8 - Friday, February 12, 2010
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Blue rolls past Gophers on the road
By CHRIS MESZAROS
Daily Sports Editor
It seemed so familiar - the
Michigan men's basketball
team held a precarious lead late
in the sec-
ond half, MICHIGAN 71
and if this MINNESOTA 63
season's
pattern persisted, the team
would collapse.
But under the leadership
of senior forwardDeShawn
Sims, the Wolverines pulled
away from Minnesota and won
their second true road win of
the season at Williams Arena,
71-63.
After going into the half up
by just two, Sims and the Wol-
verines took over.
The senior scored 21 of his
27 points in the second stan-
za, shooting 12-of-18 from the
floor. He was also dominant
in the paint and scored eight
straight at one point for the
Wolverines (5-7 Big Ten, 12-12
overall).
"A good win, we needed it,"
junior guard Manny Harris
said. "We played a great team
in Minnesota, we just came out
ready to play. DeShawn made
big finishes, and everybody
made shots, so we needed it."
Freshman guard Darius
Morris showed poise in the
backcourt, and even though he
scored just five points in the
contest, he eluded the Minne-
sota (5-6,14-9) pressure on sev-
eral occasions and found the
open man, finishing the game
with five assists.
It was a drastic change from
most of this season, when the
Wolverines' often lacked vet-
eran leadership at point guard,
starting either Morris or soph-
omore Stu Douglass after both
C.J. Lee and David Merritt
graduated last year.
"I think both teams are the
same in the regards in that
they don't have their experi-
enced point guards," Beilein
said. "Don't underestimate the
power of the floor general out
there. Our two young guards,
both of them ... grew up tonight
in Douglass and Morris."
After the Golden Gophers
kept it close for the opening
minutes of the second half,
Michigan blew the game open.
The Wolverines went on a 7-0
run off of two layups from Sims
and a 3-pointer from senior
forward Zack Gibson, who
chipped in eight points off the
bench.
After taking an 11-point lead
with three minutes to play,
the Golden Gophers started to
apply heavy pressure to Michi-
gan.
Minnesota's Lawrence
Westbrook hit a three to make
it an eight-point game and
Devoe Joseph hit a layup and
free throw to make it even
closer.
But unlike earlier this sea-
son when the Wolverines blew
big leads against Northwestern
and lost close games at Wiscon-
sin and against Michigan State,
Michigan kept its composure to
close out the win.
"Our team has been waiting
to play that way for awhile,"
Beilein said. "We just haven't
shot the ball well, we haven't
executed like we did tonight.
Northwestern, we got down
early in the second half, Wis-
consin, we got down early in
the first half. Today we could
stay in it, I only think they took
one or two leads."
In the final six minutes, Sims
hit three key layups to keep
Michigan in a comfortable
position and on all three bas-
kets, he was assisted by junior
Fuard Manny Harris, who con-
tributed 20.
Michigan found from behind
the arc. The Wolverines, who
have struggled all season from
deep, hit 7-of-15 yesterday,
their highest percentage of the
season.
Michigan was particularly
effective early in the contest
from three-point land as Gib-
son, Sims, Harris and sopho-
more forward Zack Novak each
made threes in the opening
eight minutes to help the Wol-
verines grab a fast start and a
19-13 lead.
"I think we maybe weren't
rushing some things," Beilein
said. "We've really worked at
seeing the floor better. Not run-
ning plays but being a player."
Michigan's other road victo-
ry came when the Wolverines
came back from a 16-point half-
time deficit at Penn State. This
win also halts Michigan's two-
game losing streak. And with
10th-place Iowa and 11th-place
Penn State on the docket next
week, the Wolverines could
even start a winning streak of
their own.
"We treasure ourselves in
having small victories every
day even if we don't win,"
Beilein said. "It's always hard
when you're coaching a team
to stay resilient through a hard
season."
'M'9makes new
hire on defense
By RYAN KARTJE
Daily Sports Editor
With the pressuresofNationalSigningDaybehind
him, Michigan football coach Rich Rodriguez said
his next big decision would be to hire a replacement
for Jay Hopson - the Wolverines' former lineback-
ers coach who took the defensive coordinator job at
Memphis.
Rodriguez ended the search after just eight days,
hiring staff assistant Adam Braithwaite to fill the
void on the defensive coaching staff and coach the
outside linebackers and safeties.
"We are excited to promote Adam to be our safe-
ties/outside linebackers coach," Rodriguez said in
an Athletic Department press release. "He has been
a loyal hard-working member of our staff for several
years and knows our system. I believe he will bring a
lot of energy both in coaching and recruiting."
Added Braithwaite: "I am grateful for the oppor-
tunity that Coach Rodriguez has provided me. It is
very flattering that he and the staff think enough of
my work ethic and abilities as a coach to elevate me
into a full-time position."
Rodriguez promised that the assistant coaching
position would be "more of a safeties coach than a
linebackers coach."
As was previously announced, defensive coor-
dinator Greg Robinson will coach the linebackers
while assistant head coach Tony Gibson will con-
tinue to coach the secondary. Gibson will also take
on duties as Michigan's special teams' coordinator.
Before coming to Michigan with Rodriguez in
2008, Braithwaite spent time as the defensive coor-
dinator at Hampden-Sydney College (Va.), a defen-
sive graduate assistant at West Virginia and the
safeties coach at William & Mary, his alma mater,
Braithwaite takes over a position group that
struggled mightily last year and could haveahis
hands full with outside linebackers who often
underachieved and a very unsure group at strong
safety.
Rodriguez interviewed several other higher pro.
file candidates for the job, including former Mar-
shall head coach Mark Snyder.
0
TOM OLMSCEItD/E
Senior DeShawn Sims accounted for 27 of the Wolverines' points in their
71-63 victory over Minnesota yesterday. Sims scored 21 of his 27 points in
the second half as Michigan pulled away from the Golden Gophers.
'M' heads West for
keyseries against
balanced Mavericks
In Close CCHA ers said. "If you're not plus,
race, Michigan and they outplay you, there's
a chance that we could lose
needs solid road this game. Essentially, when
Spartans beat Michigan in emoti
Crisler matchup to sweepvseasolr
effi
ort to keep pace
BY TIM ROHAN
Daily Sports Writer
In the Michigan hockey
team's locker room, a large
board tracks the CCHA stand-
ings.
In years past, the Wolver-
ines have hovered close to
the top of the board, but this
season Michigan has kept the
person responsible for chang-
ing the standings very busy.
The team was as low as
10th place after a 5-3 loss to
Ohio State early in December.
But now the Wolverines find
themselves in sole possession
of fourth place in the confer-
ence. And with a measly six
points (two wins) separating
the Wolverines and the 10th-
ranked Buckeyes, Michigan
has little breathing room.
"We're not out of it at all,"
junior forward Louie Capo-
russo said. "We're a good
team, and we're going to be
fine if we play up to our poten-
tial."
This weekend, the Wolver-
ines travel to Omaha to take on
Nebraska-Omaha in a pivotal
late season series.
If Michigan (12-9-1-0
CCHA, 17-13- overall) sweeps
the Mavericks, it could jump
into a third-place tie with
Michigan State, which is idle
in conference play this week-
end. But, if the Wolverines get
swept, they could potentially
fall right back down to 10th
place.
To make the task a bit more
challenging for Michigan,
Nebraska-Omaha is 11-2-2
at home this season, averag-
ing 4.5 goals in its last seven
games.
The Mavericks (10-11-3-2,
14-12-6) boast one of the more
balanced offensive attacks in
the CCHA. Nebraska-Omaha
may not have a single individ-
ual player among the top 20 in
scoring in the conference, but
it boasts nine guys with 17 or
more points.
"What it comes down to is
the line that you're playing
against, you have to be plus,"
assistant coach Billy Pow-
you look at the matchups there
won't be much separatingguys
on paper. It's going to come
down to the performance on
the ice."
In Ferris State and Miami
(Ohio), Michigan has faced
elite teams with singular tal-
ented scoring lines. The fifth-
place Mavericks, on the other
hand, have three solid scoring
lines that have tobe accounted
for.
But the Wolverines have
surged back into the top of
the conference scene thanks
in part to improved defensive
play. Michigan is 7-2-1 in con-
ference play since the turn
of the calendar year and has
three shutouts during that
span, including a 4-0 shutout
of Bowling Green last Tuesday.
Powers credited the
improved defense to a total
team effort.
"There's no question that
when our forwards are com-
ing back as hard as they were
last night and with purpose, it
makes our .game a lot easier,"
Powers said. "Because we can
stand up, we know we have
support and we're not feel-
ing like we're isolated and we
have to back in. When we start
backing in and giving teams
room to get to the hash marks
that's when you can get into
trouble."
The Wolverines have made
it clear that one of their goals
is to finish in the top-four
in the CCHA to gain a first-
round bye in the conference
tournament. This, weekend
could determine that, espe-
cially since there are only four
games left after this week-
end's series, two against Notre
Dame and two against North-
ern Michigan.
For now, Michigan is glad to
be in the driver's seat.
"If we get ahead of our-
selves we're going go right
back to where we were," Pow-
ers said. "We realize what
these points mean. So, we just
want to keep moving forward.
We know that if we win, and
take care of what we're capa-
ble of, then we have a great
chance of finishing in the top
two, three or four. ... Destiny is
in our hands."
ByZAKPYZIK
Daily Sports Writer
Krista Phillips couldn't help but
tear up at the press conference after
the Michigan women's basketball
team's 50-45 loss to Michigan State
last night at Crisler Arena.
It's no wonder Phillips was upset
after the
game. In an MICHIGAN STATE 50
anticipated MICHIGAN 45
immense
struggle between Phillips and Spar-
tancenter AllyssaDeHaan, the senior
finished with zero points. DeHaan
had just four.
"I need (Phillips) to defend,"
Borseth said. "She's a big kid in
the game. She didn't have her best
offensive night. We had good looks
for her. We had to drive around two
people, around our own men and
Dehaan at the end. I hate to tell a kid
not to shoot when she's wide open,
wide open."
It was a key loss as the Wolverines'
season begins to wind down, consid-
ering they needed a win to boost their
tournament hopes.
The Spartans (7-6 Big Ten, 16-8
overall) have now won six straight
against Michigan.
The contest'started with Phillips
getting three passes down low in
the first five minutes. All three were
attempted layups that she put up
above DeHaan and all three rolled off
of the rim. The missed layups were a
clear sign of the Wolverines struggle
to get somethingstarted.
But Phillips wasn't the only one
who struggled, as the Wolverines
(6-8, 14-10) couldn't put it together
in the first half. They shot just 30
percent from the field, compared to
the Spartans' 42 percent. Besides
freshman guard Dayeesha Hollins
and junior guard Veronica Hicks, no
other player scored more than three
points.
"We had good looks, and we
didn't make them," Borseth said.
"We had really good looks, but
we didn't make them. Really good
looks. And we didn't make them.
Why? We were wide open, wide-
wide-wide open wide open. We
didn't make them."
In the second half, it looked like
Michigan's offensive woes might
have been outweighed by the conser-
vative play of the Spartans.
Early in the second stanza, Michi-
gan tied it up at 25 the Spartans went
on a 13-1 run to go up 38-26, just min-
utes after.
The Wolverines got back in it when
Phillips snatched a pass then tossed it
all the way downcourt to a wide-open
Hicks who finished the layup to bring
Michigan within five with less than
two minutes remaining.
"We were just playing basketball,
we were just trying to make plays,"
Hicks said. "You're not looking at the
scoreboard, your looking who's the
next to score. (Phillips) then made a
great pass down the court to me. And
that play opened it up for me."
Then, with less than 30 seconds
left and Michigan down by five, Hol-
lins drove in the lane, finished, and
was fouled on the way up. But she
missed the freethrow, leavingMichi-
gan down three.
"We missed the free throw, and
then got the rebound," Borseth said.
0
Sophomore Carmen Reynolds drives through the lane in Michigan's loss last night,
"We threw that one away."
But Michigan State knew all it had
to do was inbound it. And the Spar-
tans did just that, ending the game
from the charity stripe.
It wasn't the lack of desire and
motivation that paralyzed the Wol-
verine offense, it was a lack of execu-
tion.
"Somebody wanted to make some-
thing happen," Borseth said. "And
they really wanted. I just looked at
the tape of our second half offense
pssh, psshhh... It was awful."
0
Green-clad crowd plays big part in defeat
By AMY SCARANO
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan women's basket-
ball team trailed for most of its game
against Michigan State yesterday
after giving up its two-point lead
on the Spartans just two minutes
into the game. That's when the "Go
Green, Go White" cheer resonat-
ing from the stands at Crisler Arena
became a hazard for the Wolverines.
Despite the home-court advan-
tage, Michigan State's contingent
was large, almost outnumbering the
Wolverines.
When Michigan fans shouted the
customary chant "air ball," Spartan
fans were sure to follow suit, and
much louder when the Wolverines
missed. And what serves as the stu-
dent section during the men's bas-
ketball games at Crisler was nearly
three-quarters green last night. The
green-clad fans even remembered
pom-poms.
"We had a huge green support in
the crowd," Michigan State senior
Allyssa DeHaan said. "It's always
ruthless downhere. We love our sup-
port and get it wherever we go."
While the pace of the game and
the effort put forth by the Wolver-
ines can't be compared to the lack-
luster crowd spirit, that's not to say
the atmosphere inside Crisler last
night wasn't a factor in the Spartan's
five-point victory.
In fact, halfway into the second
half when Michigan State had obvi-
ously stolen the momentum and was
up by 14, a gutsy Spartan fan took it
upon himself to stand front and cen-
ter in the student section that looked
like a sea of green to unify fans all
sround him.
"One thing I'll tell you is I felt
like when we would get loud, it did
force the Michigan fans to try to get
louder," Michigan State coach Suzy
Merchant said. "They were compet-
ing against each other too, so it made
for a pretty good atmosphere here."
And then with a little more than
one minute remaining, the Spartans
turned over the ball and senior cen-
ter Krista Phillips threw a half-court
pass to junior guard Veronica Hicks
who made the layup despite the
Spartan-led commotion.
"Ijust want to win and nobody in
the crowd can jump on the court and
stop me," Hicks said.
When Hicks was preparing to
shoot a free throw, the only noise in
Crisler came from the hecklers from
East Lansing. But she didn't lose
focus despite the distractions in her
home arena.
But then Hollins made a shot and
was fouled.
If she had made the foul shot,
Hollins would have brought the Wol-
verines within two points with 15
seconds remaining. Every Michigan
fan was in their seat. Every Michi-
gan State fan on their feet yelling and
screaming to distract Hollins - and
she missed the shot.
When all was set and done, the
missed shot didn't mean anything
but the 'impact from the opposing
crowd was felt throughout every
inch of Crisler Arena.