8A - Thursday, January 3, 2008 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Sauer's shutouts prove consistent play is no fluke A BIG START IN BIG TEN Michigan wins its first conference opener in six years, defeats Iowa with late push - By COURTNEY RATKOWIAK Daily Sports Writer DETROIT - The story used to be how, this year, Michigan goalie Billy Sauer has begun to move away from the unpredictabil- ity that dictated his first two years in net. But halfway through the season, Sauer's SAUER consistency is no longer a surprise. He's just that good. It didn't matter that Sauer's 87 saves and two shutouts in the Great Lakes Invitational last weekend were against two teams without winning records. At the end of it all, it was Sauer's name the Joe Louis Arena crowd of more than 17,000 chanted. It was Sauer who was named tournament MVP following a game in which he gave Michigan a chance to win after 80 scoreless minutes. As a freshman, Sauer surren- dered seven goals in two GLI games. The following year, he gave up five. But this season, Sauer's career- best shutout streak is still running at 166 minutes and 7 seconds fol- lowing Saturday's 1-0 double-over- time win against Michigan Tech. He hasn't allowed a goal since the second period against Bowling Green on Dec. 7, and Sauer's streak surpasses his previous best of 128 minutes and 30 seconds, set in early November. In his first shutout of the week- end, when Michigan beat Provi- dence 6-0 and Sauer stopped a career-high So shots, he made it sound like the game was more of a statistics-padder. "It was one of the easier nights that I've had to play," Sauer said after Friday's win. "I definitely thought I played solid, but I didn't get tested a whole lot." But Saturday, with Michigan surrounded by the stigma of losing six straight GLI title games, Sauer pulled out another shutout. "It may not be the toughest game I have ever played in, but it was probably one of the most impor- tant," Sauer said after Saturday's game. "When you get into the fifth period and it's a 0-0 game, every save is that much more crucial. You make one mistake, and your team is going home." Josh Blackburn was the last Wolverine netminder to notch back-to-back shutouts, against Lake Superior State in 2002. This year, his first as Michigan's goalie coach, Blackburn has helped Sauer play more aggressively and men- tally prepare for games. And Sauer had some serious mental tests in the first half of the season - notably against Minneso- ta, a team thatcaused Sauer consid- erable trouble in the past and held a six-game winning streak against the Wolverines. Sauer allowed just one goal in a 5-1 thrashing of the Gophers in the second game of the College Hockey Showcase, which Michigan hadn't swept since 2002. Coupled with his double blanks in the GLI that propelled the Wol- verines to their first win in the tournament since 1996, Sauer was arguably the team's biggest fac- tor in snapping all three losing streaks. "When we beat Minnesota, I think it was a little more personal for me, since it's a team I haven't liked too much in the past," Sauer said. "I think (in Saturday's GLI title game win), it was more of an emotional kind of thing, just because it was such a long game and I really didn't think it was ever going to end." It doesn't look like his consisten- cy is going to stop any time soon, either. "When you get the goalkeeping like Billy gave us, it just makes our team that much better," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "To come out of (the GLI) with two shutouts - what can you say? That's a ter- rific effort on Billy's part." By CHRIS MESZAROS Daily Spurts Writes Four. That's the number of Big Ten wins the Michigan women's bas- ketball team has had over the past three seasons IOWA 46 cam- MICHIGAN 63 bined. But this year, under new coach Kevin Borseth, things seem to be changing. The Wolverines opened their Big Ten campaign with a dominant 63-46 thumping of Iowa at Crisler Arena Sunday. Michigan (1-0 Big Ten, 8-3 over- all) pounded a Hawkeye team that Wolverine center Krista Phillips bludgeoned in the post. Phillips finished the game with 12 points and three blocks, and the Wolverines shut down Iowa when it mattered most - at the end of the game. "Krista is getting better," Bors- eth said. "I don't think you've seen anywhere near what her full capa- bility is. If we can get her to move her feet defensively a little bit, it will really help her." Phillips played well throughout the entire game but was a crucial factorinthe first30minutes,which were a tough, drawn-out affair. Her blocks and interior defense, along with her 13 rebounds, keyed the Wolverines when it looked like Iowa might break the game open early in the second half. The Hawkeyes garnered a bar- rage of second looks, and with 18 offensive rebounds, Iowa exploited one of Michigan's weaknesses. But Phillips and the Wolverines' inte- rior defense prevented Iowa from leading by more than two. With 10 minutes to play, Michi- gan held a slim 44-40 lead when Janelle Cooper nailed a three- pointer toextend that lead to seven. After a pair of buckets by senior guard Krista Clement and junior forward Stephany Skrba, Cooper added her third three of the night to extend the Michigan advantage to 14. The Hawkeyes called a time- out as Michigan's bench exploded with excitement. "I thinkeveryone isvery focused q 4 I ROB MIGRIN/Daly Sophomore center Krista Phillips had 12 points, 13 rebounds and led the Wolverines interior defense with three blocks. right now," Cooper said. We're really buying into the new system. If things aren't going the way we like it out there, we make sure we keep each other confident." With just four Big Ten wins in the past three seasons, opening the season with a victory proves Michigan may finally be heading in the right direction. It was also Michigan's first win in its Big Ten Big Ten opener in six years. "Since I've been here, I never had a chance to win a Big Ten opener," Cooper said. "It feels really good and gives me a lot of excitement heading forward into the season. We all know that we can do something in the confer- ence this year." Despite Michigan's late-game run, the early part of the contest was evenly played. Both teams delivered blows in a game resembling a boxing match. That grind-it-out style of play has been a characteristic of the Wol- verines this year. Borseth's motto this season has been to play one game at a time, play one play at a time and move forward from there. So far Michigan has played one Big Ten game and has one confer- ence win. Perhaps his motto is working. Wolverine defense goes inside-out Intr 9M AAAk M amur aMLOfficeials Clinics Start TONIGHT @ 7PM " "Intramural Sports Building L.------------------------------- By CHRIS MESZAROS Daily Sports Writer Some may call it sloppy. But really, it was just gritty. Michigan put forth its best defensive effort of the season in a 63-46 win over Iowa on Sunday. It was the Wol- verines' inte- NOTEBOOK rior defense that allowed Michigan to pull out the game. By limiting the Iowa offense down low, the rest of the Michigan defense could focus on the perim- eter, making the Hawkeyes a one- dimensional team. Both teams played a tight game for the first 30 minutes. Although Michigan (1-0 Big Ten, 8-3 over- all) ran away with the game in the final 10 minutes, solid Wolverine defense kept the score close early. Iowa (1-1, 8-5) came into the game known for its perimeter shooting, led by forward Wendy Ausdemore and guard Kristi Smith. But the duo was shut down by Michigan Sunday, scoring 15 points and shooting a combined 6- for-25. "We were locking down on defense," Michigan sophomore center Krista Phillips said. "When we play better defense, it helps cre- ate our offense. We're getting shots in rhythm and scoring under the basket." The awful shooting was not just bad luck.,Phillips plugged up Iowa's post play with three blocks and 13 rebounds and was complimented nicely by the swarming defense of junior StephanySkrba, who had six rebounds herself TURNOVER TURNAROUND: Michigan has shot itself in the foot several times by commit- ting too many turnovers. But the Wolverines are starting to resolve those problems. Through its first 11 games, the Wolverines have regu- larly been careless with the bas- ketball, committing 33 turnovers against then-No. 13 Texas A&M and 22 against No. 22 Notre Dame. "You have to take care of the ball," Michigan coach Kevin Bors- eth said. "That's really the bottom line. If you don't take care of it, the other team is going to get lay-ups. It's always a point of emphasis." Michigan committed 14 turn- overs Sunday, one fewer than Iowa but still more than the coaching staff would like. In the Wolverines' three losses, they have averaged 23 turnovers. In its wins, Michigan has had just 17 per game. COACHING WITH PASSION: Coach Borseth's tirades 'are a spectacle from the sidelines but they also bolster Michigan's per- formance on the court. The Wol- verines have won their past four games, including the Big Ten sea- son opener. Senior guard Krista Clement credited Borseth's enthusiasm for much of Michigan's early season success. "We get mostofour energyfrom him," Clement said. 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