The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com MEN'S BASKETBALL BIG TEN ROUNDUP SUNDAY FEB. 5 No.23 Michigan, 54 at No.9 Michigan State 64 Minnesota 69 at Nebraska 61 Northwestern 74 at Illinois 70 SATURDAY FEB. 4 No.3 Ohio State 58 at No. 19 Wisconsin 52 No. 20 Indiana 78 at Purdue 61 Penn State 64 at Iowa 77 THURSDAY FEB. 2 Nebraska 74 at Northwestern 84 WEDNESDAY FEB.16 No.10 Wisconsin, 62 at No.11 Purdue, 70 No. 20 Indiana, 56 at No.23 Michigan, 68 Minnesota, 59 at Iowa, 63 TUESDAY FEB.15 No. 9 Michigan State 41 at Illinois 42 No.19 Wisconsin 52 at Penn State 46 BIG TEN STANDINGS 1) No. 3 Ohio State (8-2) 2) No. 9 Michigan State (7-3) 3t) No.23 Michigan (7-4) 3t) No. 19 Wisconsin (7-4) 5) No. 20 Indiana (6-6) 6t) Illinois (5-5) 6t) Purdue (5-5) 8t) Minnesota (5-6) 8t) Iowa (5-6) 10) Northwestern (4-6) 11) Nebraska (3-8) 12) Penn State (2-9) ICE HOCKEY CCHA ROUNDUP SATURDAY FEB. 4 Miami (Ohio) 0 at No.7 Michigan 3 Alaska 4 at No.16 Western Michigan 1 Bowling Green 3 at No. 8 Notre Dame 2 Michigan State 3 at Ohio State 2 No.6 Ferris State 3 at Northern Michigan 1 FRIDAY FEB. 3 Miami (Ohio)1 at No.7 Michigan 4 Alaska 1 at No.16 Western Michigan 2 Bowling Green 1 at No.8 Notre Dame 2 Michigan State 6 at Ohio State 3 USNTDP U-18 3 at Lake Superior State 4 (ex.) No.6 Ferris State 5 at Northern Michigan 5 CCHA STANDINGS 1) No. 6 Ferris State (41 pts.) 2) No. 16 Western Michigan (39 pts.) 3) No.7 Michigan (38 pts.) 4t.) No. 8 Notre Dame (36 pts.) 4t.) No. 18 Miami (Ohio) (36 pts.) 4t.) No. 10 Ohio State (36 pts.) 7t.) Lake Superior State (35 pts.) 7t.) Michigan State (35 pts.) 9) Northern Michigan (30 pts.) 10) Alaska (27 pts.) 11) Bowling Green (19 pts.) WANT MORE DAILY SPORTS COVERAGE?, Visit www.michigandaily.com AND FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @MICHDAILYSPORTS @MICHDAILYFBALL @MICHDAILYBBALL @MICHDAILYHOCKEY February 6, 2012 - 3B PAUL SHERMAN/Daily Michigan senior guard Carmen Reynolds and Michigan dropped a last-second decision to the Spartans. 3-pointers the difference in Michigan's loss to Spartans ByMICHAEL LAURILA Daily Sports Writer They got the shot they wanted. With 30 seconds left in the Michigan women's basketball game against Michigan State, senior guard Courtney Boylan had a chance to break a tie on a wide-open look from behind the arc. She missed, and the Spartans took the 65-63 lead with a game-winning jump shot by senior Porsche Poole with four seconds left. "It didn't really feel very good going off my hand, but it was pretty close," Boylan said about the missed 3-pointer. "You have to take that shot." Despite Boylan's missed 3-pointer, Michigan's effective shooting performance from deep kept the team inthe game on Sunday. But every time the Wolverines nailed a 3-pointer, Michigan State responded with a basket of its own. The Spartans opened up the game on an 01-0 run; starting 3-for-3 from behind the arc. They cooled off as the game progressed, but were led by a surprising figure: sophomore guard Kiarissa Bell, who has averaged just 2.5 points per game this season. Bell finished the game at 3-for-4 from deep, one of which opened up the scoring for Michigan State. "We thought that if there was a kid we could get off stastically, it was (Bell)," said Michigan coach Kevin Bors- eth. "She made shots though." Senior forward Carmen Reynolds had one of her better shooting performances of the season, finishing 3-for-5 from behind the arc, all of which came in the first half. Strug- gling of late to find her stroke, Reynolds looked comfortable in her shots. Michigan finished 50 per- cent from behind the arc - 20 percent higher than its season average. There were moments in the game where it looked like the Wolverineswere going away from the deep ball and trying to get it inside to junior forward Rachel Sheffer, but Spartan senior center Lyken- dra Johnson posed problems for the post players all game. Whether the looks were wide-open or highly contest- ed, Michigan used the 3-point- er to its advantage. "That's the thing about our team, is that one half it may be going inside and the next half it may be going outside," Boylan said. "That's the nice thing about our offense. You don't have to rely on one thing, necessarily." The Wolverines shot fewer 3-pointers in the second half since they were able to get production from other places. Boylan had 15 second-half points, only three of which came from behind the arc. With 5:18 left in the sec- ond half, Michigan had a five point lead - its biggest of the day - and the offense looked to be in complete rhythm. Then, Michigan State coach Suzy Merchant came up with a unique way to stop the Wol- verines' hot shooting. All season, one common denominator of Michigan's losses has been its struggles to score. This is one of the first losses for the Wolverines where they have performed well and come up short. Their 50-percent clip from behind the arc is the best percentage they've had since opening Big Ten play on Dec. 30. Though Michigan lost, the win should help its confidence, especially that of the shooters, who saw a lot of success on the perimeter against the tough Michigan State defense. Meanwhile, Michigan State SPARTANS capitalized on the offensive end, From Page 1B opening up a 16-point lead by the 12:57 mark. And the Spar- tans received some help from a the offensive end with a balanced rare meltdown from Beilein, who scoring effort, and eight Spartans got called for a technical foul for went into the locker room with arguing a travel call on Novak - first-half points. They attacked a sub-par gift for the coach's 59th the Wolverines underneath, rec- birthday. Michigan State guard ognizing that Michigan's post Austin Thornton knocked down defense has been relatively weak both free throws. all season long. "He was just trying to protect The Wolverines (7-4, 17-7) us," Douglass said. "Have I ever looked stagnant on offense in the seen him like that before? I don't first half, and at one point, they know. I don't even know if he's trailed by as many as 14. From the gotten a technical since I've been set offense, Michigan was hardly here." able to penetrate the Spartan A few minutes later, Spartan defense, and coach John Beilein coach Tom Izzo was called for a had to rely heavily on his perim- technical of his own for arguing eter shooters. Novak, Burke and with refs in the middle of a Michi- Douglass combined for 4-for-9 gan possession. Novak hit one of shooting from behind the arc in the two free throws. the first half. But in the end, the game was Burke's conversion was par- not about the coaches - it was a titularly clutch, as he nailed a tri- battle between the senior cap- ple from the top of the key in the tains looking to puttheir personal final seconds of the half, cutting stamps on the heated rivalry. Michigan's deficit to a manage- Both Novak and Green scored a able eight points, game-high 14 points. But the Spartan defense sty- "I'veheard people talking mied the Michigan offense in the about (personal records against beginning of the second half just Michigan State)," Douglass said. as well as it did in the first. The "We've won three of the last four Wolverines didn't score until red- games, so that's not too bad. We shirt sophomore forward Jordan might actuallysee them inthe Big Morgan hit a pair of free throws Ten Tournament, and we're look- four minutes into the half. They ing forward to that. We have a lot didn't score from the field until of respect for them - it's a lot of about a minute later. fun playing them." beating to get pucks out (of our H UNWICK zone)," Berenson said. From Page 1B Even after scoring with his team a man down, Moffie wasn't finished. In the second period, they mattered most - when the Treais found himself skating with Wolverines were killing off pen- the puck in the left faceoff circle alties. and spotted Moffie streaking Berenson sung the short- towards the goal. After receiving handed unit's praises but didn't a perfect pass, Moffie hammered hesitate to call out his team for the puck home fromthe slot to put spending far too much time a man the Wolverines up 2-0. down. The referees laid off their "Too many penalties - that's whistles in the second period, but what cost us," Berenson said. "I things soon got out of hand in the thought there were some real third. Michigan and Miami com- good parts of (the penalty kill), bined for 16 penalties in the last and there were some other parts 20 minutes. of it where your goalie has to be In the midst of the chippy peri- your best penalty killer." od, junior forward Chris Brown During Michigan's 3-0 win on scored the goal of the season for Saturday, the infractions started the Wolverines, a highlight-reel early and kept on coming. When gem that turned the faces of the senior defensenan Greg Pateryn RedHawks' defensemen andgoal- was whistled for a slash just 39 tender the same shade of red as seconds into the contest, the their sweaters. parade to the penalty box began. Brown received the puck and Fifty-two penalty minutes later, skated the length of the ice, but a frustrated Miami power play paused at the top of the circle to walked away empty-handed. send the puck through the legs In fact, the Wolverine penalty of Miami's Will Weber. Knapp killers answered the call, not just must've been too busy gaping at by making quick work of the four the deke - which sent the Yost Miami power plays, but also by Ice Arena crowd into a frenzy - scoring a goal of their own. to make a serious attempt at stop- On a RedHawk advantage in pingthe ensuingshot. the first period, Miami overcom- With one minute remaining, mitted in the attacking zone. tensions culminated with a fight Junior forward Kevin Lynch in a corner in the Miami zone. managed to knock the puck out of Brown and Weber got into a tus- the zone and senior captain Luke sle, and the referees dealt each a Glendening was there to start the game disqualification. When the odd-man rush. The lone Miami Wolverines travel to Munn Ice defenseman looked mystified as Arena on Friday night to try and Glendening's pass whizzed by, extend their three-game win- and Knapp couldn't possibly catch ningstreak, they will have to doit up to the shot that followed from without Brown. junior defenseman Lee Moffie. Though the score might not "A big thing with two-on-ones reflect the difficulties Michigan is that ... they're a lot more pro- faced, Berenson can't help but ductive when the pass is made shake his head at the lack of disci- early," Moffie said. "That's what pline his team displayed. (Glendening) did and that's what "You shouldn't have to kill that we've been working on." many penalties in a game like Michigan's breakaways and that," Berenson said. odd-man rushes this season have Berenson continues to preach been ugly, but the one scored by the importance of limiting pen- Moffie on Saturday was pictur- alty minutes. A vast majority of esque. power-playunits will make Mich- The shorthanded tally was the igan pay for its misdoings. But Wolverines' third of the season, with the penalty kill playing its and their first since November. best down the stretch, it's com- After the game, Blasi credited forting to know he has defense- the Michigan penalty killers for men willing to sacrifice their preventing most of his team's bodies to get the puck away from chances before they could come danger. And even more so, that to fruition. his backstop, Hunwick, is seeing "Part of it is good goaltend- the ice just fine, at even strength ing," Blasi said. "And guys block- or not. ing shots and things. As a whole, "When you're playing against Michigan was the better team all Miami, in front of crowds like weekend long." that, and the intensity of this That edge came at a cost, series," Hunwick said, "I was just though. trying to play the game and have "Our defense had to take a fun." tn a "yes face" when he's suffering "It's just something Tim's to through shooting slumps, and got to mature with," said senior 's players have acknowledged that guard Stu Douglass. "It's been re he gets too down on himself. an up-and-down road. ... I don't ed Hardaway's emotions seemed know if it's something now to get the best of him from the where he just needs to hit some es get-go, starting when he missed shots and get it going one game, )d a 3-pointer just 72 seconds into but he needs to just stay poised x- the game. After most of his nine mentally. He's working on it." he misses, he hung his head or com- Douglass pinpointed Hard- n- plained about a foul not being away's emotional struggles as a n. called, causing him to be slow to case of putting too much pres- en get back on defense. sure on himself. Gymnasts excel in Las Vegas By ALEX BONDY Daily Sports Writer Three members from the No. 8 Michigan men's gym- nastics team excelled in the Winter Cup in Las Vegas this weekend. Sophomore Sam Mikulak and freshmen Adrian de los Angeles and Stacey Ervin all earned appearances in the finals after Thursday's com- petition, with Mikulak and de los Angeles earning spots on the U.S. National Team. To make the finals, a gymnast had to be a top-10 performer in any event in Thursday's competition. De los Angeles was at the head of the team, placing third on the vault, while Ervin placed ninth in the event. Mikulak placed fourth on high bar, fifth on parallel bars, and sixth on rings. "I have taken teams to the Winter Cup since I've been at Michigan, so almost 14 years (here) and before that in my coaching career," said Michi- gan coach Kevin Golder. "This is the best that we have ever done, and the best I have ever had a group do." Though Golder had con- cerns about Mikulak's health, HARDAWAY From Page 1B Izzo said. "That's kind of how Hardaway gets his shots. It wasn't just shutting down Hard- away, it was how Hardaway gets shots, andthat's driving, kicking." Hardaway did, however, point to the youth and inexperience of Burke to account for some of his the sophomore overcame a 85 series of nagging minor inju- fif ries that he has been battling me with for the past few weeks. ba Former Wolverine Ian th Makowske (2008-11) and th. 2013 Michigan signee Kon- ner Ackerman also competed wi on Thursday, with Makowske Ar finishing ninth on high bar - me good enough to advance him an to the finals as well. we In the finals on Saturday, Co Mikulak earned second place th. on the parallel bars with a in 15.10 score, tied for seventh ab on the rings (14.70) and placed als seventh on the high bar all (13.95), advanced his plans to on make the U.S. Olympic team. "I was real pleased, and I th. had a lot of confidence going wi into the competition," Miku- foe lak said. "I felt like every- on thing that I was doing with qu my routines was really going the to pan out for me during the competition. I still have a few of upgrades that I can still put an in, and I'm going to get my we floor going sometime soon. tee This just shows me that I still me have the rest of the season to SU progress and just keep getting better and better." stt De los Angeles placed 10th gu all-around in his rookie per- ma formance with a total score of go struggles. While Burke has often looked like a veteran floor gen- eral, in some road venues, he's played closer to his own age. The raucous atmosphere in Breslin Center proved trouble- some for Burke, who scored 11 points, but had four turnovers. "(There was) a little bit of miscommunication," Hardaway said. "(The chemistry between Trey and I is developing) a little bit more slowly.... The chemistry .05 on Saturday. He placed th on vault, eighth on pom- el horse and 11th on parallel rs, earning him one of the ree wild-card selections for e national team. "I'm completely satisfied th my performance," de los ngeles said. "I came into the eet with a positive attitude d I ended up doing pretty ell, so I am happy with that. onfidence-wise, this is huge at the senior team believes me and thinks I have the ilities to perform. This will so help me trust myself in of my routines from here out." Ervin scored the best on e team on the floor event th a score of 14.55 and tied r sixth. He also tied for 13th the vault, but it wasn't ite enough to earn a spot on e national team. Golder said the success Mikulak, de los Angeles d Ervin at the Winter Cup ould motivate the rest of the am in its upcoming home eet against Ohio State and NY Brockport. "They are on the national age, and they are young ys," Golder said. "They ade maize and blue look real od." is there, we just need it to be o a consistent basis and just try, make it a consistent effort. He still learning where people a: out on the floor, and we just nee to keep on working at it." But Hardaway's struggle weren't just the result of got defense or the faults of an ine perienced point guard. TI Miami native has battled to co tain his own emotions all seaso Beilein often tells him to put o