February 15, 2006
sports. michigandaily. com
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Cagers look
to end skid
By Kevin Wright
Daily Sports Editor
Unique rituals
xhelp leers focus
When Michigan traveled to Minnesota on
Jan. 21 to take on the Gophers, Michigan coach
Tommy Amaker opened with the guard trio of
Daniel Horton, Dion Harris and Lester Abram.
That was the last game the three started together.
In the Wolverines' 16-point victory, Horton,
Harris and Abram combined to score 54 of the
team's 71 points.
Oh, how things have changed.
Just minutes into the second half of that game,
Abram landed awkwardly on his ankle - an
injury that has sidelined him ever since. The trio
was reduced to a duo.
Then, against Ohio State last Thursday, Harris
left with an ankle injury late in the second half.
Suddenly, what had been a dangerous backcourt
trio was down to just one.
And it showed on Saturday.
Horton shot just 2-for-10 from the floor in
limited action because of a deep-thigh bruise.
Without legitimate scoring threats around the
perimeter, the senior couldn't find an open look.
"Any success we're going to have is going to be
centered around Daniel Horton's play," Amaker
By H. Jose Bosch
Daily Sports Writer
Sports and superstitions are as syn-
onymous with each other as Canada and
Labatt's beer.
In hockey, players are notorious for
having strange rituals. Some lay out
their entire uniform on the ground
before games, and others tape a cross
in a locker. This type of conduct doesn't
escape the Michigan hockey team.
And as the hockey season comes to a
close, everything from the CCHA stand-
ings to the power play can be magnified.
But behind closed doors, the pre-game
ritual of a player can, in his own mind,
make the difference between a good and
bad day.
"I just think when guys play well,
they want to keep repeating that," fresh-
man defenseman Mark Mitera said.
Fellow freshman Tyler Swystun had
the same sentiment.
"I think guys just want something they
can attribute (their success) to," he said.
Senior goaltender Noah Ruden doesn't
believe there's magic behind these per-
sonal traditions, but he does admit that it
can help a player calm down and focus.
"I've tried to talk myself out of it,"
said Ruden, explaining that it is similar
to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
Ruden admits he listens to the same
music before every game. He also wraps
the knob of his stick 34 times - his jer-
sey number. Those two activities are just
a sampling of the many different things
he does before a game, some of which
he was unwilling to discuss.
Some players on the team stick to cer-
tain routines before the game to ease their
minds before the puck drops. According
to Swystun, senior Brandon Kaleniecki is
one of the most focused players on game
day, talking very little in the locker room.
Freshman Travis Turnbull follows his
alternate captain's lead. Turnbull says he
doesn't like to talk to anyone besides his
parents right before a game.
"It's more about routine," Turnbull
said. "You feel comfortable."
The Wolverines aren't the only ones
with strange pre-game rituals. The play-
ers say they have come into contact with
many other players whose eccentric
activities stuck with them.
According to Mitera, the strangest
activity he ever witnessed was per-
formed by his teammate on National
Team Development Program. Before
each game, the goalie put on his head-
phones, closed his eyes and went through
a save routine.
Ruden remembers a player from his
junior team who arrived at the arena
four hours before the game, sat at his
locker and did absolutely nothing. And
Swystun had a teammate in midget
AAA who flipped out whenever anyone
tried to talk to him.
Michigan coach Red Berenson said
he doesn't believe in superstitions, but
he had his own personal itinerary before
games both as a player and coach,
including taking a walk and napping
before game time.
"My whole game day is (focused on)
game day," Berenson said.
Though each player's individual ritu-
al may not be the key to Michigan's suc-
cess for the rest of the season, they can
calm the players down, make them feel
comfortable and give Wolverine fans
one more aspect of the game to pick
apart come playoff time.
RODRIGO GAYA/Daily
Daniel Horton is likely to be the only of the top three Michigan guards that will play in tonight's game.
the Gophers (3-7, 12-9) tonight at 7 p.m.
But Minnesota isn't the same team that Michi-
said. "He is a player that has to pro-
duce and produce big for us. Partic-
ularly now as we're going down the
stretch, with Dion, Lester and Jerret
being out, he has to give us a big
shot in the arm.'
With their NCAA tournament
hopes fading after three straight loss-
es, the Wolverines (6-5 Big Ten, 16-6
overall) desperately need a win. And
now is the perfect time for a pick-me-
up. Michigan returns to Crisler ArenaI
* MEN'S GLF
TONIGHT
Criser Aen
ESPNPs
to take on prove that
gan faced in Williams Arena. Coach
Dan Monson now has his team play-
ing at the level it was expected to at
the beginning of the Big Ten season.
After starting 0-6 in conference, Min-
nesota has posted a 3-1 record over its last
four games, the most recent a 79-55 home
victory over No. 16 Michigan State.
"We have never felt that we belonged
(at the bottom of the conference),"
Monson said. "Our guys are trying to
we're not a bottom team. We got hit in
the mouth and didn't respond to it.... It's a lot eas-
ier to improve when you're 0-6 rather than 6-0."
Against a streaking Gopher team, the Wolver-
ines will need to focus on defense. During the
three-game losing streak, Michigan has continu-
ally failed to close out on 3-point shots, and it
has struggled to stop penetration. And the score-
board mirrored the Wolverines' woes. Michigan
surrendered 94 points twice and 84 once - its
three highest totals this season.
"It starts in practice," Horton said. "We got to
come in and work hard in practice everyday and
set a tone for how we want to finish the rest of
See GOPHERS, page 10
. Rusty'M'
By Nate Sandals
Daily Sports Writer
golfers stumble out of the gates in Florida
Most metal objects remaining unused for four winter months
will rust. The Michigan men's golf team's clubs didn't, but the
Wolverines' play did.
Michigan finished 13th out of 18 at the UCF/Rio Pinar Inter-
collegiate in Orlando, Fla. It was the team's first tournament since
competing at the 49er Collegiate Classic in October. Michigan's
three-round total score of 907 was 30 strokes behind the tourna-
ment winner, Lamar University.
In a tournament that featured weather more commonly associ-
ated with a Michigan February than a Florida one - frost on the
course delayed play at the start of both days - the Wolverines
struggled to get back into the flow of competition.
"We were a little disappointed going out there and showing
the rust that we did," Michigan coach Andrew Sapp said. "We
missed too many eight- and 10-foot putts."
Michigan sat in a tie for seventh place at the end of the first day,
which ended with the second round suspended with four holes
to play. The Wolverines shot 304 in each of the first two rounds
before improving their team total to 299 in the final round.
Some individuals did show improvement similar to the team's
over the course of the tournament, especially Michigan's low-
scorer, Brandon Duff. The senior finished in a tie for 18th place.
He shot a 5-over par 77 in the first round, but improved to shoot
74 and 73 in the second and third rounds, respectively.
It's too early in the spring season to tell how much the players
have improved as a result of winter training, but there were posi-
tive signs amid the unpracticed showings.
Senior Christian Vozza returned to competition after miss-
ing the final tournament of the fall season with a shoulder injury.
Vozza completed his first tournament back with a three-round
total of 228 and was "pain free" according to Sapp.
Despite the team's struggles, the coach was glad to have his
team return to competitive play.
"It was good to get out of the snow and come down (to Flori-
da)," Sapp said. "Hopefully, this will help us prepare for the rest
of the spring season.
The Wolverines will have two weeks to shake off the remain-
ing rust before they fly south again for the Puerto Rico Classic.
it, l
NOTES
Varsity welcomes
new linebackers
and cornerbacks
coach
Michigan coach Lloyd Carr official-
ly named Ron English as Michigan's
defensive coordinator yesterday. Two
new assistant coaches, Ron Lee and
Steve Szabo, were also named to the
coaching staff. They will coach corner-
backs and linebackers, respectively.
Lee is a graduate of Washington
State University where he lettered four
years as a cornerback. He comes to the
Wolverines with 17 years of experience
as a coach, and spent the last three years
as secondary coach at Wisconsin.
Szabo played running back and
defensive back for four years at Navy.
He has spent the last 12 years as an
assistant coach in the NFL. During that
time, he worked as an assistant for Buf-
falo, New England and Jacksonville.
Szabo was also a defensive coordinator
at Colorado State and Boston College
in the 1980s.
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