The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom
February 4, 2008 - 38
Borseth's show of anger
backfires in'M' loss
Michigan legend Cazzie Russell needs to have more of an impact on the program for the Wolverines to turn things around.
Maybe Cazzle could
fix the house e built
ByANTHUN Y OLIVEIRA
Daily Sports Writer
EAST LANSING - Having
trouble commu-
nicating with his NOTEBOOK
players at Michi-
gan State Thursday, Michigan coach
Kevin Borseth raised a clipboard
over his head.
That may have been a bad idea.
Watching his team collapse down
the stretch, Borseth called a timeout
with 4:31 remaining. He slammed
his clipboard to the floor, smashing
it into pieces.
"I get through a couple each
year," Borseth said.
As the debris spread around the
Wolverine bench, an appalled Bre-
slin Center crowd booed resound-
ingly. But Borseth didn't have a
problem with that. He even has a
philosophy.
"They paid money to get in,"
Borseth said. "They can scream.
That's good for them. If they get a
free ticket, then they can't say any-
thing."
The 8,287 fans in attendance
remained loud for the rest of the
game.
GIANTS
From page lB
feeling," Manning said. Said owner
John Maar: "The greatest victory
in the history of this franchise,
without a question."
It was a scintillating clos-
ing chapter to a crazy week that
seemed to have everything: the
perfect team, the upstart under-
dogs, the cover boy quarterback,
the kid brother in Manning.
America loves an underdog, and
the Giants, with their stirring vic-
tory, etched themselves as one of
the best this game - or any sport
- has ever seen.
The star was Manning, the
scruffy younger brother of Pey-
ton, who won his own Super Bowl
last year, and sat in the corner of a
skybox for this one, squirming and
agonizing over every play.
The antics didn't seem to inspire
the Wolverines, as they continued
their scoreless drought for three
more minutes. But it was the spark
Michigan State needed.
After the timeout, Michigan
State sophomore Allyssa DeHaan
blocked a Jessica Minnfield jumper.
Then the Spartans went on a 7-0 run
in just over two minutes, claiming
their first lead since the first half.
FINDING HER WAY: Junior
Stephany Skrba has seen her ups and
downs off the bench this season.
After seeing ample playing time
early in the season, she's played just
12.2 minutes per game in the Big
Ten season.
But she's starting to find her way.
Borseth and the coaching staff
have worked with Skrba to find her
spot on the offensive end, develop-
ing a stronger inside-outside pres-
ence. She has particularly struggled
with her ball control.
But in Thursday's contest, she
was key to extending Michigan's
lead to eight in the second half. She
went eight-for-eight from the field,
scoring eight points in each half.
Even more impressive was the
fact she committed just one turn-
Now both Mannings have a
championship and Tom Brady
- well, he's still got the looks,
the supermodel girlfriend, Gisele
Bundchen, and three Super Bowl
titles of his own, even though he
didn't come out on top this time.
It means New England finishes
18-1 and the 1972 Miami Dolphins
remain the only team to go unde-
feated from the start of the season
through the Super Bowl.
Their coach, Don Shula, was on
hand, ready to congratulate the
Patriots had they finished 19-0.
Instead, he figured to be sipping
champagne, continuing a tradition
the Dolphins have enjoyed every
year when the last undefeated team
finally gets its first loss.
They remain alone thanks to
Manning, whose 13-yard game-
winner came four plays after he
somehow escaped a cadre of Patri-
ots engulfing him, threw the ball
over in the game.
Yet in thefinalmoments of Thurs-
day's game, she was on the bench.
"To put her in that environment
after she's starting to come around
a little bit, I felt may be a bit much
at this time," Borseth said. "But cer-
tainly she has the ability to play in
that stretch. We just have to make
sure we have the right combina-
tion on the floor. And she could have
been one of those kids."
Borseth felt more comfortable
putting those who have seen crunch
time situations.
For Skrba, it's just a matter of
time.
FIRST DATE: Tonight, Michigan
meets Illinois for the first time this
season in Ann Arbor.
That might be a good thing.
In their two previous games,
the Wolverines lost to opponents
they've seen earlier this year, both
on the road.
Michigan fell 66-61 to Iowa and
to 61-58 to Michigan State.
Borseth said he's sure his team
will have a considerable advantage
at home.
"I think teams are 10 points bet-
ter at home," he said.
up for grabs and watched receiv-
er David Tyree somehow pin it
between his hands and his helmet
for the 32-yard reception.
That kept the drive going, and
it will be Manning's mastery that
everyone remembers - not the
coolly efficient 80-yard touchdown
drive that Brady had completed
only moments earlier.
It was a tight, taut defensive
battle for three-plus quarters - yet
anything but boring.
Then it was taken over by two
quarterbacks - one already a star,
the other yearning to escape the
shadow his big brother has cast
over the family, and the sport, for
many years now.
Yesterday he made quite the
leap, capping a four-week stretch
of nearly flawless football during
which the Giants were underdogs
in every game they played, but won
them all.
A s Cazzie Russell walks more detail - in fact, another
around the Junge Family question was asked before he had
Champions Center with a chance to finish.
his infectious But the unfinished sentence
laugh and speaks volumes. It seemed he
kind, welcom- didn't even know why he wasn't
ing voice, one helping Michigan in some way,
can't help but whether by coaching or recruit-
wonder how > ing, despite showing interest in
this man, the head-coaching job in the past.
Michigan bas- It's not clear if Russell has
ketball's only H. JOSE requested to be involved. But
three-time All BOSCH whether Russell last inquired 10
American, isn't years ago or 10 days ago, the Wol-
more involved with the program. verines should ask him to become
How a prototypical Michigan a goodwill ambassador for the
Man isn't doing something - any- program.
thing - to help the program that Before this season, I barely
developed him into the No. 1 draft knew who Russell was.
pick in the 1966 NBA Draft. After less than 15 minutes lis-
How Russell, who is credited tening to him speak, I wasn't just
with "building" Crisler Arena, is in awe, but I realized how much
coaching a school thousands of he could help Michigan coach
miles away from Ann Arbor. John Beilein rebuild the program,
A school, the Savannah College too.
of Art and Design, that's thrilled He helped Michigan win three
just be playing in the National straight Big Ten Championships
Association of Intercollegiate and make two consecutive Final
Athletics. Fours. All this right after the
"Someway, somehow you'd Wolverines suffered four straight
love to be able to help out your losing seasons.
alma mater," Russell said during He has turned a program
a pre-game dinner for himself around. And he said he would
and the first team ever to play like nothing better than to help
at Crisler Arena. "You couldn't his alma mater.
write out a better script saying, Michigan is nowhere near an
'You know what, I played here. elite basketball school. The only
I'm going to get a chance to way Beilein has a chance to com-
maybe experience giving some- pete is if he convinces players to
thing in the form of coaching ignore the limelight of the top
back.' But nothing was ever said, programs and come to Ann Arbor
so ..." with the desire to build an elite
His answer trailed off and Rus- program.
sell looked sad. He didn't go into Russell understands this idea.
Berenson said. "I'm disappointed
WILDCATS we got ourselves two men short,
From page lB took a misconduct. You can't do
that."
and senior Matt Siddall, who was Despite the penalties, the Wol-
on the bench. The referees issued verines scoredjustone power-play
eight minutes of roughing after goal. Sandwiched between fresh-
the whistle penalties for the rare man Carl Hagelin's and Kolarik's
tussle. goals, center Louie Caporusso's
Berenson said he spoke to the tally was the game's lone man-
freshmen after the game about advantage score, a beautiful wrist
some of the bad penalties they shot from the center of the right
took. circle.
"The penalties I think for the But after a series like that,
most part hurt both teams, but which Berenson said during the
they really hurt the home team," week would be disappointing if
tion in Friday night's press confer-
SANDA LS ence, but a call to the Tampa Bay
From page 1B Lightning, the organization hold-
ing Quick's professional rights,
there was no prior indication of revealed this was no simple misun-
rule-breaking or wrongdoing, con- derstanding.
sidering Quick seemed to be one of The Lightning are conducting
the most soft-spoken, even-keeled their own internal investigation
and good-natured members of the of the incident, team spokesman
team, it must have been really bad. Brian Breseman said by phone Sat-
"The decision was made because urday.
Kevin violated our team rules and If Quick's transgression is seri-
the trust of our team," Berenson ous enough to warrant an inves-
said in a statement released before tigation by an NHL team, it's
Friday's game. probably severe enough to have
Berenson offered little clarifica- given this Michigan team pause
regular season with just one loss,
BUCKEYES which came against No. 1 Texas
From page 1B in November. Michigan is favored
to win the Big Ten Champion-
Michigan, so we sort of expected ship meet later this month, but,
to win it," Vanderkaay said. "But it even with victories against all
alwayr feels good to win it.I was up three conference teams, the gaffes
on the block and one of my team- against the Buckeyes were remind-
mates was yelling 'last one, come ers that the Wolverines are not
on, last one.' There was a little perfect. Michigan lost five events,
added pressure - like, I don't want including two relays, by less than
to screw up my last meet here." one second.
The Wolverines completed their Despite some of the mistakes,
He spurned the nation's two best
teams at the time - Cincinnati
and UCLA - to start something
new with the Wolverines.
There is no one better to show
recruits that coming to Michigan
is worth it.
It's not fair to Russell or to
Michigan that his gravitas is
now limited to major basketball
reunions.
It'd be foolish to say Michigan
would be a winning team if Rus-
sell had been hired as head coach
after Tommy Amaker or even
several years ago. Transitions are
almost always rough, especially
with so little momentum heading
into the new regime.
The Wolverines need someone
to remind recruits about Mich-
igan's rich basketball tradition
before the Ed Martin scandal
and the Amaker era. They need
a connection to years past, when
Big Ten Championships weren't a
pipe dream.
Like they did more than 40
years ago, the Wolverines need
Cazzie Russell.
"I watched the other night,
Michigan-Michigan State, I
turned it off," Russell said. "It's
tough to be one of the top pro-
grams in the country and then
you go through that period."
Many fans have already tuned
out this season and maybe even
the entire program.
Russell is the man who could
help everyone tune back in.
- Bosch can be reached
at hectobos@umich.edu.
Michigan came away with just
one victory, it's simply time to
reload.
"I think we'll bounce back,"
Berenson said. "Our players are
resilient and they'll be refocusing
this coming week and we know
we got a tough test in Miami.
This will be a good test for us. So
I don't know how we'll match up
with them, but I think we'll play
better next weekend."
As he left the press conference,
unprompted, Berenson even con-
fessed, "We have to play better
next weekend."
going into the biggest weekend of
the year.
This four-game winless streak
and Quick's dismissal make it clear
a number of questions remain
unanswered. Something is miss-
ing.
Michigan has four days to find
itself, or the questions will keep
piling up.
Even worse, the magic of the
first 24 games will continue to
trickle away.
- Sandals can be reached
at nsandals@umichedu.
Savulich said he isn't worried
about his team being prepared for
the Big Ten Championship meet.
"Everything is there, all the
training, we just have to get men-
tally down to it and be ready to go,"
he said. "We weren't as sharp as
we're going to be at Big Tens, and
we know that. and (Ohio State) is
going to find that out in about a
month."
Next time, they won't need a
speech from Bowman.
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