..,w. t hursday ,nary 29, 2004 sports.michigandaily.com sports@michigandaily.com SPORTS 8A M' fuego Cagers put up 90 points in a crucial victory by Dan Rosen Daily Sports Writer It wasn't your typical Big Ten game. Or your typical Michigan game for that matter. The Wolverines, who averaged 68 points per game coming in, scored 90 points for the first time in a regular season game since December 2001, beating Iowa 00-84 at Crisler Arena. Both teams shot wA84 better than 50 percent for the game. R With the win, the Wolverines (3-3 Big Ten, 12-5 overall) jumped two spots to fifth in the congested Big Ten standings. "I'm very proud of our kids for the effort, knowing that we needed to defend our home court if we wanted to stay alive in our conference race," coach Tommy Amaker said. Michigan, as it has done many times this season, came out trying to establish the inside game. The Wolverines fed the ball to freshman Courtney Sims in the post. The 6-foot-11 Sims abused Iowa's 6-foot-7 forward Glen Worley to the tune Of nine points in the first 10 minutes of action. Sims finished with a career-high 16 points. R "Heck, he even made a three," said Amaker of Sims' long- ball late in the game. Sophomore Lester Abram led the Wolverines with a char- acteristically efficient 24 points on 12 shots. His four 3- pointers led Michigan's 45-percent, 30-point barrage from downtown. F The Wolverines pulled out to an 11-point lead with nine minutes remaining in the first half, but a 15-0 Hawkeyes' run gave Iowa its first edge at 33-31. "Every time we made a run, they just kept coming back," Abram said. "They were tough to put away." The Wolverines answered with an 8-0 stretch at the end of the first stanza to take a seven-point lead into the locker room. A Then, the refs took over. After calling a total of just 13 personal fouls in the first fialf, the officials stopped play time and time again in the See HAWKEYES, Page 12A i t t t r t t z 1 I Blue finally showcases highly-anticipated '0' means the 90 points Michigan scored came in 34 minutes. "We just wanted to have fun today," Michigan guard Dion Harris said. You bet it was fun. It was a good time for Michigan because, for one of the first times all season, every Wolverine who is expect- CHRIS BURKE ed to pitch in on offense did so. Goin' to Work Forward Bernard Robinson was clearly too quick on the offensive end T he sleeping giant appears to have for anyone on Iowa. He finished with awoken. After 16 games of poor 10 points and six assists, despite only shooting percentages and subpar playing eight second-half minutes. assist-to-turnover ratios, the Michigan Guard Lester Abram was his usual basketball team went lights-out style on quiet and spectacular self, picking his Iowa last night, igniting for 90 points. spots to score 24 points. On numerous Ninety! occasions, the Wolverines were able to All the speculation about how good execute a give-and-fade play to set this offense could be when it's firing on Abram up for many open threes oppor- all cylinders has been put to rest now. tunities (of which he converted four). The Wolverines finally answered the "Lester Abram was a great part of offensive questions, and the response is (our second half)," Michigan coach that this team has the potential to be Tommy Amaker said. "(He hit) key almost unstoppable. shots when we needed them most" "They were just inside and outside," Who didn't last night? Center Court- said Iowa guard Jeff Horner about the ney Sims looked like an All-Big Ten Michigan offense, looking as stunned player on the offensive end, pounding as everyone else. "They hit a lot of Iowa for 16 points. And fellow big man threes, they shot the ball very well." Graham Brown pitched in eight. Yes, I know that there was a six-and- Add in Daniel Horton's 15-point, a-half-minute stretch when Iowa seven-assist effort, and you can imag- stymied the Wolverines en route to a ine why Iowa coach Steve Alford was 15-0 run. Those droughts have been all not exactly sporting a grin afterwards. to frequent. "This was a tough game for us," But there were also the 11 points Alford said. "You have to give credit to Michigan scored in the first two min- Michigan - they stepped up when utes of the game. There were the 13 they needed to late in the game." points the Wolverines dropped in the Part of that clutch performance came last 2:28 of the first half. They put up thanks to the stellar outside shooting of 46 points in the second half, shooting the Wolverines. They finished 10-for- 53.4 percent for the game. 22 beyond the arc. Heck, the six-minute shutout the "I didn't expect (that)," Horner said. Hawkeyes pitched in the middle of the "That's kind of what we wanted to do - first half almost makes the rest of the shoot from the outside." game that much more impressive. That See BURKE, Page lA Michigan sophomore Graham Brown goes up for a shot during last night's 90-84 win over Iowa. The Wolverines, who moved Into fifth place in the Big Ten, face Illinois on the road Saturday. WHAT are you Waiting for? hook your SPRING 4 REA TRIP today. ' i if CANCUN BEACHFRONT f tR {0 M p Based on $150 pp when you book a quad room w/SEI ACAPULEO $449'> MAZATLAN $439*> S. PADRE $429' ALSO AVAILABLE: 7 Night Air Packages to > Acapulco > Cancun doa! EPrS > Mazatlan % C tyflmrqeI