I Thursday November 11, 2004 sports. michigandaily. com sports@michigandaily.com cuE digau il PORTS 12A 12A Blue inconsistent, in final exhibition Clarett scandal taints By Josh Holman Daily Sports Writer It was everything you'd expect from an early-season game against an unfamiliar opponent. Michi- gan had its flares of brilliance, but they normally came after lulls of sloppy play. Michigan dropped in 29 points in the final six minutes of its 67-54 vic- tory over Wayne State, the Wolver- ines' second and final exhibition of the season. But Michigan wouldn't have need- ed all those late points if it had kept Wayne State at bay. The Warriors - after being down by double fig- ures early in the game - actually threatened the Wolverines in the sec- ond half. A 14-3 run by Wayne State closed the gap to 49-43 with 5:32 remaining. "We didn't look very comfortable at times," Amaker said. "I thought that was one of the disappointing factors for us. But you have to give (Wayne State) credit for making us look uncomfortable." t r Michigan caught fire at just the right moment, extinguishing any thought of a miraculous comeback by its Division II opponents. After a three-pointer by Wayne State's Cort- ney Jennings, Michigan sophomore Dion Harris responded with a triple of his own. On the following possession, a block by sophomore Brent Petway led to an uncontested fast-break layup for junior wing Lester Abram. Petway polished things off on Michigan's next fast break, finish- ing an alley-oop from guard Daniel Horton. Petway's dunks - he had three on the night - were not the only mon- strous aspects of his game. The for- ward finished with a double-double, scoring 11 points and pulling down a game-high 15 rebounds. "When you watch (Petway) play, it's obvious that he has a passion for playing." Amaker said. "He enjoys himself out there and that becomes contagious. Having him on the floor, especially tonight, was something that was sorely needed." Petway's contributions couldn't have come at a better time. Junior forward Chris Hunter did not dress RYAN WEINER/Daily Michigan sophomore Brent Petway blocks one of his two shots last night. because of a sore knee, and sopho- more Courtney Sims had a relatively slow night with just seven points and four rebounds. "If one guy is kind of down, you have to have somebody else come in and pick you up, or the team is going to all fall off altogether," Petway said. "I just like being able to come in and energize the team in one way or another." Horton led all scorers in the game with an extremely efficient 17 points. He shot 4-for-7 from the field, includ- ing 3-for-4 from three-point range See EXHIBITION, page 13A Cagers land three commitments for 2005 SHARAD MATTU Mattu Fast, Mattu Furi S ince this Maurice Clare broke on Tuesday, one tl stood out in my mind: T may not be that big for a whil In the last two days, I've do thing I normally despise doing checked the Internet messagel to see what crazy things peop anonymously saying. Right no igan fans are taking extreme p in pointing out that nothing O has accomplished lately is legi and Buckeye fans are saying C - the man who won them a n title - is a pathological liar, a any program is investigated th (like Michigan, for example), tions would be discovered. Unfortunately, both sides ar ably correct. The Game stands above eve regular-season college football It's a true event, no matter wha teams' records are going in. T pation may go up a notch or tw they're playing for as much as last year, but it's always a cont the entire nation anticipates. But now, imagine when th teams face off next Saturday. ESPN's College GameDay g Columbus, do you think they features on Ted Ginn Jr., the eyes' freshman touchdown sp or Michigan's freshmen back of quarterback Chad Henne a Michael Hart? No. Expect Clarett, Clarett more Clarett. Clarett says that, during Oh national championship run in received money illegally from ers, had tutors complete practi his work for him, was set up bi ning backs coach Dick Tressel coach John Tressel's brother - landscaping jobs which involv work and a lot of pay. Clarett a Tressel arranged for cars to be to him. Boosters giving money to p] has happened before and will l pen again - I don't think that The Game can be done about that. If the athletic department tells the players not to take money, and tells the boosters not to offer money, and it doesn't know what's going on, it can't really be blamed. But the allegation of academic fraud and the way Clarett connects the Tres- sels to what transpired is far more ous serious. Remember, when handing out the penalty to Michigan for the Ed tt saga Martin-Fab Five scandal, a significant hing has reason the punishment wasn't even 'he Game more severe was that it couldn't be e. proven coach Steve Fisher was aware ne some- of Martin's illegal activities within the g - I basketball program. boards So if an investigation is launched le are - and if the allegations are proven to w, Mich- be true - significant repercussions for leasure the Buckeyes aren't just possible, but hio State probable. itimate, The timing couldn't be worse 'larett because, lately, the rivalry has been as ational good as its ever been. nd that if There have been great games at oroughly Michigan Stadium the past few years, viola- but the win over Ohio State last November is the clear-cut No. 1, and e prob- it's not even close. Heck, the Michi- gan student section rushed the field. ry other You know it's a big game when that 1 game. happens. =t the Therewere games that were just he antici- as exciting and with better finishes vo when - Minnesota and Michigan State this they did year, and Washington two years ago. est that But what made last year's game with the Buckeyes stand alone were the e two stakes involved: Michigan and Ohio If State were playing for the outright Big oes to Ten regular-season title. 'll run Michigan and Ohio State's football Buck- programs seem (I repeat, seem) to have pecialist, always been clean, and even if that fact field changes for one team, it's bad for the nd other team, too. After following the football pro- and gram closely the last few months, I really think Michigan, as Larry Brown io State's would say, "does things the right way." 2002, he But so many people link Michigan and boost- Ohio State that if one goes down, so cally all will the other. y run- So, if the student section was plan- - head ning to rush the field on Nov. 19, 2005, - with it better find another game. The Game ed no may not be that big at all. A By Eric Ambinder Daily Sports Writer After this season, the Michigan basketball program will lose just one player - fifth-year senior J.C. Mathis - but it announced today that it will add at least three more. "We are very excited to have three quality youngsters come and join our program," Michigan coach Tommy Amaker said. "They are going to add to what we've tried to build here. They are going to bring athleticism, more length to the court for us, added depth." In the early signing period, Michigan inked 6-foot- 8 forward Kendric Price from Boston, 6-foot-5 wing Jevohn Shepherd from Toronto, and Jerret Smith, a 6- foot-3 guard from Romulus and a high school teammate of current freshman Ron Coleman. "We're real cool," said Coleman about his relation- ship with Smith. "He's my former teammate and we talk a lot. He brings another point guard threat. He's a pass-first, shoot-later point guard. He's always looking for a pass, and can create off the dribble to find the open player." Smith is a candidate for the 2005 Mr. Basket- ball Award, given annually to Michigan's top high school basketball player. He has averaged 12.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 5.3 assists over a three- year span in high school. Smith transferred to Romulus High School after his sophomore year at Westland John Glenn. Though Coleman and Smith played together at Romulus, Coleman said he had no role in luring Smith to Michigan. "It was basically his own decision," Coleman said. "I committed and then he committed. I didn't have much to say to him. I was happy that he made the decision but I didn't motivate him to come here." Ranked as the No. 27 power forward prospect by Rivals.com, Price averaged 22.9 points, 11.0 rebounds, three blocks and two assists per game as a junior at Buckingham Brown and Nichols School in Boston. Sims - who attended nearby Noble & Greenough School in Dedham, Mass. - played against Price in the Indepen- dent School League. Sims compared Price's game to that of current NBA superstar Tracy McGrady. "(Price's) game sort of resembles (McGrady's) type of game," Sims said. "He is real smooth, and he's so laid back. I mean, once he comes over (to Michigan), he is going to have to get more fiery and get more physical and stuff because (Amaker) is going to demand that out of him. Once he does that, the sky's the limit for him." "(Price) is long and athletic. He needs to get stronger, but certainly has the wingspan and can cover the floor very well," Amaker said. "He runs extremely well, and can finish in transition." Price, a talented jazz pianist, toured Eastern Europe during the summer to sing in a choir instead of attending an NBA Players Association camp. Michigan's final signee, Shephard, attended West Hill Collegiate in Toronto. He averaged 28.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.5 blocks as a junior. "He is a wing player that brings a lot of different skills to the court," Amaker said. "(He adds) a little versatil- ity in that regard. I think he is going to be a really good defender." also says loaned layers hap- much As a kid growing up in New Jersey, Sharad Mattu was a Michigan fan because he liked the Fab Five. Oh well. Anyway, he can be reached at smattu@umich.edu. RYAN WEINER/Daily Ron Coleman, left, played with Jerret Smith last year. N FOOTBALL Out for the season? Not for determined Van Alstyne By Chris Burke Daily Sports Editor Jeremy Van Alstyne was penciled in as one of Michigan's starting defensive line- men when spring practice began in April. But in the middle of those spring drills, Van Alstyne went down with a knee injury that would later require surgery. At that point, Michigan coach Lloyd Carr declared the redshirt sophomore out for the season. Turns out, nobody told Van Alstyne. After making an unbelievably quick recovery, Van Alstyne suited up but did not play in Michigan's game against Indiana on Oct. 2, and he made his way back onto the field for the Wolverines' contest against Minnesota the next week. The injury that was supposed to keep Van Alstyne out for the season turned out to cost him just five games. "It was a big reward for me to be able to come back and play these games," Van Alstyne said. "It means a lot to me that the coaches gave me a chance to play this year." Carr was more than happy to insert Van Alstyne into Michigan's defensive-line rotation, especially in light of the tenacity he showed while rehabilitating his injury. "He's a guy that - the way he plays - he has an energy about him, an intensity," Carr said. "You see him off the field, he's kind of an unassuming guy. You wouldn't pick him out of a crowd as being a tough, competitive, intense football player, but that's what he is." In addition to the work that Van Alstyne had to put in with Michigan's training staff, he also received help in his comeback attempt from Michigan redshirt sophomore David Harris. The linebacker had endured a knee inju- ry similar to Van Alstyne's and did his best to pass on advice. "He's been through this before," said Van Alstyne of Harris. "We've been really good friends, and he just helped guide me and taught me some techniques to enable my success." Harris helped his friend get back on the field quickly - a good thing, since being stuck on the sidelines was an experience Van Alstyne could have gone without. "I couldn't even do the drills with the guys," Van Alstyne said. "I'd just be out there because I wanted to be out there - I'd snap the ball pretty much, because I was still in the stage where I couldn't run. "After the third week (of the season), when I was getting into a lot of practices and start- ing to pad up, I started to realize I'd have the opportunity to come back this year." Since his return against Minnesota, Van Alstyne has seen a slow increase in his play- ing time - mostly seeing the field when Michigan is stacked up against the run. He recorded six tackles last year in his freshman season and registered his first tackle of this year in the Wolverines' win over Michigan State. But whether or not Van Alstyne's numbers dominate the stat sheet, he's happy enough to just be in the game. 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