The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 - 7A
The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Wednesday, January 25, 2012 - 7A
Blue gets a true road win
By DANIEL WASSERMAN
Daily Sports Writer
WEST LAFAYETTE - Michi-
gan finally got the elephant off its
back - the elephant of road woes
- but it sat there until the Mack-
ey Arena clock read 00:00.
After
leading for MICHIGAN 66
almost the PURDUE 64
entire first
half, the Wolverines opened the
second half in dominant fash-
ion. With a 10-point lead mid-
way through the second stanza,
it looked like Michigan would
coast to its first true road win of
the season.
But Purdue wouldn't go away.
The final minutes of the Wolver-
ines' 66-64 victory saw the scoie'
go back and forth like a seesaw.
Redshirt sophomore forward
Jorgan Morgan made the even-
tual game-winning dunk, slam-
ming it home and hanging on
the rim with authority, to give
Michigan a 65-64 lead with 1:31
remaining.
The Boilermakers had mul-
tiple chances to take the lead
right.back, as they continuously
collected their misses, but senior
Robbie Hummel's wide-open
3-point attempt clanked out and
sophomore guard Tim Hardaway
Jr. grabbed the rebound to seal
the win.
"On the road, we would nor-
mally be down and the crowd
would get to us, but this time
we ended up coming back,"
Hardaway said. "We were just
thinking about our home games
- Northwestern and all the other
games (like) Minnesota - that
(the opposing team) came back,
took a lead, and how we finished
strong."
The beginning of the second
half belonged to Michigan (6-2
Big Ten, 16-5 overall), whose
10-point lead was the biggest
margin of the night for either
side. The spurt was largely due to
Hardaway, who came out strong
in the second half.
Michigan relaxes
during bye week
TODD NE-LE/Da
Sophomore guard Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 19 points in the Wolverines' 66-64 victory at Mackey Arena on Tuesday.
By ZACH HELFAND
Daily Sports Editor
For one of the only times this
season, Shawn Hunwick woke
up Monday morning to an empty
athletic sched-
ule. So what NOTEBOOK
did the fifth-
year senior goalie do with his
free afternoon?
"I went to class," Hunwick
said.
What a concept. As Michigan
coach Red Berenson says, when
you play a sport at Michigan,
"you're not a normal student."
So players like Hunwick,
who has a class required for his
degree that also cuts into hockey
practice, have to make special
arrangements. Hunwick always
leaves halfway through the
three-hour class, goes to prac-
tice, then makes up the work
later in the day. For once, Hun-
wick could stay for the entire
class. The rare mid-season bye
week comes at a fortuitous time
for the Michigan hockey team.
An especially physical series
against Notre Dame left the Wol-
verines in need of rest.
"I think we're all pretty sore
after that series," said junior
forward Chris Brown. "At least I
am, I'm pretty sore. We all took a
beating, and we also gave a beat-
ing out there."
Berenson said the mental
healing during a bye week is just
as important as mending sore
muscles.
"As a player, I liked the physi-
cal rest to a certain extent, but it
was the mental rest that really ...
takes some of the mental pres-
sure off," Berenson said. "If I'm
a student, it gives me a chance to
get my head clear."
Even practice on Tuesday had
a different feel. Skaters divided
into teams and played a 3-on-3
competition. Berenson holds the
contest every year the team has
a bye week. In the past, he even
awarded a trophy.
On 'Tuesday, the blue team,
which included Hunwick and
Brown, were the victors. The
trophy, though; is no longer.
Berenson plans different types
of games throughout the bye
week targeting certain aspects
of the team's play that need
improvement. He hinted toward
a possible skills competition on
Thursday. Berenson, who played
in college and then in the NHL
from 1960-78, can appreciate
what a little rest can do for a
hockey player.
"There's never a day when
you're a player that something
doesn't hurt," Berenson said.
"The only time I woke up and
nothing hurt was when I started
coaching.And I thought, 'There's
something wrong."'
BREAKAWAY BREAK-
DOWNS: Brown and freshman
forward Alex Guptill, two of
Michigan's top scoring threats,
were undefended in Notre
Dame's zone on Saturday. No one
but the goalie was near.
Brown passed it to Guptill.
Guptill passed it back. Then they
exchanged again. A few feet
from the crease, one final pass.
It was too far. Brown's pass slid
inches past Guptill's stick.
On a two-on-none breakaway,
the duo didn't mustera shot.
The Wolverines haven't con-
verted on a breakaway in recent
memory. Berenson said the team
would focus on odd-man rushes
and the quality of puck touches
during the bye week.
After the game on Saturday,
Berenson said he was relieved
the missed opportunity didn't
decide the game, which the Wol-
verines ultimately won, 2-1.
"They were both playing very
unselfish," Berenson said. "But
it's okay. Somebody score."
The sophomore scored seven
points and assisted on a Novak
layup during an 11-3 Michigan
run. He finished with a game-
high 19 points -13 of which came
in the second half.
"I thought (Hardaway's) hus-
tle, getting that basket, was huge
for Michigan," said Purdue coach
Matt Painter. "He's a rhythm guy
- he gets into streaks. ... That's
why I told our guys, 'Don't let
Tim Hardaway get his head up,'
and we let him get going."
But Purdue (4-4, 14-7), fight-
ing to turn around its season,
wouldn't go away. The Boiler-
makers made five second-half
3-pointers, thanks to their hot-
shooting seniors.
After Hummel and Ryne Smith
traded threes, Lewis Jackson's
and-one play off of a layup gave
Purdue its first lead since the
opening minutes of the game..
The Boilermakers stretched their
lead to as many as four on mul-
tiple occasions in the second half.
Jackson led Purdue with 17
points and eight assists, and
Hummel was close behind, net-
ting 16 and dishing out six dimes.
But the Boilermakers failed
to pull away. Michigan tied the
game on a layup by freshman
point guard Trey Burke and later
took the lead, 63-62, on a Hard-
away floater that came with just
under three minutes remaining.
Redshirt sophomore forward
Jordan Morgan followed an
impressive showing at Arkan-
sas with another steady perfor-
mance, scoring 12 and pulling
down seven rebounds - a cate-
gory the Wolverines surprisingly
won, 30-23.
Senior guard Stu Douglass
also impressed, going on a five-
point scoring stretch early on and
carrying Michigan on a 10-0 run-
that gave the Wolverines an early
14-5 lead.
The senior, who entered the
game averaging just over seven
points per game, led Michigan
with seven first-half points and
finished with 12.
With a roadtrip to Columbus
this weekend looming large on
Michigan's schedule, it would
seem that the Wolverines would
be relieved to finally pick up a
true road win. But Beilein was
quick to dispel that notion.
"It's a relief to win another
game, but ,like I said, I don't
dwell on it," Beilein said. "The
ball bounced our way. It wasn't a
mindset. Our mindset's been the
same whether it was at Arkansas,
whether it was here, whether it
was (at) Indiana.
"The home and the away
games - we're just trying to get
wins, guys and gals. We're just
trying to get wins. Whether it's
home or away, it's the same deal."
'M' can't get comfortable
WEST LAFAYETTE -'
M ichigan basketball
games are appar-
ently not for the faint-
hearted.
After the team's 66-64 victory
at Purdue on Tuesday night,
Beilein took his seat in front of
the media, let out a sigh of relief
and quickly noted that four of
his team's last five games have
come down
to the final
second. As
his squad was
celebrating
the win in
the locker
room down
the hall, the LUKE
58-year-old PASCH
coach looked
worn out
by the team's grueling Big Ten
schedule.
A two-point overtime victory
over Northwestern. A one-point
win over Michigan State. A
heartbreaking two-point non-
conference loss at Arkansas.
And then this - the team's first
true road win after eight lead
changes in the final nine min-
utes - a two-point victory at
Purdue.
There's little doubt that
Beilein has picked up a few extra
gray hairs in the past few weeks.
You could see it in his face
after watching his team blow a
10-point second-half lead.
The Mackey Arena crowd
came alive. Michigan looked
flustered. Robbie Hummel
blocked a shot and scored at
the other end to give his team a
four-point lead. Beilein looked
up at the scoreboard, concerned,
and called a timeout.
Here we go again.
But this time, Beilein's guys
battled, and you have to tip your
cap to the coach.
Yesterday, he showed his
team clips of New York Giant
quarterback Eli Manning's
riveting performance against
the San Francisco 49ers in Sun-
day's NFC Championship. He
lectured his players about being
resilient in the face of adversity,
just like Eli was when he was
knocked to the ground on pass
after pass.
So exhale, coach. You deserve
The polls are now open!
Vote now in the Best of Ann Arbor Survey!
ALDEN RISS/Daily
Michigan coach John Beilein and Michigan topped Purdue, 66-64, on Tuesday,
it. You got your guys to play like
road warriors for the first time
this season. They outshot, out-
rebounded and outhustled the
Boilermakers all game long, and
they did it all in front of a rau-
cous opposing student section.
Breathe that sigh of relief.
But don't get too comfortable.
In fact, maybe don't even take
your shoes off when you get
home, because the truth is that
Michigan has hardly touched
the heart of its conference
schedule.
There's no doubt that the
Wolverines have impressed
early in conference play - its 6-2
record so far is tops in the Big
Ten and worlds better than it's
1-6 start a season ago.
But if you really want to prove
you belong at the top, and that
you can win against anyone,
anywhere, then now is your
chance.
There's no time to reflect on
this win. No room for compla-
cency.
On Sunday, Michigan travels
to Columbus to take on No. 4
Ohio State, where Beilein has
never won. Then, the Wolver-
ines come home to play No. 16
Indiana, where they can avenge
a two-point loss they suffered
earlier this month in Bloom-
ington. And then they hop on
the bus to East Lansing, where
No. 10 Michigan State will be
looking for blood after dropping
three straight contests against
Michigan.
It's a murderer's row of Big
Ten opponents that'll be nearly
impossible to come away from
unscathed. .
And Beilein can pretend all
he wants that he doesn't know
what's coming. After the game
on Tuesday, he claimed that he
only knew the Buckeyes were
coming up this weekend because
his wife told him that she wants
to make the trip with the team.
I don't buy it, not for one sec-
ond.
But if Beilein really doesn't
know, I'm certain his players do.
In the locker room, a number of
them talked about how the win
at Purdue was a huge confidence
booster going into the heart of
their Big Ten schedule.
So it's time to embrace it,
coach. You want to prove that
you're built to last in this league?
Don't kick your feet up just
yet. Go prove it now.
Pasch can be reached
at Ipasch@umich.edu
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