The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Sports New Student Edition - 7E The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom New Student Edition - 7E Blue is Beilein's toughest gig yet WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Long time coming: Quick start helps M' cruise to win WEST LAFAYETTE - M ichigan coach John Beilein doesn'tknow what he's gotten him- self into. Five times in the sec- ond half of Saturday's loss at Purdue, the Wolverines came within three points, only to let the DAN Boilermakers FELDMAN re-extend their lead. Michigan lacking a killer instinct? What a surprise. But things were supposed to be different under Beilein. He's won at every stop - Erie Community College, Nazareth, LeMoyne, Canisius, Richmond and West Virginia. Well, almost every stop. Not Michigan. The Wolverines (4-10)' are the Big Ten's worst team. When Michigan hired Beilein, eight seasons separated the cur- rent team and the program's last game vacated by NCA sanctions. Michigan won a semi-respectable 54 percent of its games in those eight years, the last six under Tommy Amaker. But the Wolver- ines rarelyshowed a competitive streak.. Against ranked teams: 10-49. On the road: 22-61. NCAA Tournament appear- ances: zero. Amaker admirably moved the Wolverines past the Ed Martin situation, but when it became clear he couldn't take Michigan to the next level, he was fired. Athletic Director Bill Martin hired Beilein because the coach had ahigher ceiling than Amaker. } But it hasn't shown. Beilein has put aside winning to help his young team learn his complex offense of 3-pointers and backdoor cuts and his unique 1-3-1 zone defense. Michigan needs to learn how to win, and Beilein isn't teaching that. Beilein asked the public to judge the team on its progress learning his system, not its record. He's probably a bit scared to see what would happenif he put pres- sure on his players to win. After all, it's ayoungteamlearning a new system - one of the nation's most complicated at that. The Wolverines' largest obsta- cle is they don't know what it takes to win. Dealing with the tension of game is the best way to learn. Michigan basketball has been devoid of pressure for too long. Everything is comfortable; there's no desperation. Beilein has said games can be nuisances, distractions in the way of practices. He's spending less time preparing for opponents than he typically does. Put this team out there. See what it can do. Beilein might be surprised with what could hap- pen. I'm all for building a program, rather than just focusing on short- term success. But you don't need to get bad to get good. Michigan shouldn't lose to Harvard or Cen- tral Michigan - both of which have first-year coaches, too. The Wolverines didn't even pretend to give themselves a chance against Georgetown, Duke or UCLA. Once on the court, they tried to win, but they didn't expect to win. BeileiG in his 29years as a head coach, has proven himself, and there's still a very good chance he'll win here. But by making winning a secondary goal, he's drastically slowing down the process. For the last eight years, there hasn't been much wrong with the Wolverines, but there hasn't been much right either. If Beilein doesn't put pressure on this team, the mediocrity will continue. Maybe he's going to flip that switch next year when the team knows his system better. But why wait? Beilein can work on schemes all he wants, but until he changes the program's culture, not much will change. This column originally ran on Jan. 7, 2008. New, vocal coach breathes life into dormant program By ALEX PROSPERI Daily Sports Writer March 25, 2008 - The Michigan women's basketball team continues to push the past further and further away. It wasn't enough for the Wolver- ines to play in the Women's Nation- al Invitational Tournament for the first time since 2002. Last night, they became the first team in the program's 35-year his- tory to reach the third round of a postseason tournament other than the Big Ten Tournament. Thanks to senior Janelle Cooper's 22 points and a14-0 run to start the game, Michigan easily took down Virginia Commonwealth, 75-57, at Crisler Arena last night. "My teammates did a very good job of rotating the ball and get- ting it to me," Cooper said. "I was just happy that I made some shots today. Hopefully, that continues for the rest of this NIT." The co-captain had a near- perfect performance, shooting 7-for-8 from the field and 5-for-6 from three-point range. She also knocked down all three of her free throws. Despite not playing a game for three weeks, Michigan (9-9 Big Ten, 18-13 overall) combined to shoot13- for-22 from behind the arc. "We were still in the gym even though we weren't playing games," Cooper said. "I'm not really sur- prised. We have pretty good shoot- ers on our team." Cooper ignited the first-half run that put the Rams (13-5 Colonial Athletic Association, 26-8) behind by double-digits just three minutes into the game. Cooper connected on her first three-pointer and one minute later, junior Carly Benson did the same. Benson hit another from behind the arc and Cooper responded with a traditional three-point play just seconds later. After a field goal by junior Jes- sica Minnfield, the Wolverines led 14-0 a little more than four minutes into the game. "I thinka lot of us were pumped and geeked and were ready to go," junior Ashley Jones said. "That 14- 0 run at the beginning was just us being ready." Despite the team's best shooting performance of the season, Michi- gan's usual weaknesses were still on display. The Wolverines were outshot and outrebounded on the offen- sive glass and committed twice as many turnovers as the Rams. Ear- lier in the season, that would have spelled disaster for the team. And even though Michigan started the second half with four straight turnovers, Michigan coach Kevin Borseth and the Wol- verines proved they wouldn't let their normal flaws get in the way of victory. Michigan took its fewest shots from the field all season (37) but responded by shooting 62 percent from the field, its best shooting performance of the year. Michigan's strong play on the defensive end forced VCU to shoot just 30 percent from the field and created numerous three-on-two fast break opportunities that led to wide-open shots. Cooper led the way with four assists. "We usually don't get that many assists," Borseth said. "That's a pretty big figure for us." I After last night's victory, the Wolverines have their sights set on one goal. "We have our eye on the prize," Jones said. "We want to win the championship." WW.REC$PORTS.UMICH.EDU/OUTDOORAD W- Hockey Band The tradition continues... C' Ya there! Rehearsals will be on Thursdays beginning at 7:30 PM Women's Basketball Band Join the Women's Basketball Band and we'll support you while you support the team...get paid to play The Victors! Rehearsals will be on Tuesdays beginning at 8:30 PM Ments Basketball Band Be a part of the Beilein Era... On the road to victory with the Men's Basketball Band. Rehearsals will be on Tuesdays beginning at 7:00 PM Auditions will be held at Revelli Hall Sunday, September 14,2008 Wednesday, September17,2008 Audition will include scales and sight reading. To schedule a time for an audition please call 764-0582. Revelli Hall 350 E. Hoover Ann Arbor, MI 48104-3707 A A