9 points per game) give the Buckeyeh some height as both are 6-foot-5. The incoming freshmen may also get a chance to play, with three for- wards entering their first season. Parkhill did not want to predict what kind of minutes the newcom- ers would have, but he did say that Terence Dials at 6-foot-9 is the team's "one big guy." from third to seventh or eighth, I don't know what it is all about. It should give our team motivation," head coach Jim O'Brien said. Ohio State needs to return its focus to the backcourt. Guards Brian Brown and Brent Darby are the top two returning scorers, aver- aging 14.5 and 9.6 points per game, respectively. "We're going to rely more on perimeter play," associate coach Bruce Parkhill said. But even if the Buckeyes find a way to score from the outside, John- son's irreplaceable defense will be missing. Even more impressive than his 7.3 rebounds a game were his 125 blocks for the season - his specialty. "We have to come every game ready to play good defense," Darby said. "This year we can't rely on Ken to be back there, so we will have to get back more quickly." "Ken was not the only guy who was on the floor for us," O'Brien said. "We had other guys who fac- tored in. Ken was a major part of it but all of these guys have had something to say about it, now they have to have a little more to say about it." Most of the experienced players on Ohio State are all listed as guards. Sean Connolly (7.6 points Inside the paint OHIO STATE BUCKEYES 2000 RECORD: 11-5 Big Ten, 20-11 overall (No.24) RETURNING STARTERS: Pos. NAME 2000 STAT G Brian Brown 14.5 ppg G Sean Connolly 41.7 3-pt pct. KEY ADDITIONS: POs. NAME F Clark Williams F Terence Dials G Brandon Fuss-Cheatham F Matt Sylvester KEY LOSSES: C Ken Johnson 01 Reaction Women's Steve Madden Diesel Reaction Men's Reaction Men's /1t- Steve Madden I " A ,.- -I- c Ll"% 00% IeN r- I I .