The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - November 26, 2001- 3B Blue's red hot shooting leads to two wins By Chris Burke Daily Sports Writer Despite defeating Detroit 67-52 last Sunday, the No. 19 Michigan women's basketball team was faced with a major concern. The Wolverines shot just 36.7 percent from the floor as the offense struggled to find a rhythm all afternoon. Just a week later, that problem appears to be solved. Yesterday, Michigan (3-1) scorched the nets for a 62-percent performance from the field that included an 8-for-12 mark on 3-pointers. The hot-shooting enabled the j MICHIGAN 84 Wolverines to grab a road ; SYRACUSE 76 win at Syracuse (3-1), ' 84-76, to complete a two- win weekend that also included an 81-61 victory over New Hampshire (2-2) on Friday. "I'm very happy to be 2-0 on the road," Michi- gan coach Sue Guevara said. "And I'm even hap- pier to be coming home to play Thursday (against Marquette) in Crisler Arena." Four Michigan players scored in double figures against the Orangewomen, led by Alayne Ingram's 25 points. Ingram was forced to sit out the Wolverines' game on Friday for violating a team rule, but the senior guard returned with a vengeance. Ingram was 5-for-7 from 3-point range and scored Michigan's first eight points of the second half. After starting the first two games of the season at point guard, Ingram was moved back to her normal shooting guard position - enabling Susana Jara to take control of the point. Jara had six assists and eight points against Syracuse. "I was extremely pleased with the play of Susana Jara - I thought she was pretty steady both games," Guevara said. "I would say right now Susana is going to be starting at the point for us because it affords me two point guards on the floor - the other one being Alayne." Michigan jumped out quickly on Syracuse with an impressive first half, rolling to a 47-31 lead at RAPHAEL GOODSTEIN 'M'needs a leader and Navarre is not the man Just four weeks ago, Michigan was 6-1, and qualifying for a BCS game was a given. Michi- gan had bigger plans. At No. 4 in the BCS, the team was talking about the national title game. "We're Michi- gan," was the team's swagger. "We plan on winning every game we play. It's always our goal to win the Big Ten and national title." So what the hell happened in one times and seemed to reeress as a quarterback. but much of that I think had to do with an injury. Todd Collins wasn't the Elvis Grbac reincarnation he was advertised to be, but if'Collins were the quarterback of this team, there's little doubt that a l3CS bowl would be on the horizon. Ileading into Saturday's game with Ohio State. Navarre and Michigan knew they needed to win. There ALEX HOWBERT/Daiy Alayne Ingram was thrust into the starting point guard role by coach Sue Guevara. But upon Ingram's return to the shooting guard spot yesterday, she scored 25 points to lead Michigan to an 84-76 win at Syracuse. month? This teanr regressed. Mar- quise Walker conldn' 1have been Michigan shouldn't pretend to cnuch more pressure be a national title contender with on the team to get it John Navarre as the quarterback. done. Illinois had halftime. Tho lead was just 21-19 with 9:44 remaining in the half, but Jara - making her second consecu- tive start at point guard -- hit a 3-pointer to spark an 18-3 Michigan run. That stretch put Michigan ahead by 15, and the Orangewomen were not able to close the gap before the half. Syracuse tried to come from behind as the sec- ond half began and pulled within seven with 14:35 left in the game. But that was as close as the Orangewomen would get. Ingram scored 12 points from that juncture, including a 3-pointer with 4:56 to go that put the Wolverines ahead 74-62 and squashed any chance Syracuse had at a late rally. As opposed to Michigan's first two games last weekend when LeeAnn Bies was the main offen- sive weapon, averaging 23.5 points per game, the Wolverines were able to establish a balanced attack against the Orangewomen. Sophomore Stephanie Gandy had 14 points off the bench, while Bies had 12 and Jennifer Smith added 10. As has become the norm this year, Michigan capitalized on impressive free-throw shooting. The Wolverines shot 93.3 percent from the line against Syracuse. "I think we are very confident going to the free- throw line, we have good shooters." Guevara said. "We are doing a nice job focusing on the free shot." On Friday, the Wolverines opened their week- end by avoiding New Ilampshire's upset attempt. Tabitha Pool scored 21 points and Raina Good- low pitched in 15 as the Wolverines exploded for a 41-19 scoring advantage in the second hailf to pull away. Michigan turned the ball over 25 times against both Louisiana Tech and Detroit to start the year. But against New Hampshire, that number was cut to 19 and against Syracuse, the Wolverines com- mitted just 15 turnovers. The decrease in mistakes is something that Guevara is excited to see. "I don't want to see the same kind of turnovers -- people putting the ball down when they don't need to," Guevara said. "Fifteen turnovers is rea- sonable considering how much we run." Duke women fall at home, 87-81 DURHAM, N.C. (AP) -- South Carolina's Kelly Morrone felt good shooting the ball against Duke. She felt even better about the basketball hoops at Cameron Indoor Stadium. "I love these rims. I just love them," Morrone said after shooting 8-of-9 from 3-point range to lead South Carolina to an 87-81 overtime victory in the Duke Women's Basket- ball Classic on Sunday. Duke (3-2) made just 34.5 percent of its shots in the first half, its worst half of the year. After shooting 16-of-29 in the second half to tie the game, the Blue Devils were just 4-of- 14 in overtime. Monique Currie led Duke with 22 points. Iciss Tillis added 19 and Alana Beard had 18 in Duke's first home loss to a nonconference opponent since falling 77-70 to Boston College in the preseason WNIT on Nov. 17, 1999. BAYLOR 65, DENVER 60 - Sheila Lambert's 19 points and Danielle Crockrom's 17 points and 11 rebounds led No. 13 Baylor to a 65-60 win over the University of Denver on Sunday. The Lady Bears (4-0) led 42-22 early in the second half before the Pioneers battled back and narrowed the margin to 57-54 on Misty Staton's jumper with just over two minutes to play. "We made a good run with a chance to win, but we didn't pull it out," said Denver head coach Pam Tanner. "But we did a tremendous job defending them, and we played a much better game this year than last year." With 36 seconds remaining, Denver pulled to within three again on Nikki Weddle's 3-pointer, but Lambert connected on two free throws with 14 seconds on the clock to clinch the victory. Staton led Denver (2-1) with 20 points, including 10-of- I 1 free throws. while Weddle added 16 points. Crockrom totaled eight of the 12 points in that span with the Lady Bears holding the Pioneers scoreless for more than 8 minutes. The Lady Bears held Denver's leading scorer Melissa Garcia, who had averaged 22 points in the first two games, to two. PURDUE 80, SOUTHERN MississiPPi 40 - As Beth Jones put on a practice jersey for the postgame news conference, she realized it belonged to teammate Shereka Wright. The jersey fit Jones just fine - and so did the role of leading scorer. Jones scored 22 points, and No. I I Purdue made I1 shots from 3-point range in an 80-40 victory Sunday over South- ern Mississippi. Kelly Komara added 15 for Purdue (3-1), which played the final 13:14 without Wright. Purdue's leading scorer had to be helped off the court after she sprained her right ankle. The Boilermakers made eight of 14 3-pointers in the first half. Jones finished 6-for-8, and Komara was 3-for-4. Komara, who also had seven assists and no turnovers, said the Eagles (0-3) focused too much on stopping the inside game and left Purdue open on the perimeter. Curry wants Jones to keep shooting. "She has a green light," she said. "When she's open, I want her to shoot. I'm very pleased for her because she worked so hard in the offseason." Since losing the season opener to then-No. 4 Oklahoma, Purdue has won its last three games by an average of 38 points. YESTERDAY'S GAME MICHIGAN (84) FG FT REB MIN t-A- M-.A 0-T A F PTS Pool 23 4-6 0-0 05 3 2 9 Goodlow 23 23 2-2 0-4 3 3 6 Bies 26 58 2-2 02 1 1 12 Jara 30 3-5 0-1 01 6 0 8 Ingram 39 9-12 2 2 2-4 4 2 25 Gandy 30 5-10 4-4 3-4 3 3 14 Mason 2 00 0-0 01 0 0 0 Smith 27 36 4-4 25 2 2 10 Team 0 0-0 0-0 1-4 0 0 0 Totals 200 31.5014-15 8-3022 13 84 FG%:.620. FT%: .933. 3-point FG: 8-12, .667 (Ingram 5-7, Jara 2-3. Pool 1-2). Blocks: 1 (Smith) Steals: (Jara 2. Smith 2, Ingram. Turnovers: 15 (Bies 4. Ingramn 4, Smith 3. Goodlow, Jara, Pool. Team) . Technical Fouls: none. Syracuse (76) - G IFT REB MIN M-A MA 0-T A F PTS Wright 30 4-8 0-0 4-4 0 4 8 Newman 22 05 0-0 0-2 1 0 Trammell 1 2-3 0-0 1-3 0 1 4 McBride 40 6-15 2-2 0-2 4 3 16 James 38 6-12 3-4 0-1 4 2 18 Perry 30 8-11 3-5 1-1 5 2 19 Coleman 7 1-2 0-0 0-0 0 2 2 Nwagbo 22 4-6 1-3 3-6 0 1 9 Team 0 0-0 0-0 3-5 0 0 0 Totals 200 31-629-14 12-24 14 15 76 FG%:.500. FT%:.643. 3-point FG: 5-21, .238 (James 3-6. McBride 2-10. Newman 0-4, Wright 0-1). Blocks: 1 (Trammell). Steals: 9 (James 3, McBride 3, Nwag- ti 2, Wright). Turnovers: 10 (McBride 3, James 2 Nwagbo 2, Coleman. Newman. Perry). Technical fouls: none. Michigan----- -......47 37 -84 Syracuse ........ 31 45 -- 76 At: Manley Field House Attendance: 615 stopped playing It's that simple. like the best receiver in the country and returned to what he was pegged to be before the season started - a very good player, but not one capable of carry- ing I team through a season. The same might be said about linebacker Larry Foote. But the real problem in 2001 was this: The Wolverines didn't have a quarterback who could deal with the - pressure that comes with this job. Michigan shouldn't pretend to be a national'title contender with John Navarre as the quarterback. It's that simple. He freaks out in pressure sit- uations worse than Richard Nixon in a televised debate. The Big Ten was weak this year and Michigan had the best defenise and spe- cial teams in the conference. This should have been the year that the Wolverines returned to a BCS came. After all, this is Michigan remember? But after one half in East Lansing, the offeznse fell apart- and nobody could put it back together again. Lloyd Carr suspected this was the true face of the offense all season and tried to hide it by running trick plays to score cheap points. The problem was, by the end of the season, teams we-ren't fooled by the Calvin Bell reverse, and the "Trans-continental" only works once a year. So Carr just hoped the Wolverines would find a way to win while Navarre learned how to be a quarter- back at one of the premier programs in the country. This strategy worked a cainst lowa and - 'Wisconsin, but a ler 14 games as a starter, Navarre still wasn't where he needed to be. Last week against Wisconsin was the worst performance by a Michigan quarter- back since Demetrius Brown's seven- interception performance at Michigan State in 1987. Luckily the defense and special teams covered up the mistakes made at Iowa and Wisconsin. Can you think of a worse Michigan starting quarterback than Navarre? Sure Brown was a head-case, but at least he could feel pressure in the pocket and escape. Navarre usually just stands there - hoping that Mar- quise Walker gets open --while a defensive lineman either sacks him, strips the ball or both. Scott Dreisbach played poorly at already beaten North- western and clinched a share of the Big Ten title. A loss would mean the Fighting Illini would win the title outright and ring in the New Year in the French Quarter while the Wolverines returned to their almost-annual holiday destina- tion of central Florida. Once again in the face of a major challenue, Navarre panicked and played poorly. I 'cryone in the stadi- um knew exactly where he was throw- ing the ball every time he dropped back to pass. IIe rarely looked off his primary receiver and even when he pump-faked, he still threw it to Walk- er, drawing even more attention to his intended target. The thing is, it's hard to blame Navarre. lIe never cla ivied to be a good quarterback. Even during the good times, he made it a point to remind everyone that lie was still learning and that the offense was still cr-owing. While it's understandable why blue- chip quarterback prospects wouldn't want to play behind Drew Henson for three years, there sioul d have been a quarterback in the wings last year. .Michigan has always had someone ready to step into the fire when the call came. When Bi-ian (Griese left, Tom iBrady stepped in. When Brady left, Drew I lenson stepped in. And \while I lenson struggled as a sophomore thrown into the fire, his problems resulted fi-om working to adjust to the speed of the college game -not the inability to deal with a presslure sit naition. I have no idea why this void wasn't filled after Hlenson agreed to play for Michigan. There are many theories for this reality, but Saturday afternoon, its relevance was truly magnified. I don't know if Jermaine Gonzales is the answer. At times lie's impres- sive, at other times lie looks like Michigan's option quarterbacks of the early '70s. Regardless. if Michigan is going to claim to be a premier foot ball power, it needs to find a leader who will get the job done when it needs to be done. Raphael Goodseicn c(anh e reached at raphaeclg~iumtrich.ed. Volleyball drops a heartbreaker By Charles Paradis Daily Sports Writer The word on the lips of every Michigan volleyball player Saturday night - heartbreaker. There was no other way to describe the 3-2 loss to No. 21 Illinois, a defeat that all but eliminated Michigan (9-11 Big Ten, 13-14 overall) from making their third straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. After taking a two-games to-none lead on the Fighting Illini, the Wolverines were unable to seal the deal. "This match defines heartbreaker," Katrina Lehman said. The match started out very well for Michigan. The Wolverines dominated the first game, handing Illinois a 30- 23 loss. Erin Moore and Carrie Ritchie who had seven and six kills respectively, led Michigan offensively. Defensively, Moore added four digs to lead the team, but the story was Lehman's four block assists in the first game. Entering the match, Lehman need- ed only five block assists to break the Michigan single-season record of 115. Last season, Lehman tied the mark set by Lindsay Ebert in 1997. Lehman needed only two block assists to break the record going into the second game. She not only got them, but she also added four kills to and they got stronger," Lehman said. After the intermission, Illinois came out better on defense, but it was Michi- gan's errors that allowed the Illini to steal game three. Illinois only recorded 11 kills in game three, but Michigan gave the Illini 15 points on attack errors. Winning the game 30-25 gave Illinois momentum it desperately need- ed, but it was the next game that proved to be the backbreaker for Michigan. Game four saw the Illini finally find their offensive rhythm. Relying heavily on its 6-foot-5 middle blocker, Lisa Argabright, Illinois overpowered the smaller Michigan squad. Argabright led the Illini with seven kills in game four. The Illini took a 27-22 lead late in the game. Michigan used all its emotion to mount an incredible comeback. After tying the game at 28, Michigan had the momentum, but neither team was able to score the two consecutive -points needed to win. Finally, the Illini proved too much for the Wolverines as Illinois won game four 34-32. Errors also plagued the Wolverines in the fifth game. Eight Michigan errors gave the Illini more than half the points they needed to win 15-9. Friday's match commemorated sen- ior night --- Nicole Kacor, Annie Maxwell and Shannon Melka played in their final match With the Wolver- ines. While this was the end for the three, they know the team is in good hands. "I know this program has nothing to do but go up and increase our winning record," Melka said. "They are going to do awesome next year, I know." ..