40 Tuesday March 9, 2004 sports.michigandaily.com sports@michigandaily.com PORTS 10 0 Tourney spots up for grabs in Indy Chance is there for 'M' to meet pres By Daniel Bremmer Daily Sports Editor March Madness is nearly in full swing, so let the speculation begin. It's almost guaranteed that the Big Ten will get at least three NCAA Tour- nament berths from its top three teams: Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan State. But beyond that, it's anybody's guess. "I still think five or six teams is real- istic (for the Big Ten)," said Purdue coach Gene Keady, whose team sits at 7-9 in conference games and is seeded seventh in the Big Ten Tournament. While Keady's venture looks to be a MICHIGAN'S NCAA TOURNAMENT RESUME Heading into this week's Big Ten Tour- nament, the Michigan basketball team sits on the NCAA Tournament bubble. The following are some of the criteria the NCAA selection committee will look at in making its decisions. RECORD: 8-8 Big Ten, 17-10 overall RPI RATING: 58 STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE: 59 RECORD vS. RPI No, 1-25: 2-2 RECORD Vs. RPI No. 26-50: 0-3 ROAD RECORD: 3-7 What's being said about Michigan's NCAA Tournament chances: CBSSPORTSLINE.COM: "Michigan looks like the Big Ten's best option for a fourth at-large bid." NBCSPORTS.CoM: "Win or else, Michigan. Not one game. Every game." CNNSI.COM: "It takes two (conference touma- ment wins).". CLARK KELLOGG, CBS: "Michigan can play itself back in. They're out, barely." little unrealistic, Iowa coach Steve Alford said that he believes a minimum of four Big Ten teams will be dancing by week's end. And since the Iowa-Michigan matchup will feature the Big Ten Tour- nament's fourth and fifth seeds, it's like- ly that the winner of that game would grab a fourth bid if one were available for the Big Ten. The winner of that matchup could also be a sleeper for the rest of the tournament. "We know that we've got to do a good job of going in there and trying to take care of business on Friday, because I think it's a must-win for both teams," Alford said. Ohio State associate head coach Rick Boyages agreed. "I think the three top teams are all more than capable, and then after that you look at the Iowa-Michigan matchup, whoever survives that, has a chance (to win the Big Ten Tourna- ment)," Boyages said. "I think with Iowa, depth is a factor, and Iowa very easily could win against Michigan. "But from a depth standpoint, to get to the finals or win the thing, Michigan may have an edge that way, with the number of the players they play" Iowa was the lowest seeded team ever to win a Big Ten Tournament in 2001, when they entered as the sixth seed. Based on his past experience of guid- ing the Hawkeyes to that 2001 title, Alford said he believes that the lower- seeded teams can sneak up on the top teams in the second round. "I've always felt like the teams that play onThursday, have an advantage ... because they've already played a game in that city, in that environment," Alford said. "I think you have a lot of upsets on A FOREST CASEY/Daily Daniel Horton and the rest of the Wolverines still have a chance to dance. A win against Iowa on Friday could be enough to receive a bid to the NCAA Tournament. Friday because of that. "It is the first game for the high seed, when you got a league that's got a lot of parity in it. I think those Friday games become very dangerous." For Michigan, its first game will come on Friday, which will also be Iowa's first game of the tournament. Michigan coach Tommy Amaker is looking forward to that extra day off for his team. "I think it gives us an added day in terms of rest and preparation," Amaker said. "We feel very good about our- selves to have accomplished that, the way it fell." DAN BREMMER Garden State of Mind fter winning its appeal of a post- season ban just before the start f this season, the Michigan basketball team had a simple plan: Earn a berth in the NCAA Tournament. Now, with two days to go until the Big Ten Tournament begins, the goal no longer looks so easy to attain. With sloppy road losses and inconsis- tency throughout the season, the Wolver- ines will now have to win two games in the Big Ten Tournament (putting them into the finals) just to be back on the bubble. Winning three games and taking home a conference tournament title is the only way to guarantee a berth. Quite a change from a few weeks ago, when people thought the Wolver- ines would need just one win in the tournament to solidify their NCAA resume. Dropping road games at Minnesota and Iowa earlier in the season, and los- ing more recent decisions to Michigan State and Indiana, criticism has flowed over the past few weeks. These voices are quick to point out what's wrong with the team: Tommy Amaker can't coach. Daniel Horton was better last year. Bernard Robinson is more of a role player than a team leader. Now, Michigan has a chance to silence its critics and put its season back on track. Winning the tournament and earning a trip to the Big Dance would be a chance to prove to critics (and to them- selves) that the preseason expectations weren't set too high. And Michigan may have the right ingredients to turn some heads in the Big Ten Tournament. The Wolverines have enough talent and depth to make a run. When Horton, Robinson, Lester Abram, Dion Harris and Courtney Sims all bring their 'A' games, Michigan is a tough team to beat. And when contributors like Brent Pet- way, Graham Brown and Chris Hunter are chipping in and offering support, again, things look extremely bright for the Wolverines. Since the team winning the tournament will need to prevail in three games in three days, Michigan has the depth that could make such a run possible. The Wolverines also enter the tourna- ment with a little bit of momentum and confidence, coming off of a win at Northwestern. The Wildcats are no longer a JV team - they beat Illinois and Wisconsin, and had dropped just one other Big Ten game at home before Saturday. -And perhaps the most important dynamic for Michigan in the tourna- ment: the Horton factor. After his Big Ten Freshman of the Year campaign, Horton has pulled a Houdini act for much of the Big Ten season in his soph- omore year, watching points disappear, while he has settled for long jumpers game in and game out. eason goals But on Saturday at Northwestern, Horton looked like his old self in the first half of the game. Possession after possession, the 6-foot-3 Texan got into the lane and to the rim for easy looks en route to 6-for-8 from the floor in the half, a far cry from his usual 4-for-12 or 3-for-l lines, which had become all too familiar. If Horton can piece together a few games in a row where he returns to last year's form and busts out - something which may be overdue now - Michi- gan has to like its chances. Michigan will also have to come out and play intense, urgent basketball - something which it has failed to do in its last two games. In its upset of Wis- consin two weeks ago at home, Michi- gan played with a determination and will to win that put it over the top. The Wolverines wanted the game more than the Badgers. It showed, on the court, and on the scoreboard. Fast forward to Michigan's last two games, two must-win road contests. Had Michigan knocked off Indiana at Assembly Hall and then Northwestern in Evanston, it would have been in prime position to win a Big Ten Tourna- ment game or two and put itself into the NCAA Tournament. But Michigan came out flat against Indiana, and failed to turn it on down the stretch, when they had chances to take the game away from the Hoosiers. The Wolverines also played unin- spired basketball for much of the North- western game, and was on the losing side of the aggression battle. Fortunate- ly, they stepped up down the stretch and benefited from key Wildcat misses to pull off the win. But playing just a few minutes of high-intensity basketball won't be enough to knock off the conference's elite. The Big Ten Tournament also gives Michigan a chance to show the selec- tion committee that it deserves an at- large bid into the Big Dance by giving it the chance to play Big Ten regular sea- son champion Illinois. Should the Wolverines get by Iowa on Friday, Illi- nois would be next. Facing the Illini cer- tainly wouldn't be a cakewalk for the Wolverines, but Illinois is not a team that is out of Michigan's league, as is proven by their one-point nail-biter win against Ohio State on Sunday. Besides, the Illini have already locked up an NCAA berth and will be playing for nothing more than seeding in Indi- anapolis. If the Wolverines come with the right attack plan, an upset isn't out of the question. Michigan needs to put it all together at the right time, play with determina- tion and receive a contribution from Horton and his companions. If they do this, the Wolverines would sit in a posi- tion where an NCAA Tournament berth isn't out of the question. Even if it's not an easy road at this point, it's still a road in the right direction. But if Michigan comes out flat against Iowa or Illinois, it can kiss its hopes of a Tourney bid goodbye and will have to start coping with the fact that it failed to meet its biggest goal this season. Daniel Bremmer can be reached at bremmerd@umich.edu. Joe Louis feels like a second home for Icers By Brian Schick Daily Sports Writer The Detroit Red Wings currently enjoy the best home record in the NHL. The Michigan hockey team hopes that it can also take advantage of the benefits of Joe Louis Arena as the team prepares for next week's Super Six Championship. The Wolverines are no strangers to X playing in Hockeytown, as Michigan played its 100th game at "the Joe" earlier this season over Thanksgiving weekend. Since Michigan played its first game in the arena against Michigan State in 1979, it has played several regular season games at Joe Louis in preparation for the CCHA Tournament, which is also played in the arena. "We've played some great games at Joe Louis and we've had some great experiences," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "For the most part, it's a big-game environment. You're not going to get anything better than that." Berenson always tries to schedule multiple games in the regular season at Joe Louis to prepare his team for postseason play. Thus far this season, Michigan has played three games in Detroit - two in the Great Lakes Invitational and one this past Saturday (a 1-0 loss) against Michigan State. Since the arena seats more than 20,000, it can be an intimidating place for a first-time participant. "The atmosphere was insane at Joe Louis and the boys seemed really up for it," said freshman Tim Cook, who played in the GLI. "It was exactly what it was built up to be. (Saturday's) game was more excit- ing than watching a pro game." But for some of the upperclassmen, it is just another day at the office. "After the first few times, it's just another game," junior David Moss said. "It's pretty much the same environment (as any other arena in the CCHA)." Michigan has fared well at Joe Louis over the years, totaling a 65-34-2 record, including a 16-8 record in the CCHA Tournament. But before returning to their "home away from home," the Wolverines will need to take care of No. 12 seed Nebraska-Omaha in the first round of the CCHA Tournament this weekend at Yost Ice Arena. Earlier this season, Michigan couldn't sweep the Mavericks in Omaha. They won the Friday game 2-1, but had to battle back from a 3-1 deficit to escape with a 3-3 tie the next night. "I thought Omaha matched up well against us," Berenson said. "We felt fortunate to tie the game on Saturday night. They're a more dangerous team than their record would indicate. The pressure is on the first-place team - the last-place team has nothing to lose, and they're going to play that way." TURCO RETURNS To YOST: Before Friday night's game against Nebraska-Omaha, the first 500 fans will receive a coupon for a Marty Turco bobblehead. An additional 750 bobbleheads will be available for pur- chase at the M-Den at Yost Ice Arena. This will be the first in a series of bobbleheads with a new player to be released every season. Turco, currently a member of the NHL's Dallas Stars, played at Michigan from 1994-98, and won two national championships. He holds the NHL record for lowest goals-against average in the modern era at 1.72. ROoKIES OF THE YEAR: Two members of Michigan's solid freshman class were named to the CCHA All- Rookie Team yesterday - center T.J. Hensick and defenseman Matt Hunwick. There has been a Wolver- ine on this All-Rookie Team in 12 of the past 18 sea- sons. Hensick led the team in scoring, while Hunwick led the team in plus/minus. GENE KEADY SAYS FIVE OR SIX BIG TEN TEAMS WILL DANCE. WE'D LIKE TO BE SMOKING WHATEVER HE IS. 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