8 - Friday, March 14, 2008
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The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom
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WATER POLO
Wolverines on
a roll heading
into crucial
early matchup
Michigan could extend
winning streak against
rival Indiana if offensive
fireworks continue
By RYAN KARTJE
Daily Sports Writer
At the beginning of the season, Michigan
water polo coach Matt Anderson had one goal
for the squad: be the best in the East.
And on Sunday, in a picture-perfect old-
school matchup, the 12th-ranked Wolverines
will get the chance to prove
they're exactly that.
Michigan is riding an 11- Indiana at
game winning streak into this
weekend against No. 15 Indi- Michigan
ana, and Anderson expects Matchup:
that momentum to give the Indiana 9-7;
Wolverines a boost. Michigan 17-9
"Having won all those When: Sun-
games, we're in a better frame day, Noon.
of mind," he said. "Our aches Where:
don't hurt as much, we're Canham
shooting better, and we're just Natatorium
on right now."
Even though the teams are
foes in the CWPA Western
Division instead of the Big Ten, senior Michelle
Keeley said the Wolverines see the matchup as if
it were a Big Ten Championship.
"In rivalry games like this, the Michigan
tradition just gets me pumped up," sophomore
Leah Robertson said. "We get a chance to show
that we're the leaders and best."
Robertson has established herself as a leader
on the squad, stealing 66 balls this year, already
the second-highest single-season total in pro-
gram history.
If Michigan is going to stop Indiana this
weekend, defense willbe the difference. In nine
of their last 10 games, the Wolverines have held
their opponents to single-digit scores, so it's
clear that the Wolverine defense is clicking at
just the right time.
"Anyone can play offense," Anderson said.
"It's playing hard-nosed defense that wins the
game."
But the offense has also been nothing short
of spectacular. The Wolverines scored 96 goals
in just five games last weekend at the CWPA
League Games in Erie, Pa.
Michigan's real challenge will be to catch the
Hoosiers off guard. Indiana has already seen the
Wolverines play at both the Michigan Kick-Off
and the Elite Six Tournament this season.
"It's all about ball control this weekend,"
Anderson said. "They know what's coming,
so we have to do our best not to turn the ball
over."
Anderson is no stranger to the Hoosiers
style either. While serving as an Indiana assis-
tant coach in 2001, he helped the Hoosiers to a
school-record No. 14 ranking.
"I'm at Michigan, and they are Indiana,"
Anderson said. "That's all that matters tome
now in this rivalry."
For the Wolverines, anything less than an
undefeated record in the East would be a disap-
pointment.
"This is why I came to Michigan, for games
like this," Keeley said, "There aren't many rival-
ries like this in women's college sports."
And with the title of "The Best in the East" on
the line, there won't be many water polo match-
es as hard-fought as the one on Sunday.
MICHIGAN 55, IOWA 47
NOT DONE YET
'M'finally makes
the most of talent
INDIANAPOLIS - Michigan coach John
Beilein had a sly grin on his face as he gave his
final pregame instructions yesterday - as if he
knew something the fans in the crowd didn't.
It's been a well-kept secret, but the truth is
emerging.
The Michigan men's basket-
ball team has talent.
The Wolverines may not
be the most talented team in
the conference, but they have
much more skill than they've
gotten credit for. Numerous
ill-advised shots and a scoring
drought of more than 10 min- DAN
utes against Iowa show Michi-
gan still has much to learn FELDMAN
about Beilein's offense. But the
game was never in doubt after
the first 10 minutes.
The Wolverines have enough talent to make
mistakes and still win, as long as they put out
maximum effort.
Good defense, more than good offense,
depends on effort and hustle. Sophomore center
Ekpe Udoh freely admits those elements were
lacking earlier in the year.
But Michigan's dominant defense yesterday,
which held Iowa without a field goal for more
than 16 minutes, was a key to the win when the
offense failed.
The victory wasn't pretty to most observers,
but I saw the Wolverines play a nearly perfect
game - nearly perfect because their approach to
it was nearly perfect.
For the last few weeks, the players have talked
about the Big Ten Tournament. And Beilein has
talked about the tournament to the media just as
much.
I've never seen a team successfully veer from
the one-game-at-a-time approach so much. But it
worked yesterday. Michigan badly wants to prove
it can compete with anybody. The team wasn't
going to allow itself to lose yesterday. Conseco
Fieldhouse is the Wolverines' stage, and they've
been planning the performance for weeks.
But why couldn't Michigan put on a show at
Crisler Arena or the Bryce Jordan Center? Mich-
igan wasted the last two weeks of the season.
Sure, the Wolverines made some progress, but
not nearly as much as they could've.
For the most part, that's been the story of this
season. The Wolverines have learned Beilein's
sets, but they haven't learned how to approach
games with a winning attitude, which is much
more important.
I don't know what will come from this semi-
wasted season. Beilein said he has treated this
season like his first year at every other college
where he has coached, except Richmond, where
he said he focused more on winning.
Beilein's winning percentage in his first year
coaching a school:.558.
Take out Richmond: .525.
His winning percentage after his inaugural
year on a job: .642.
So even if his first-year strategy is flawed,.it's
hard not to give him the benefit of doubt that he
will turn the Wolverines around.
This tournament gives Michigan the perfect
chance to work on its mental strength.
"We just wanted to win," sophomore forward
DeShawn Sims said. "Whoever was in our way,
we are trying to advance and go to the promised
land. Whoever is in our way, we just have to play
with that chip on our shoulders."
Michigan plays regular-season conference
champion Wisconsin at noon. Take that attitude
and a win is possible.
Take that attitude into each game next year
and an NCAA Tournament berth might not be
the pipe dream it is for this year's squad.
- Feldman can be reached at daneld@umich.edu.
a
I
CLIF REEDER/Daily
Sophomore Deshawn Sims guarding Iowa's Tony Freeman in yesterday's win over Iowa. Sims had his first career double-double.
Defense key in first-round win
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By IAN ROBINSON The scoring droughts that
Daily SportsEditor have repeatedly spelled disaster.
reappeared. But the Wolverines
DIANAPOLIS - Michigan weathered one of their longest
een a trendsetter in college droughts of the season (10:06) by
ics. nearly eliminating the Hawkeyes'
unt St. Mary's has not. offense., Michigan held Iowa (6-
preparing for yesterday's 12 Big Ten, 13-19 overall) without
en Tournament game, the a basket for 16 minutes in the set-
gan men's basketball team ond half.
ed from the Pioneers who Earlier this season, when the
a Northeast Conference Wolverines struggled to score,
ament title with a win over they carried that frustrationto the
d Heart yesterday. defensive end, allowing easy bas-
e saw the enthusiasm they kets and magnifying the impact of
playing with," sophomore the dry spells.
awn Sims said. "Knowing But yesterday, that mentality
they could win, they would changed. Sims and fellow sopho-
nto the tournament. And more Ekpe Udoh were so focused
teams have no chance to get on each possession they didn't
he (NCAA) Tournament, and even realize how long their own
ecure their bids." scoring drought had lasted.
e Wolverines were in a simi- "You got to forget about shots
sition yesterday. notfalling because you can always
capturing the enthusiasm control how you play on defense,"
aw in the Mount St. Mary's said Sims, who put up his first
Michigan came out with its career double-double (14 points
aggressive defensive effort and 10 rebounds).
Defensively, Michigan correct-
ed its biggest problem: the perim-
eter.
Throughout the season, teams
had picked Michigan apart from
beyond the arc.
Yesterday afternoon, Beilein's
strategy focused on stopping the
3-pointers while allowing some
inside baskets. The result was
Michigan's best perimeter defense
performance of the season.
Iowa made just two 3-pointers
in 17 tries - the lowest percentage
of any Michigan opponent this
year.
Trying to erase a nine-point
halftime deficit, Iowa missed
all 10 of its second-half 3-point
attempts. The Hawkeyes shot
just 20 percent from the floor in
the frame and 31.9 percent for the
game.
But the Wolverines don't have
too much time to celebrate yes-
terday's win. They will play regu-
lar-season conference champion
Wisconsin today.
The Wolverines last played
Wisconsin on Jan. 22 in Madison
and lost by just three points. In
the game, freshman Manny Har-
ris set a then-career high with 26
points.
Kolarik expects to return this weekend
Junior forward
brings offense,
leadership to team
By MICHAEL EISENSTEIN
Daily Sports Writer
With senior alternate captain
Chad Kolarik likely to return to
the Michigan hockey team lineup
this weekend,
it seems the UNO at
nation's top-
scoring line will Michigan
be back at full Matchup:
strength for the U NO 17-17-
CCHA quarter- 4; Michigan
finals. 27-5-4
Kolarik brings When: Tonight
43 points back 7:35 p.m.
into the Michi- Where: Yost
gan lineup, as Ice Arena
well as key lead-
ership on a freshman-heavy team
preparingto face Nebraska-Omaha
in this weekend's best-of-three
series, which starts tonight at Yost
Ice Arena.
"You can't replace a player like
Chad," Michigan associate head
coach Mel Pearson said. "It's not
just his skills and his goals and
everything (but) his leadership, his
senior leadership. It's especially
(important) with a lot of young
guys and this will be a new experi-
ence for them."
On the other side of the ice, the
story sounds much the same: The
nine-freshman deep Mavericks
return senior Bryan Marshall, their
captain and leading scorer with 43
points. Marshall leads the country
in assists per game and has been
Nebraska-Omaha's lone bright spot
after the Mavericks finished eighth
in the CCHA.
"I guess in a way they kind of
cancel each other out," senior cap-
tain Kevin Porter said. "They have
their top player coming back, we
have our top player coming back, so
it's going to be a good battle."
Marshall, who warmed up but
didn't play in last week's triple-
overtime win over Alaska, is con-
sidered a quieter, "by-example"
leader.
Kolarik in contrast, is one of
the most passionate Wolverines
and more of a goal scorer. He has
notched two four-goal games this
season.
"Because he's such an emotional
player, he does get on guys and give
them a lift," Pearson said. "I think
just even for that line, for Max
(Pacioretty) and Kevin (Porter) it's
huge having him back, and obvi-
ously emotionally its huge having
him back."
Both returns should make Friday
a more spirited night than usual.
"It's goingto get everyone going,
get everyone really excited and
ready to go," Porter said.
Aside from boosting their
respective teams, Kolarik and Mar-
shall have something else in com-
mon - they lead two of the CCHA's
best offenses.
Michigan's offense, ranked,
second in the nation, lit the lamp
five times in one period when the
Mavericks hosted the Wolverines
earlier this season, and Porter has
tallied two hat tricks against them
in his career.
Nebraka-Omaha's 12th-ranked
offense managed just five goals
during a relatively slow weekend.
Even though Michigan is net-
ting almost four goals a game and
Nebraska-Omaha boasts the most
efficient power play in college
hockey, in a playoff atmosphere,
no one is expecting a big offensive
weekend fromn either team.
"I think the wheel turns from
more offense early in the year to
more defense this time of year,"
Michigan coachRed Berensonsaid.
"Your offense is still important, but
your defensestill has to shut them
down."
Pearson added: "If I was a bet-
ting man, you'll see some goals.
But at the same time, I wouldn't be
surprised to see a 2-1 game, a 3-2
game."
NOTE: According to Berenson,
freshman Matt Rust suffered a
hairline fracture to his fibula, a
non-weightbearing bone. Rust suf-
fered the injury in a knee-to-knee
collision with defenseman Eric
Elmblad at practice yesterday dur-
ing a drill. The second-line center
will be out on a "week-to-week"
basis, and is currently wearing a
walking cast.
In practice yesterday, junior
Tim Miller replaced Rust alongside
freshmen Carl Hagelin and Aaron
Palushaj on the second line. How-
ever, Hagelin will move to center in
place of Rust. Miller was replaced
by freshman Ben Winnett, who
skated with Louie Caporusso and
Travis Turnbull on the third line.
0
Senior Chad Kolarik skates against Miami (Ohio) Feb. 9. Tonight will be his first
game back in the lineup since suffering a hamstring injury Feb.16.