Thursday March 9, 2006 sports. michigandaily.com sports@michigandaily.com Ujeb Sdigrhan &i iI SPO RTrS 9A 9A P ROCRASTINATION STATION MINNESOTA 94. MICHIGAN 86 The men's basketball beat decided to take a page out of the football writers' book and play today's matchup a day early. Is it a bad omen for Michigan's NCAA Tournament hopes? We'll now find out. * Play of the game - With less than a minute to go, Minnesota PG #24 missed a free throw, but got the rebound and made a 3-pointer to put the game away for good. " Player of the game - Minnesota PG #24: He was unstoppable, going 7-for-11from beyond the arc en route to a game-high 33 points. PRESS CONFERENCE QUO TES: Minnesota coach Scott Bell: "If Michigan is a tournament team, I don't want to see what a non-tournament team is. That was a joke out there." "We could score in the paint at will. It seemed like Michigan C #44 was afraid of contact ... and the ball ... and winning." "PG #4 looked good out there for them, but he seemed to be favoring his back after carrying the team all year." "Coach Singer, don't you think you could dress up for the game a little?" Michigan coach Matt Singer: "Well, obviously we're disappointed. A -11 rebounding margin and 24 turnovers is no recipe for success. "Foul trouble? It didn't help." "One game doesn't make a resume. I think we're still an NCAA Tournament team. If not, I'm looking forward to putting up another NIT banner." "Who says I don't game plan? SF #15 scored 0 points. Of course, we didn't really think about PG #24, and he doubled his career-high. Oops." STAFF PICKS Big Ten Tournament Predictions Michigan vs. Minnesota Michigan State vs. Purdue Penn State vs. Northwestern Quarterfinal winners Semifinal winners Big Ten Tournament Champion Tournament MVP Number of Big Ten teams dancing Michigan's NCAA seed Last team into NCAA's Lester Abram's Thursday minutes Dion Harris points vs. Courtney Sims shots Daniel Horton points vs. rest of team points Amaker wardrobe Scott Bell Michigan Michigan State Northwestern Michigan, Michigan State, Indiana, Ohio State Michigan State, Indiana Michigan State Shannon Brown 7, 8 Florida State 15 Harris Rest of team Bruce Weber's orange suit 01 Minnesota miigan. Michigan State Michigan State Northwestern Northwestern hio State, Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan State, Iowa, Illinois Indiana, Ohio State Ohio State, Illinois Ohio State, Michigan State Ohio State Ohio State Terence DialsWal> Jack Herman Michigan Michigan State Penn State Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Ohio State Indiana, owa Iowa Jeff Horner 7 Matt Singer Kevin Wright 6 N/A Syracuse 18 Harris 7 119 Texas A&M Hofstra 22 2 Harris Sims Rest of team florton ck Black turtleneck Maize suit Horton Beige turtlene Revenge is on the minds of Icers By Daniel Levy Daily Sports Writer Things are simple for No. 15 Michigan: beat Ferris State in a best-of-three home series this weekend and advance to the CCHA Final Four, sealing an NCAA Tourna- ment bid in the process. Losing to the Bulldogs would not only be embar- rassing for the Wolverines; bowing out would likely bring a disappointing end to an up-and-down season. "If we lose this weekend we're done," Mich- igan captain Andrew Ebbett said. "We know that, and the coaches have addressed that." But the scenario isn't new to Michigan. The team has known for two weeks - following a heartbreaking 4-3 overtime loss to Ferris State at Yost Ice Arena on Senior Night - that its quarterfinal matchup in the CCHA Tournament would be a do-or-die situation. All that was left to be determined was who the opponent would be. The Bulldogs put a bitter end to Michigan's regular season, and, as fate would have it, Ferris State will have a chance to leave an even more foul taste in the Wolverines' mouths if it can repeat its earlier success at Yost and end Michi- gan's season. A rematch with Ferris State should be a blessing for the Wolverines. Instead of getting caught up in the pressure of a must-win game, Michigan can focus on a more natural goal: good old-fashioned revenge. "We want a chance to pay them back," Ebbett said. "They cost us Senior Night and cost us that win which hurt us in the national rankings." Despite its youth and inexperience, Michi- gan is not worried about falling flat in its biggest game of the year. The veterans have tournament experience, and most of the fresh- men - despite experiencing the college postseason for the first time - have played important playoff games in other leagues before coming to Ann Arbor. The past week of practice has been productive, and the Wol- verines hope their preparation will lead to results on the ice this weekend. "The intensity I saw today (was great)," Ebbett said. "Guys were focused and ready to go, and I think that's the key word for us this week is to be focused." FANTASTIC FROSH: Michigan grabbed two of the six spots on the CCHA All-Rookie team when freshmen Andrew Cogliano and Jack Johnson were named to the squad yesterday. The announcement wasn't much of a shock, considering both players were first-round draft picks in last summer's NHL draft. Cogliano was one-of three forwards honored, along with Notre Dame's Eric Condra and Ferris State's Dan Riedel. Johnson joined Alaska- Fairbanks's Tyler Eckford in the defensive pair, and Michigan State goalie Jeff Lerg rounded out the team. HAPPY RETURNS: While Cogliano and John- son were both honored yesterday, the best news on the Wolverines' freshman front might be the return of Jason Bailey to full-contact practice. Bailey has been out of action since being knocked out in Michigan's 7-3 home win over Western Michigan on Jan. 31. Feeling ill effects after finding himself on the wrong end of a monster hit, the forward was unable to even skate with the team for most of the past six weeks. Bailey is finally starting to feel bet- ter, and his possible return could bolster Mich- igan's slumping third or fourth line. "If I get the chance to play (this week- end), I think I'll be more than ready," Bai- ley said. "It's playoff time, and there are no excuses. However you want to play is how you're going to play." PETER SCHOTTENFELS/Daily Andrew Cogliano was one of two freshmen named to the All CCHA team this season. 0 WATER POLO Sitting no more: Stone shines I I By Eileen Hengel Daily Sports Writer College is a whole new ballgame. College is a breath of fresh air. Col- lege is a ballgame of fresh air. Wait, no. Sophomore women's water polo goalie Sally Stone heard all the cli- ch6s when she left sunny San Diego, Calif. for her freshmen year of college in chilly Ann Arbor. Out as the water polo season began, Stone found that the cliches she'd heard became jum- bled. Stone found difficulty in seeing beyond the now - or rather, "seeing the big picture." Committing to Michigan the fall of her senior year, Stone knew she would ride the pines during her freshman season. But she never realized how difficult it would be to watch a major- ity of the Wolverines' biggest games. Playing behind four-time CWPA All-Division first-team goalie Betsey Armstrong, Stone found herself in front of the net for 20 games during the seasons. But the circumstances that got her there were not ones too which she was accustomed to. Stone subbed for Armstrong in nonconfer- ence games or when Michigan was CHECK OUT OUR BLOG, "THE GAME" AT MICHIGANDAILY' COM FOR COVERAGE OF THE BIG TEN TOURNAMENT ALL DAY. leading. Stone never heard her name called in the starting lineup. "(Sitting on the sidelines) was defi- nitely an adjustment," Stone said. "In high school, I always started. Last year was tough because I was playing behind someone else who was so good. But really what I learned that year was that you can't always be the best - everyone (in college) is good." In fact, Stone's story isn't much different than most athletes entering Division-I collegiate athletes. What makes her story different, however, is her talent. This season, in just her first few weeks as the Wolverines' starting goalie, she helped Michigan to its best start. Stone realized that to become the best, she needed to see that she's not always going to be the best. Stone posted a solid start against Michigan's aquatic rival Indiana, and is Michigan's upset of No. 7 Long Beach State. Against the Hoosiers, Stone collected five saves and two steals in the Wolverines' 11-7 win. "Everyone in the conference thought our biggest weakness would be goalkeeping," Michigan coach Matt Anderson said. "But that's because other coaches saw that we lost a four- time All-American in (Armstrong). They weren't thinking how good our (younger) goalkeepers were going to be." Anderson credits part of Stone's success to her confidence in not only herself, but also Michigan's offense. "(Stone) is starting because she has the experience," Anderson said. "She knows what we like to do as a team on defense. Mentally, she has a better understanding." Lettering her freshman year came as no surprise - Stone came from an acclaimed water polo school, Bishop's High School in San Diego, Calif. Recruited by some of the top pro- grams in the nation, such as Stanford and UCLA, Stone sought to escape the powerhouse state. Still, the offers were enticing, even comfortable - Stone's mother attended Stanford. "If I stayed in California, I knew I would get swallowed up by the competition," Stone said. "I knew if I came here, fitting in wouldn't be a problem - our whole team is from California. Michigan's just a whole new environment." Stone's story plays out like many of the athletes at Michigan - one might even call it clich6, but if it wins games, does it really matter? " - - - ,I Gain real world experience a FRESHMEN!* Bul YOUR SOPHOMORES! JUNIORS!* RESuME!! Work as a Daily Advertising Account Executive for The Michigan, Daily. 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