4B-- December 6 , 2010 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 6 MEN'S BASKETBALL Michigan to face cross-town NAIA school .0 By BEN ESTES Ann Arbor certainly represents a DailySports Writer monumental step up in competi- tion, even though the Cardinals When the Michigan men's bas- reside in the same city. ketball team squares off with And the Wolverines (5-2) are nearby Concordia tonight, don't perhaps playing their best bas- expect the game ketball of the year, having upset to be close. Clemson on the road last Tuesday After all, the COncordia before coming back to beat a solid Cardinals (5-4) at Michigan Harvard team Saturday. are an NAIA pro- Michigan sees the game as gram, meaning Matchup: an opportunity to continue to that with just 774 Concordia 5-2 improve and is trying to treat it students, their like any other game. school is too When: Tonight "I just want for us all to come small to be a part 7:30 p.m. out with the same mentality," of the NCAA. Where: sophomore guard Matt Vogrich And Concor- Crisler Arena said after the Harvard win. "Don't dia is just a mid- TV/Radio: take it for granted and get ahead die-of-the-road Big Ten and just see what happens. NAIA team, hav- Network "Hopefully, everybody can con- ing already lost tribute." to Lourdes Col- The matchup should provide lege and Michigan-Dearborn. chances for the Wolverine bench So the University of Michigan- to continue to get vital minutes one game a 30 poir like Vo man fo who bo: victory "I us a W. Vogr sharpsh with hi sons atI Agair knockec from lor fter scoring a season-high high seven points and also appear- nts, especially for players ing more comfortable defensively. grich and redshirt fresh- McLimans, despite only playing srward Blake McLimans, seven minutes, made an impact in th took steps forward in the the victory over the Crimson. over Harvard. With redshirt freshman for- ward Jordan Morgan struggling to defend Harvard postman Keith just want for Wright, McLimans spelled Mor- gan early in the second half and ill to come out promptly slowed Wright down. The Hamburg, N.Y. native ith the same blocked one of Wright's shots and didn't let him convert much else mentality." down low. McLimans also scored four points, the last two tying the game at 38-38, helping the Wolverines ich has a reputation as a regain momentum in their come- tooter but has struggled back. s shot in his first two sea- Beilein said after the Harvard Michigan. game that the big man "played nst Harvard, though, he with no baggage," meaning he d downboth of his attempts didn't worry about his perfor- ng range, scoring a season- mance and was just focused on competing hard. "(McLimans) needs to just know what it takes to win basket- ball games," Beilein said. "But he gave us some length ... (he) was just out there trying to get it done. I was proud of the way he played." Michigan traditionally plays a Division II team every season. Games against those teams and NAIA squads don't count against a school's RPI - meaning there's a benefit to playing them instead of a lower-level Division-I team that could submarine the Wolverines' strength of schedule. And with Concordia allowing Michigan to use its gym when the Wolverines can't use their own during Crisler Arena renovations, as well as the Cardinals' proxim- ity to the University, a matchup with the Cardinals was a perfect fit. "There are a lot of teams in the state that we could play ... We decided that it should be a local team," Beilein said after the Har- vard game. "So it's one day's rest (after Har- vard) and then we have to go play again, so we'll have to be ready for that." Beilein said the team's upcom- ing home stretch - including the matchup with the Crimson, the Wolverines will play eight straight and 10 of their next 11 games at Crisler - will be beneficial, espe- cially for the squad's many young players. But he also warned against complacency. "You cannot take any team at all for granted," Beilein said. "We're going to practice (Sunday). It's almost an atmosphere like you're at a tournament. "Get a day off, you got to get back, you got to rest some people." 0 Former coach Tommy Amaker returns as Harvard headman WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Blue fades down the stretch inloss to hot Iowa State ByZAK PYZIK Daily Sports Writer Harvard men's basketball coach Tommy Amaker returned Saturday to Crisler Arena for the first time since being fired from the Michi- gan program in NOTEBOOK 2007. And when Amaker's name was announced at the start of the game, he received applause - a classy showing from the fans. Amaker said in a teleconfer- ence last Thursday that he didn't know how he would be greeted in his return to Ann Arbor, but in the Wolverines' 65-62 win over the Crimson on Saturday, he saw noth- ing but respect from the Michigan fan base. In fact, there wasn't a single chant from the Maize Rage all afternoon targeting the opposing coach - something that normally happens multiple times in a game. "It's kind of weird knowing that he helped get you here," junior guard Stu Douglass, whom Amak- er tried to recruit to Harvard, said after Saturday's game. "When I saw him, I just said hi and good luck. "We just went out there to get a win for our coach." Amaker embraced his opportu- nity to return to Michigan. "We were so focused on the way we've been playing, and I think our kids were focused on that as well, so I tried to stay in that moment for our guys," Amaker said on Saturday. "But it certainly is always great to come back to Ann Arbor. It's a great community, a great town. "I enjoyed my time here as a coach and being a part of this great school." A TALE OF TWO HALVES: The Wolverines went into halftime trailing by seven points. But Michigan coach John Beilein made some adjustments to respond to Amaker's defensive attack and started Douglass in the second half. "Douglass played very well in the second half," Amaker said on Saturday. "I thought he shot the ball really well. I'll wait to look at the tape to see if we lost him a few times. Sure, they missed some opportunities to finish around the goal as well, but we just couldn't finish around the basket. I thought By KEVIN RAFTERY Daily Sports Writer Before Sunday's contest against the Michigan women's basketball team, No.19 Iowa State had won 51 straight regular MICHIGAN 47 season IOWA STATE 60 non-con- ference home games - a stretch that goes all the way back to December of 2003. And after the game at Hilton Coliseum, the Cyclones made it 52 straight with a 60-47 victory over the Wolverines in front of a crowd of 11,829 rowdy Iowa State fans. But for much of the game, the Cyclones' (6-1) streak looked like it was in jeopardy. Playing in front of more fans than it has seen in three total home games this season, Michigan (4-4) didn't looked phased early on. "It was pretty intense," senior guard Veronica Hicks said of the crowd. "There were so many people screaming, so it was kind of hard to communicate. You just had to block out what is going on around you." Hicks silenced the crowd early, scoring four of the Wolver- ines' first eight points and grab- bing their first three rebounds as Michigan took an early 8-7 lead. But after getting called for her second foul with just under 13 minutes left in the first, Hicks was forced to tone down her aggres- sive play. "It made me a little more cau- tious when I was defending the ball," Hicks said. "Offensively, I didn't want to cause anythingthat would make them call a charge or anythinglike that. I didn'twant to force anything." With Hicks in foul trouble, the Wolverines found a way to take control of the game midway through the first half. After Iowa State guard Kelsey Harris hit a 3-pointer to give the Cyclones a 15-14 lead, Michi- gan responded with an 8-0 run, capped by a layup from sopho- more Sam Arnold to give the Wol- verines a seven-point lead with just over six minutes left. But Iowa State responded. Senior sharpshooter Kelsey Bolte drilled a 3-pointer to end the drought for the Cyclones, and with just six seconds left, junior guard Lauren Mansfield drove the length of the court and hit a layup at the buzzer to give Iowa State a 26-24 lead heading into the break. "That is absolutely inexcus- able," Michigan coach Kevin Borseth said after the game. "(Mansfield) was left-handed, and we just let her go left and score." Even after the Cyclones' 9-0 run to end the half, Michigan was still only down by two. And a 3-pointer by sophomore Jenny Ryan tied the game at 34 with just under 12 minutes to play. But down the stretch, Iowa State proved to be too much for the Wolverines. Bolte caught fire, converting on three critical 3-pointers in the game's most cru- cial minutes. "We wanted to guard her closer than that," Borseth said of Bolte, who averages more than 16 points per game. "She got 20 shots off in situations that, in my opinion, are inexcusable. We should have cov- ered her a lot better than we did." Michigan still hung around until the closing minutes. Hicks hit a 3-pointer at the three-minute mark to cut the deficit to five, but 6-foot-7 sophomore Anna Prins responded with a 3-pointer of her own on the other end. The Cyclones dominated the offensiveboards downthe stretch, eliminating any chance of a Wol- verine comeback as Iowa State finished with a 43-31 advantage on the glass. For Michigan, this is one that slipped away. The Wolverines shot just 2-for-9 from behind the arc in the second half, compared to the Cyclones' 7-of-14. Michigan also got just four points out of its nor- mally reliable bench. "We did a good job defensively of holding them down and not giving them great looks," Borseth said. "We got sloppy late in the game defensively and then didn't answer offensively. We had good looks. We were wide open and just didn't convert." Former Michigan coach Tommy Amaker went to Harvard after being fired from Michigan in 2007. 01 that was the difference, just not being able to score." Douglass tallied 16 of his 19 points in the second stanza. He shot 5-for-7 from three-point range, two of which were well beyond the arc. "He got some open shots, and he got some non-open shots and he just knocked them down," junior guard Zack Novak said on Satur- day. "I think he is embracing his sixth man (role). He's coming off the bench and giving us such a huge spark, it's big for us. I mean he won us the game today." Michigan shot 50 percent from three-point territory in the second half, but just 28 percent in the first half. POSTGAME ANALYSIS: Crim- son forward Keith Wright scored a team-high 18 points, 16 of which came when Michigan redshirt freshman Jordan Morgan covered him. But when Morgan got into foul trouble, Beilein played redshirt freshman Blake McLimans in his spot. The forward covered Wright effectively and limited him to just two points, both on free throws. On the other end, McLimans tal- lied four points of his own, a rebound and a block in the seven minutes that he had played. "Blake has really benefited from embracing the process from his development," assistant coach Bacari Alexander said. "It's nice when you can see the benefit from that embracement. You can see what happened from the practices leading up from the game. Blake today had a hot moment where he figured out angles, competing, scrapping and fighting. "Wright is a load right there, he is first team, all caliber IVY league player, and Blake accepted the challenge. He used his length and his size and those are things that we have been emphasizing." McLimans and the rest of the Michigan bench scored 30 points against Harvard, the biggest con- tribution the team has seen from its bench all season. "We have a saying at Michigan this year where we need all hands on deck," Alexander said. "So whether it's Blake McLimans one night or Eso the next night. Name a player. "Everyone on our roster has a valuable role, and we are going to call on them when the time dic- tates it." WOMEN'S GYMNASTICS M' starts season with intrasquad AD Brandon a celebrity judge at annual Maize vs. Blue meet By EMILY BONCHI Daily Sports Writer Seven freshmen took to the floor in Crisler Arena on Sunday after- noon, ready to compete in their first collegiate meet. Luckily for them, the pressure was off. The Michigan women's gymnastics team held its annual Maize vs. Blue Intrasquad meet, pitting the athletes against one another for some friendly compe- tition. The Maize team took the win, beating the Blue team, 7-6, after dominating the final routine in floor exercise. The meet's decision came down to two-time All-American senior Kylee Botterman and All-Ameri- can sophomore Natalie Beilstein - the same matchup from last year's tie-breaking floor event. Botterman came out on top, pro- viding Maize the victory and earn- ing top scores from the celebrity judges: Michigan Athletic Direc- tor David Brandon and Michigan Insider radio personalities Sam Webb and Ira Weintraub. "We showcased some of our depth and it was a chance to see how some of our gymnasts per- form in competition," Michigan coach Bev Plocki said afterward. Tori Kane was the only fresh- man to earn a point for her team after performing the final balance beam routine of the day. Fifth-year senior captain Sarah Curtis, who has competed in the all-around the past three years, kicked off her final season as a Wolverine by giving the Blue team a point in three of her four events. "This will be the fourth year doing it, so it's pretty normal for me, although I can't say it gets eas- ier every year," Curtis said of her all-around competition. Senior captain Jordan Sexton also took to the floor, taking points for the Maize team in both the bars and floor exercise. The Wolverines boast a.division of experience, as its 15-player ros- ter includes five seniors and seven freshmen - Michigan's biggest freshman class in 20 years. "The seniors are vital to the success of our team this year and getting all these freshmen on the right path, keeping them under their wing," Plocki said. "They've been doing a great job so far." Michigan has won 17 of the last 19 Big Ten titles, including last year's, and the team looks to con- tinue its conference domination this season. But before that can happen, Plocki is hoping for a completely healthy team. "We have three athletes - one sophomore and two freshmen - who are injured and were not able to perform today," Plocki said. "But they should be able -to get healthy sometime in January. "There are freshmen that have great stuff, but that nobody got to see today. I can't wait to put them into the lineup." The Wolverines have a one- month break to prepare for their 2011 season. To kick off their conference sea- son, they will take on Michigan State, Iowa and Western Michigan in East Lansing on Jan. 7. 01 Senior guard Veronica Hicks plays in a loss to Xavier on Nov.15.