cl he igttn tttl Tuesday January 27, 2004 sports.michigandaily.com sports@michigandaily.com 9 Petway finds way back into lineup Kidds these days what'll they do next? By Chris Burke Daily Sports Editor In Michigan's second game of the season, an 84-49 rout of High Point, freshman Brent Petway played 18 min- utes, recording 12 points and seven rebounds. Over the next four contests, Petway saw the court regularly, playing at least 17 minutes in all of those games. Since then, the forward's game action has dwindled significantly, to the point where he didn't even play in the Wolverines' loss at Michigan State on Jan. 17. But with the Wolverines stuck in a three-game losing streak, and needing some energy to get over the hump against Penn State, Michigan coach Tommy Amaker turned to Petway. And the youngster responded. After Penn State had trimmed a sec- ond-half Michigan lead from 14 to nine, Petway abruptly halted the run with an emphatic alley-oop dunk. Four minutes later, Petway flew to the rim again, perfectly timed a miss by teammate Bernard Robinson, and threw down a one-handed putback slam. "On the road, I'm probably my most juiced up," Petway said. "I actually like any kind of crowd - but if it's on the road, I'm more energized." Petway also grabbed a defensive rebound, blocked two shots and forced the Nittany Lions to rethink a number of shot attempts in the lane. "He was able to change and block some shots," Amaker said. "I thought the way Petway finished down the stretch was critical for us. His 11 min- utes were very valuable." Petway's incredible leaping ability means that he's always a threat to come through with a show-stopping block or dunk. Case in point was the alley-oop tossed by Daniel Horton to Petway on Saturday, which effectively ended any comeback hopes the Nittany Lions had. "Coach drew that play up for me," Petway said. "It was basically a momentum play, an impact play to get us fired up." Earlier in the week Petway had said that, despite the lack of playing time recently, he was able to avoid becoming frustrated, realizing that his talents are best utilized when the matchups are favorable. On Saturday, that was the case. "(Amaker) has been telling him to just be ready," Michigan sophomore Lester Abram said. "And then today he got in and had some pretty productive minutes. That was pretty big for Brent." Petway's improved play could prove to be a huge boost for the Wolverines during the conference season. With the grind of the Big Ten often testing a team's depth, Petway's contin- ued contribution would simply make the Wolverines that much deeper. "We need each and every last one of these guys," Robinson said. "Teams can't focus on all of us, so it's important to have everyone ready to play and pro- ducing for us." Petway also helped in shutting down Penn State's leading scorer, Jan Jagla. The Wolverines employed a defense- by-committee attack on Jagla, using the quickness of Petway, J.C. Mathis, Robinson and Abram to defend against the 7-foot center. In the end, all of the efforts on both ends of the floor allowed Petway to do something he hasn't always been able to do - enjoy a win that he had played a big part in. "It feels real good to contribute to a big win," Petway said. "It was big to have some momentum coming back to take our home court back." CRAWFORD DECMESK Detroit Renaissance High School sen- for Joe Crawford gave a verbal com- mitment to Kentucky coach Tubby Smith yesterday, theinsiders.com reported late last night. Crawford, one of the top guard prospects in the coin- try, had previously committed to Michigan last year, but then reopened his recruitment this past summer. KYLE O'NEILL The Daily Janitor From the pretty-pretty-princess diary of Kyle O'Neill, pee-wee coach extraordinaire. January 27, 2004: You aren't going to believe this. I was named head coach of a District V Little League team. Its mascot is the Mighty Ducks - go figure - and we're sponsored by the local Hooters restaurant ... talk about boo-ya with a side of boo-ya. Tryouts are in a couple of weeks. This is gonna be awesome. February 21, 2004: Well, the Hoot- ers Mighty Ducks' roster is complete and I've already been given a total of 175 free chicken wings. I'm so look- ing forward to doing this. I mean, if that Steve Bartman guy can coach, I've gotta be able to do a decent job. Besides, this district hasn't been to the state playoffs in 34 years. There's no pressure on me to produce a winner that early. I do think my team will be compet- ing with the other top teams in the league, though. This pitcher I picked up is fantastic (he can swing the lum- ber pretty well, too). He went 14-1 last year and had 12 homeruns. But during the offseason, the little tyke - his name is Mason Lidd - beat up his girlfriend. This prompted his for- mer team, the Keith Hafner Karate School Wildcats to drop him from its team. The surprising thing was that Lidd was never punished more than that. He did apologize, though, and bought his girlfriend a brand-new Prada bag. Kids are so cute these days. Well, anyway, when Hafner asked if anyone wanted him in the fifth round of our draft, I had to say yes. He's the best player, and a pitch- er/clean-up hitter combo is like find- ing the best point guard in the NBA. March 17, 2004: What a great first day of practice. My assistant coaches are fantastic, too. Charlie Crenell and Romeo Weis are their names, and they're already getting so much out of my team with their New England- style of coaching. We might have enough to really contend in this league. Mason keeps giving me these weird looks, though. April 15, 2004: We had our first game and we won 10-0. Other coaches are really impressed with what I've done. Most think I overwork these guys, but I don't. I was a Little League player once myself. I wasn't anything special, but I got a few trophies out of it. I know all these guys need is an opportunity to have fun. Mason pitched a complete game, but he's still looking at me funny. He might have given me the middle finger. His girl- friend is now wearing a mink coat to our games. These kids today. May 28, 2004: We're in first after the break! My assistants are getting incredible props as well. I think they'll be head coaches by the beginning of next season. The newspaper even did a story about Mason and how he's been so good despite the rough offseason. June 29, 2004: We won our dis- trict, and we're going off to our regional competition. Four wins and it's off to states! Mason keeps mut- tering stuff about player-coach under his breath, but I don't think he's seri- ous. Besides, I've got a clean past, I don't think I could be fired. And he's only in Little League two more years after this season. August 14, 2004: What a fantastic run! We won states, and we were one out away from getting out of the United States Regional. Unfortunately the umpire (bless him for working in 100- degree heat on his day off from work) miscalled a play at the plate. Mason slid into home, knocking the ball out of the catcher's glove. The ump still called him out, though. He apologized to me after he saw the tape. I accepted it, as it's only a game and mistakes will be made ... even big ones. After the game, I thought my players' parents would be waiting outside the dugout. But they were all gathered around an old Dodge with baseball bats. I think it was tradi- tion to get an ugly car and pulverize it. Weird that I never saw that umpire again - he lent me his pen, went to the bathroom and never came back. September 6, 2004: I can't believe it! The Pita Pit Blue Jays replaced Rick Piston with Larry Auburn. I mean, Auburn is a legend in this area, but Piston turned that team of losers into District VII's champion. He even beat Auburn's team. It's weird, my assistants are being turned down for new coaching spots. District V has decided to hire Teve Turrier - a for- mer coach in the T-ball leagues - and Moe Flibbs, a 98-year-old retired coach from the 1960s. I mean, I'll be happy that my assistants will return to my side, but I felt they deserved a chance and shouldn't have been turned away because they had never been head coaches at any level. January 21, 2005: Well, I'm prepar- ing for a new season. Lots of weird rumors about Mason not wanting to play for me anymore, but he doesn't want to leave Hooters either. I mean, they can't fire a state champ, can they? May 20, 2005: I've been fired! Our team is a respectable 9-5 and in third place in the league. We'd be better, but one of our players had to sit out this season after he got a disease in his stomach. Everyone liked him, and it was tough to play without him. But as we lost, Mason's parents kept pressur- ing the District V manager, who is thinking about making a change and moving my team's sponsorship to T.G.I. Friday's. Then, after we had defeated Auburn's and Piston's new teams - the best in the district - I was fired. June 28, 2005: Mason's girlfriend will have her own television show at her elementary school and wears real diamond earrings, saying that true love has conquered all the problems with Mason from her past. These Kidds today. Kyle O'Neill wishes Jason Kidd the best as the Nets will be ousted in thefJirst round of the playoffs. He is already look- ing forward to the Pacers-Pistons East- ern Conference Final. Kyle can be reached at kylero@umich.edu. TONY DING/Daily Michigan freshman Brent Petway slams home a Bernard Robinson miss against Penn State. Of Petway's 19 field goals this season, 16 have come on dunks. Dest brings more than just a game-winner By Michael Nisson Daily Sports Writer It's official: Michigan freshman defenseman Jason Dest has gone on the offensive, and he has done it in style. Dest, a Fraser native, made his presence felt with a game-winning goal against Western Michigan on Friday. Following the goal, which was the first of his collegiate career, Dest threw his arms straight up into the air in celebration and sported an ear-to-ear grin on his face. "That was a huge goal," Michigan coach Red Berenson said following Friday's 4-1 victory. "If that's the only goal he gets all year, it could be the one that gets us where we need to be." Many people might look at Dest's goal and use it to make the argument that the freshman has finally started making an impact on the team. But this type of perspective is wrong when evaluating a defender. "Defensemen can have a great game, and no one can even notice them out there," Dest said. "A defenseman can never touch the puck ... and truth is, he played a hell of a game." Such is the case with Michigan captain Andy Burnes. The senior has been the most consistent defender for the Wolverines in the past two sea- sons, but has scored just 21 points, including three goals, over his four-year career. Burnes noted a defenseman's game should not be judged by individual statistics, but rather by the score when the clock reads zero. "The scoreboard is the biggest indication of how you're playing," Burnes said. "If you're shutting the other team's top line down and doing all the little things - like getting the puck out and playing safe and giving your goaltender a chance every night - it shows up on a score- board." The plus/minus statistic is one thing on a score sheet that is helpful when evaluating a defenseman. Positive values indicate that the team has scored more goals than it has given up when a certain player has been on the ice, and negative values indicate the opposite. So far this season, Dest's plus-minus is the highest on the team at plus-six. Burnes attributes Dest's performance to one particular change that the freshman has made. "I think the biggest improvement he's made is his confidence with the puck," Burnes said. "You see him go back there, pick up the puck in the corner, and he starts wheeling with it. He's got his head up, and he's not afraid to carry it. He gives himself a lot of options." Junior Eric Werner, Dest's linemate, notes that the chemistry between the two of them has helped make them effective on the ice. "(At first) we had some ups and downs, but the last couple of games we've been playing real good together," Werner said. "We're improving every game." Berenson's opinion is probably the best indica- tor of how Dest has been doing, because he ulti- mately decides who gets to play, and how much they play. Berenson reiterated Burnes' comments about how Dest had improved from when he first donned the maize and blue in September. "He's a hard-working, focused player," Beren- son said. "He's been more consistent, particular- ly since the (winter) break. "When he walks into the rink, he's not think- ing about whether or not he's playing. He's thinking about how much the team needs him to play well." 'MV3' JOSH HOLMA ON WOMEN'S Thursday's game agains will mark the halfway poi Ten season for the Michig basketball team. The Wolv Big Ten, 10-10 overall) ha larly mowed through any1 schedule and yet their lon, streak is just three games- occurred entirely on the r So now that first-year h Cheryl Burnett finally has as a Wolverine under her 1 this kind of .500 performa ed with this corps of playe To say that Michigan ur its prior two seasons woul understatement. Two year Wolverines were picked t conference's top three, but a 6-10 conference record needs some help, version of the Wolverines probably in AN would have folded. But Burnett's crew1 did not. pl HOOPS Senior center Jennifer Smith scored 14 loa of Michigan's 16 points in one span, set- no st Ohio State ting up a jumper by junior Tabitha Pool ing nt of the Big in the final minute that sealed the deal in sh an women's a 63-60 win. be verines (3-4 The comeback win in Madison is one ve not particu- of many games this season that shows sc part of their that what is working for Michigan is the lo gest losing same thing holding them back - star wh - a skid that power.I oad. Without Smith, Pool and senior da ead coach Stephanie Gandy, Michigan could very pl some games well be 0-20 right now. The three have belt, should scored 902 of Michigan's 1,226 points be ince be expect- this year - almost 75 percent. For two ha ers? straight games against Indiana and Penn in nderachieved in State, they were the only Wolverines to1 d be a gross make a field goal. yo s ago the Simply put, they are the most valuable toi a finish in the three players on the team - the 'MV3.' of t ended up with "We want to get a lot of opportunities l and a first for four players," said Burnett, referring go and fast a 67-33 loss. Freshman Kelly Helvey is one of those ayers who has tried to ease the scoring ad by firing up more shots than any n-'MV3' Wolverine. But she's shoot- g just 25.8 percent from the field and e knows how dependent Michigan has en on the trio. "When Smith is not scoring, Tab's not oring and Steph isn't scoring, no one oks to do anything, and no one knows hat to do," Helvey said. The 'MV3' couldn't produce in Sun- y's loss to Iowa either, when Smith ayed only 20 minutes due to foul trouble. "I talked to our players about not ing in an offensive rhythm, and that ad something to do with Jen not being there," Burnett said. Unfortunately for the Wolverines, if u don't have rhythm, no one is going invite you to the Big Dance at the end the year. Even if the Wolverines are only as ood as their top three players, it THREE'S COMPANY IN SCORING Rest of team 26% Pool Jennifer Smith, Stephanie Gandy and Tabitha Pool combine for nearly 75 percent of the Michigan women's basketball team's total point production this season. The Wolverines have struggled in games where one of their three top scorers has had a poor game or has gotten into foul trouble.