10A - Thursday, January 28, 2010
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com *
Jalen Rose a hit in return to Ann Arbor
Former Fab-Fiver
brings color and
his "Rose Garden"
to Crisler Arena
By NICOLE AUERBACH
Daily Sports Editor
Jalen Rose sure knows how to
steal the spotlight.
It's been nearly two decades
since his knee-length shorts, black
socks and trash-talking attitude
were front and center at Crisler
Arena, but the former Fab Five
point guard is still hard to miss,
even in the middle of a Michigan-
Michigan State basketball game.
He wasn't exactly sitting front
and center - "We gotta play for
the Pistons to get front-row seats!"
Rose said with a laugh - courtside
at Crisler Arena Tuesday night,
but in a bright red velour suit and
an ear-to-ear smile, Rose-certainly
stood out.
The ESPN cameras loved him,
cutting to shots of his jubilation
and dismay throughout the
game, and the Crisler crowd
gave him a standing ovation
when he was honored for his acts
of philanthropy, including his
foundation's Rose Garden and
scholarship endowment at the
University.
Rose, who said that he's
watched nearly all of the Michigan
basketball team's games this year,
knows how badly the Wolverines
needed to win on Tuesday. Playing
the optimist, Rose still holds hope
that Michigan can not only make
the tournament, but also get past
the first or second round.
"You want to have progress," he
said. "We got to the tournament
last year, but we lost to Oklahoma.
Hopefully, we can go a step
further."
It's no accident the word "we"
kept slipping out of Rose's mouth
when he talked about the Michigan
basketball program. Rose, who left
Michigan for the NBA after his
junior season in 1994, has played
basketball all over the nation in the
16 years since he's been gone. But
he still says that Ann Arbor feels
like home.
It's also not far from his actual
hometown, Detroit.
These days, the star-studded
combination of junior Manny
Harris and senior DeShawn
Sims, both Detroit natives, draws
comparisons to Rose and Chris
Webber, the Fab Five's dominant
duo from Detroit. Harris and Sims
are the Wolverines' first Detroit-
based wrecking crew since Rose
and Webber.
"Absolutely, I'm happy to
see Manny, I'm happy to see
DeShawn," said Rose, who last
visited Ann Arbor when Harris
was a freshman. "They're both
playing well, doing their thing."
In his three-year career at
Michigan, Rose tallied 1788
points, 478 rebounds, 401 assists
and 119 steals. He went on to play
for six different NBA teams, and
currently works as a basketball
analyst for ESPN.
At halftime of Tuesday's game
against Michigan State, Rose's
in-game analysis was spot-on. And
actually, it was a pretty accurate
description of the Wolverines' play
all season.
"They're playing hard, they're
playing hard," Rose said when
Michigan led 27-25 at the half.
"Gotta knock down a couple of
threes, but other than that, I think
we're in good shape."
The Wolverines ended up
suffering a one-point loss to the
Spartans. Of all people, Rose
understands the Michigan-
Michigan State rivalry - and how
painful a loss to the Spartans can
be.
When asked about his favorite
rivalrymomentfromthethree years
he played in it, he didn't hesitate. It
was a 73-69 victory in East Lansing,
and Rose made sure the Spartan
crowd wouldn't forget it.
"When we won at Michigan
State, and I got a chance to sit on
the 'S' at half court," Rose said
with a laugh.
It makes sense that he'd love
that, too. Once more, he's Jalen
Rose, front and center.
BOSE: ROSE
GARDEN CARDEN
SAlD ALAALAH/Daiy
Former Wolverine Jalen Rose acknowledges the crowd at halftime during Michigan's 57-56 loss to Michigan Slate on Tuesday
night. Rose, who was a member of the Fab Five teams, came to Ann Arbor for his foundation's Rose Garden program.
S
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
SUSTAINABILITY
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0
Campus Sustainability Integrated Assessment
TOWN HALL MEETING
Thursday, January 28, 201 0'
Michigan League Ballroom
4,- 5:30 pm
Register online at www.graham.umich.edu
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Hosted by the Graham Environmental Sustainability Institute and the
Office of Campus Sustainability, with opening remarks from U-M Leaders
*