Friday
January 21, 2005
sports. michigandaily.com
sports@michigandaily.com
If Sdgn Da~eig
SPORTS
9
McCarville drops
25 to down Blue
Call the mailman:
'M' lost in the post
By Matt Singer
Daily Sports Writer
Formulating a game plan against
a 2004 NCAA Tournament final-
ist is tough enough. Add a gigan-
tic, versatile All-American into the
mix, and even the best basketball
coaches will have nightmares.
"It's very difficult to strategize
LAST NIGHT'S GAME
MICHIGAN 49
MIN
Pool 35
Helvey 36
Walker 35
Starling 30
Clement 25
Flippin 17
Cooper 12
McPhilamy10
TEAM
Totals 200
FG FT REB
M-A M-A 0-T A F PTS
4-10 0-0 2-7 1 1 8
4-11 1-4 0-2 1 3 11
5-11 4-4 2-2 0 3 14
3-4 0-0 0-1 2 2 9
2-7 0-0 1-2 3 5 5
1-3 0-1 0-1 3 1 2
0-2 0-0 0-2 1 2 0
0-1 0-0 0-1 0 0 0
4
18-49 5-9 7-23 1117 49
FG%: 38.8 FT%: 55.6 3-point FG: 6-17,
.353 (Starling 3-4, Helvey 2-4, Clement
1-4, Pool 0-3, Fippin 0-1, Walker 0-1).
Blocks: 1 (Helvey). Steals: 7 (Helvey 4,
Pool, Starling, Walker). Turnovers: 20
(Pool 6, Helvey 5, Starling 3, Walker 3,
Flippin 2, TEAM). Technical fouls: none.
Minnesota 73
a game plan double-teaming in the
post when their big player leads the
team in assists," Michigan coach
Cheryl Burnett said.
Last night, first team All-Ameri-
can Janel McCarville's play was
like a bad dream come true for the
Michigan women's basketball team
(0-6 Big Ten, 4-13 overall). The
Wolverines simply couldn't con-
tain the 6-foot-2 senior, who led all
scorers with 25 points on 10-of-14
shooting.
With No. 12 Minnesota's best
player on top of her game, Michigan
just couldn't keep up. The Golden
Gophers (5-1, 15-3) took a double-
digit lead less than six minutes into
the game and never looked back,
cruising to a 73-49 blowout victory
at Minnesota's Williams Arena.
The loss extended Michigan's los-
ing streak to nine in a row.
"We didn't have a great start,"
Burnett said. "You don't want to
start out from behind because Min-
nesota is a great team. You've got to
come and bring your best game."
With the wide-bodied McCar-
ville banging down low, Minnesota
asserted its physical dominance
from the outset. On its first posses-
sion, Minnesota pulled down two
consecutive offensive boards, set-
ting up guard Shannon Schonrock
for a jumper. After setting the tone
early, the Golden Gophers con-
tinued to roll all over Michigan,
scoring 24 points in the first 10
minutes of the game. With 6:39 to
go in the half, Minnesota took a 31-
12 lead - its largest of the opening
frame.
The Wolverines' best run soon
followed. Freshman Ta'Shia Walk-
er drilled two free throws and
senior Tabitha Pool hit her only
field goal of the half, cutting the
Minnesota lead to 15. After a layup
by freshman Krista Clement and a
free throw from sophomore Kelly
Helvey, Michigan cut the lead to
31-19.
But the Wolverines' run of seven
consecutive point' provided only
short-lived hope. Going into half-
time with a 36-22 lead, the Golden
Gophers pulled away as soon as the
second half whistle blew. Minne-
By Jack Herman
and Matt Venegoni
Daily Sports Writers
Going into last night's game, the
Michigan women's basketball team
knew its hands would be full with 6-
foot-2 Minnesota senior center Janel
McCarville. But McCarville wasn't
the only threat to the Wolverines. The
rest of the Gophers' roster included
eight players that stood 6-feet or tall-
er, and it showed.
Minnesota had a
38-23 edge on the
boards, dominating
the glass on both
ends of the floor in
its 73-49 victory over
the Wolverines.
"Their size factor was just incred-
ible, I'll put it that way," Michigan
coach Cheryl Burnett said.
The Wolverines tried to keep up
with Minnesota in the rebounding
column, but the Gophers took con-
trol from the start, grabbing two
offensive rebounds in the first two
possessions. Minnesota converted
those boards into four points and
never looked back.
The Wolverines could not keep
the Gophers off the offensive glass
all night. Minnesota had numer-
ous second-chance opportunities
with its 12 offensive rebounds.
Those extra possessions resulted
in the high percentage shots for the
Gophers, which led to 40 points in
the paint.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
"Coming into this game, we knew
we should have outplayed them defen-
sively because of our size and experi-
ence," Minnesota coach Pam Borton
said. "We controlled the boards and
scored in the paint."
GIVIN' 'EM HELVEY: Sometimes you
can't rely on averages.
Despite averaging just 5.1 points
per game, Michigan sophomore Kelly
Helvey netted 11 points against the
Golden Gophers last night.
Helvey showed her characteris-
tic spark, playing tenacious defense
throughout the game. She ended up
with a team-high four steals, match-
ing her career-high.
Her play on the court did not
go unnoticed. Burnett singled out
Helvey's play in her post-game inter-
view at a time when it was difficult
to highlight anyone's individual per-
formance.
POOL OF TEARS: Last night, Michi-
gan senior Tabitha Pool learned that
all good things come to an end.
After 18 straight games of double-
digit scoring efforts, Pool bucketed
just eight points, ending her streak
that was tops in the Big Ten.
Pool's offensive efforts may not
have been up to her usual standards,
but Burnett felt that Pool helped out
the team in other ways.
"Again, I felt that Tabitha played
a brilliant ball game, (but) it doesn't
show in the statistics," Burnett said.
"They were just running somebody
at her, and she was making great
choices."
this year, registering 13 tackles and
two sacks in limited action.
Ofili saw the
field briefly in h
this year's Rose N.
Bowl against h
Texas and
recorded one
sack.
Ofili is
an Ypsilanti
native and went
to Ypsilanti
High School.
He is the second Wolverine to leave
school early for the NFL. Safety
Ernest Shazor was the first.
FG FT
MIN M-A M-A
Bolden 34 2-4 0-0
Broback 20 5-6 0-0
McCarville 29 10-14 5-7
Calhoun 24 3-8 0-0
Schonrock 35 3-7 0-0
Roysland 17 1-5 4-4
Williams 5 0-0 0-0
Garry 1 0-0 0-0
Alsdurf 8 0-1 0-0
Lacey 7 3-4 2-3
Knight 2 0-0 1-2
Collison 3 0-0 0-0
Podominick15 0-2 3-4
REB
0-T
1-1
2-7
1-9
0-2
0-0
1-4
0-0
0-0
0-0
1-1
0-1
0-0
2-8
4-5
AF
01
13
53
51
60
12
01
00
11
00
00
01
10
PTS
6
12
25
6
6
6
5
0
0
8
1
0
3
Freshman Ta'Shia Walker got all she could handle from Minnesota's post players.
TEAM
Totals
200 27-5115-2012-38201373
FG%: 52.9 FT%: 75.0 3-point FG: 4-14,
.286 (Bolden 2-3, Bruback 2-3, Calhoun
0-4, Schonrock 0-2, Alsdurf 0-1, Roys-
land). Blocks: 4 (McCarville 3, Bolden
1) Steals: 11 (McCarville 6, Broback
2, Podominick, Roysland, Schonrock).
Turnovers: 20 (McCarville 5, Broback 4,
Bolden 2, Roysland 2, Schonrock 2, Cal-
houn, Knight). Technical fouls: None.
Michigan..........22 27 - 49
Minnesota...........36 37 73
At: Williams Arena
Attendance: 7,619
sota scored the first seven points
of the period, stretching the game
well out of reach.
Although the Wolverines were
clearly overmatched down low,
they did manage to keep the sharp-
shooting Schonrock in check. The
5-foot-6 junior point guard came
into the game shooting a red hot 43
percent from beyond the arc, but
Helvey's strong defense prevented
Schonrock from making a single
trey. Helvey also added a team-high
four steals for the Wolverines.
"I was pleased because our team
is trying to do the things we are
asking them to do," Burnett said.
Meanwhile, the Wolverines'
shooting woes prevented any pos-
sibility of a comeback. With Min-
nesota's defense conspiring to stop
Pool - who scored a season-low
eight points - the rest of the Wol-
verines found their share of open
looks. But Michigan made only
38.8 percent of its field goals.
"Tonight, we got some good
looks, and they didn't fall," Bur-
nett said. "But we're taking the
right shots."
After suffering two straight
losses to top-15 opponents, the
Wolverines will face less power-
ful competition Sunday, when they
take on Indiana (1-5, 8-8) in Crisler
Arena. With the losing streak con-
tinuing, the time is ripe for Michi-
gan to take its first step out of
the Big Ten cellar. But according
to Burnett, the Wolverines won't
change their approach against the
Hoosiers.
"We haven't even talked about
Indiana at this point," Burnett said.
"We'll be glad to be back home. We
don't want to focus on the opposi-
tion - we only want to focus on
what we're doing."
U&KK
Ofili forgoes final
year to enter draft
Senior defensive tackle Alex Ofili
announced that he will forgo his final
year of eligibility at Michigan to enter
the NFL draft.
Ofili played in all 12 games for
the Wolverines this season and made
one start. His primary role was to
back up junior defensive tackle
Gabe Watson.
He had his best season at Michigan
NOTE
Petway's return may jump start Cagers
By Eric Ambinder
Daily Sports Writer
Had it not been for the return of forward Brent Pet-
way, Michigan's sloppy 62-53 loss against Indiana
could have been worse.
The sophomore scored a team-high 12 points and
grabbed seven rebounds in his first game back since
suffering a shoulder injury on Jan. 8
against Fairfield.
"It felt good to get back in there, get TOM
back to playing," Petway said. "I got.
hit on (the shoulder) a couple of times. N2
(There was) a little soreness, but it
went away real fast. I wasn't (playing Time
with) a lot of pain out there. It felt really Cri l
good." ES?
Watching Petway throw down an
inbound pass from junior guard Daniel
Horton and emphatically dunk the ball on a fast break
against the Hoosiers was a welcome sight for Michigan
(3-1 Big Ten, 12-6 overall).
"We certainly needed some kind of lift," Michigan
coach Tommy Amaker said. "I thought he was the play-
er he has been prior to being injured - coming back
and giving us a shot in the arm with his enthusiasm, his
defensive plays and his presence on the floor. I think it
would have been a lot worse if we didn't have Petway
(playing)."
While the Wolverines' forwards had trouble stop-
ping Indiana freshman forward D.J. White in the sec-
ond half, they were able to score efficiently in the paint
throughout the game.
Forwards Petway, Graham Brown and Courtney
Sims shot a combined 12-for-19 and totaled 26 points.
Junior forward Chris Hunter - who averaged 15.4
points and five rebounds in the seven midseason games
he started - did not play against the Hoosiers. Hunter
suffered a high-ankle sprain against Iowa on Jan. 5. His
<:O>
7icosin
higan
Z lN fi 3:: :'>::::' '':
status is uncertain for Saturday's game
against No. 24 Wisconsin at Crisler
Arena.
BADGER, BADGER, BADGER: Michigan
could be facing an even stronger pres-
ence in the paint than White this week-
end. Wisconsin senior forward Mike
Wilkinson was recently named Big Ten
co-Player of the Week (with Illinois's
Luther Head) for averaging 20.5 points
and 8.5 rebounds in Wisconsin's past two
a home game. We want to be undefeated at home
throughout the (Big Ten) season."
The Badgers' leading scorer, forward Alando
Tucker, injured his foot in practice on Jan. 9 and did
not play against Ohio State on Jan. 11. Tucker -
who is averaging 15.4 points per game - returned
against Michigan State and notched eight points in
26 minutes.
Joining Tucker and Wilkinson up front is senior
forward Zach Morley. The frontcourt trio accounts for
64.4 percent of the Badgers' scoring, up from 45.4 per-
cent last season.
But Amaker is more concerned with the play of his
own team, especially after the Wolverines commit-
ted 20 turnovers and failed to execute in key moments
against Indiana.
"Wisconsin is as good as they come in the country
and certainly as good as they come in our conference,"
Amaker said. "But we have a lot of work to do prior to
Saturday if we think we are going to try to be a con-
tender in this conference."
Boo-Boo: Just a day following its upset over the
Spartans, Wisconsin announced that last year's start-
ing point guard, Boo Wade, will leave the team
because of a failure to complete requirements of a 2004
plea agreement in which he was charged with disor-
derly conduct. Wade was considered Wisconsin's best
perimeter defender. His absence left maligned junior
guard Sharif Chambliss - averaging 9.2 points per
game, more than five points under his career average
(14.7) - as the sole point guard.
victories over Ohio State and No. 19 Michigan State.
The Badgers (3-1, 12-3) are fresh off a 62-59 home
victory over the Spartans last Sunday. Wisconsin also
knocked off then-No. 12 Maryland and then-No. 22
Alabama this season - both home games. All three
Wisconsin losses this season came on the road, includ-
ing a 71-64 loss at Indiana on Jan. 8.
The Badgers have lost 19 of the last 20 contests at
Crisler Arena and are just 2-3 on the road this year.
Michigan is 10-1 at home this season.
"We have to come out Saturday and be ready to play
right away," Petway said. "Especially with it being
JASUN GUUIE/Daily
Sophomore forward Brent Petway played in his first game back from a shoulder injury
against Indiana and returned to his old form.
Icers face legitimate test in Columbus
By Ryan Sosin
Daily Sports Writer
(that) this is the best team we will have
played in some time. But we're also
playing better than we have in some
time."
Beyond rankings, the four points up
Michigan hockey coach Red Beren-
son frequently points out the slim mar-
gin that separates his first-place team
from the rest of the CCHA competi-
tion. But when the top two teams in
the CCHA square off this weekend, the
margins between the teams could actu-
ally be quite slim. No. 10 Ohio State
for grabs this weekend
could determine just how
much of a threat Ohio
State (12-3-1, 15-6-3) will
pose to Michigan down
the stretch. Should Ohio
games that I always look at as being the
key games," he added.
The teams split two games in Colum-
bus last season, and Michigan swept
the pair at Yost. But Ohio State edged
out the Wolverines when
it counted, at the CCHA
EEKEND Super Six championship
game. The Buckeyes
'at defeated Michigan 4-2
State to claim the conference
of special teams," Berenson said.
"But they take a lot of penalties. Now,
maybe, they won't take a lot of penal-
ties against us. But discipline will be
important."
Ohio State will be host to arguably
the biggest home-ice advantage of
any Michigan opponent. The Buck-
eye faithful that will pack the sold-out
Value City Arena will attempt to shake
the Wolverines, who have suffered
nil of theair five n iflC'OfYnw frnmi Ann
Mvichi
olhio~
I
I _ _ : :. . -