14B - The Michigan Daily - Tipoff 2001 - Thursday, November 8, 2001 0 The Michigan Daily - Tipoff 200 Illinois Head coach: Bill Self 2000-01 13-3 Bi}.Tn,27-8oer t Key turre7s' Fran Wiliam Corgifrnod Ker sses; ~~ Mare rifi Sergi Mc00iA Outlook The injury ±lt ur Lucbs Johnson could hurt th teambut Illinois has the depth and talent to compete for a national title. Michigan State Head coach: Tom Izzo 2000-01 record: 13-3, 28-5 Key retumees: Marcus Tayor Al Anagoye Key losses: Jason Richardson Charlie Bell Zach Randolph Outlook: With so many key losses, the Spartans will not be the offensive powerhouse they were last season. Ohio State Head coach: Jim O'Brien 2000-01 record: 11-5, 20-11 Key returnee G rianrown G Son Con~ l Alt h the loss of Johnson ° we ns the defense significan- ly, the offense should be stronger due to the experienced guards the Buckeyes boast. 1 r Iowa Head coach: Steve Alford 2000-01 record: 7-9, 23-12 Key retms: G " alver J With Recke eAr t3fr : nju teHwke . ee at it t rae some noise at the NCAA Tournament Minnesota _ Head coach: Dan Monson 2000-01 record: 5-11, _14 . Ke remes F Dus yca F Mik ~e If Dauer stays healthy this season, the Golden Gophers could be a force offensively and should improve. Indiana Head coach: Mike Davis 2000-01 record: 10-6, 21-13. K~ Outlo V x Sophomore Jeies Ieed to step up with the surprising loss of Haston, but if the defense can play up to form, the Hoosiers should return to the Big Dance. Penn State Head coach: Jerry Dunn 2000-01 record: Ge r rne Key Ion G Jo 7-9 2-12 Without the scoring and rebound- ing of the Crispin brothers and Heard, a postseaosn appearance seems very unlikely for Penn State. Northwestern Head coach: Bill Carmody 2000- d: 3-13,.1 9z Ke re G on- Ke o.,enson Outlookt"111 l' 5.' There w J& lot Qf pressre on Blake d dpde offensi , orth s rn still just has to keep hoping to improve its program. Wisconsin Head coach: Bo Ryan 2000-01 record: 9-7, 18-11 Key retumees: G Kirk Penney Key loses: G Igo Bone FMark ershacw F Andy Kowske Outlook: The expe44*ions are low in Madison ri4 t now as new coach Ryan will have to start fresh after the losses of so many key seniors. Purdue Head coach: Gene Keady Tommy Amaker is anxious to revitalize Michigan basketball By Benjamin Singer U Daily Sports Editor Not yet two months into the job, Tommy Amaker was still familiarizing himself with Ann Arbor, with his new work-place, with Michigan. He made an appointment to meet Coach Bo in May. He walked over to Schembechler Hall, named for the leg- endary Coach Bo himself, to shake hands and talk with the most Michigan. of Michigan men. "It still kind of jolts you how force- ful and how passionate (he is) about Michigan. I love that," Amaker said. "He still has fire, passion. Even with a peon like myself who he'd never met before, he's leaning across his desk, clenching his fists, talking about Michigan. You still feel the passion from him." Schembechler, now regarded as the icon for Michigan sports, had no prior association with the University before taking over a struggling football team in 1969. But every football, basketball and hockey coach hired after that had some connection to Michigan. Four years ago, Amaker, who has no ties to Michigan, was looked at as a candidate to replace Steve Fisher. But then-Athletic Director Tom Goss pro- moted Brian Ellerbe, who Amaker calls a friend from when both lived in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area. Amaker ended up at Seton Hall. "I was happy to see (Ellerbe) get the position," Amaker said. "Things didn't work and years later, here we are. It's funny sometimes how fate can hap- pen." On March 29, after Athletic Direc- tor Bill Martin's screening committee gave him the o.k., Amaker became the first coach of a revenue sport without any ties to the school since Bo Schem- bechler. "If I could ever become half of Coach Bo, I would be a very happy man," Amaker said. "That's a pretty tall order. That says a lot about the his- tory and tradition of our school and our athletic teams." The history and tradition are not lost on Amaker. In fact, they are integral parts of this new attitude, the new mantra that he is brining to Michigan basketball. Be passionate. Be prepared. Be hon- est. Have fun. Be Michigan. Amaker has been saying those words over and over, to his players and anyone else who cares to listen to him talk about his new program. The words run around the inside of a brightly lit dome inside the team's new locker- room to drive those points home. All the while, Amaker bombards his ath- letes with symbols of the past. There are photographs of All-Amer- icans on the walls leading to the lock- erroom. The banners that hang in the rafters were made more visible to the players when on the court. There are pictures of old Michigan players together on the court, hanging in his office. "I love the pictures of when guys are huddling together or picking some- one up off the floor. It shows a level of effort, a level of teamwork. I want to Coach Tommy Amaker instructs his squad in a preseason practice. Three of the te Preseason selections Top three teams LAST YEAR'S FINISH TEAM 1. Illinois 2. Iowa 3. Indiana first (tie) sixth (tie) fourth All-Big Ten team TEAM NAME Blanchard Evans Recker Jeff ries Williams Michigan Iowa Iowa Indiana Illinois Big Ten Player of the Year Frank Williams - qi Singers | ENTERTAINMENT Singer/Dancers Musicians DJ.'s PEANUTSTM Costume Characters Costume Shop Personnel ACC/Big Ten challenge TUES., NOVEMBER 27 Illinois at Maryland, 7 p.m. NC State at Ohio State, 7:30 p.m. Duke vs. Iowa, 9 p.m. * Minnesota at Wake Forest, 9:30 p.m. WED., NOVEMBER 28 Wisconsin at Georgia Tech, 7 p.m. Michigan State vs. Virginia, 7:30 p.m. # Indiana at North Carolina, 9 p.m. Florida State at Northwestern, 9:30 p.m. Clemson at Penn State, TBA * United Center, Chicago # Richmond Coliseum kind of convey that message," Amaker said. "There are so many subtle ways that you can deliver messages and that's one way that we're going to try to do things - with words, with phrases, with thoughts for the day, with pictures. "Just the little things without always having to beat someone over the head with it saying 'teamwork, teamwork, teamwork.' There's always something around that's going to emphasize that, confirm that. That message is always conveyed in everything that they see." The youth and intensity of the 36- year old Amaker has had an infectious, trickle-down effect, taking over the team. Riddled with both off-court and on-court problems for the past several years, there is now a palpable, renewed enthusiasm about Michigan basket- ball. "Everyone's excited about being here. There's almost an energy. You can feel the excitement," tri-captain Chris Young said. "It started out being coach Amaker, just the way he is, his excitement and enthusiasm. But after that it kind of rubbed off on the cap- tains. After that, it kind of rubbed off on the juniors and the sophomores and the freshmen." "Everybody's doing it, you have to buy into it," said another tri-captain, Leon Jones. "There's no other choice." The pervasive buzz about Michigan basketball extends to the fans on cam- pus, in anticipation of something great from Amaker and his program in the near future, if not the immediate pres- ent. "I think any time there's a change, sometimes what comes with that is there's some hope. It's nice to be a part of that influx of hope right now," Amaker said. "This program is never going to be contingent on one person whether it's going to be a player or a coach. Everything here is bigger than one individual." The hope also stems from Amaker's past accomplishments and back- ground. At Seton Hall, Amaker took the Pirates to four consecutive postsea- son appearances, including a trip to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tour- nament in March of 2000. Meanwhile, Michigan has missed out on postsea- son play for two of the past three years. Amaker drew some criticism for barely reaching the NIT and losing in the first round with last year's best recruiting class in the nation. But there's no denying that Amaker grew up in basketball with a winner's men- tality. A four-year starting point guard at Duke, Amaker reached the NCAA Tournament from 1984-1987 with coach Mike Krzyzewski at the helm. He continued his success with the Blue Devils as an assistant under Krzyzewski from 1988-1997. They were 'national champions in 1991 and 1992, and only missed the tournament in 1995, when Krzyzewski was ill. There is a hope - and for some a belief - that since the revered Krzyzewski begat Amaker, that Amak- er will be able to turn Michigan into Duke. "I am very proud of my past, my associations and my background. I'm very proud of that. I worked hard to be a part of that," Amaker said. "I just also think that we are Michigan, we're going to be Michigan and we're not going to compare ourselves to anyone. We're going to create who we are. I feel very comfortable and very confi- dent that when we do that, we are going to be as good as anyone." While still acknowledging that Duke is a good team to try to follow, Amaker doesn't feel like he even has to look outside of Ann Arbor if he Traveling back in time wi 1983-8 A ~Highlih and stet Defensi 1988-9 230-80 gffl~g 1997-21 Yt~k"Highligh overall 2001: Highligh Minimum Age 18 Stage Managers For audition sites or information contact: Cedar Point Live Entertainment One Cedar Point Drive Sandusky, OH 44870-5259 (419) 627-2390 Technicians Assistant Choreographer MARJORIE MARSHALL/Daily As the bleachers behind him are being constructed, Amaker tries to rebuild the Michigan program to where he feels it should be - at the top. 1 i