The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Friday, February 17, 2012 -
The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Friday, February 17, 2012
Late surge lifts Iowa to win
Hawkeyes' 3-point
parade erases
defecit, stuns
Michigan at Crisler
By COLLEEN THOMAS
Daily Sports Writer
It didn't take long for the Mich-
igan women's basketball team's
eight-point lead late in the second
half to dis-
appear. IOWA 58
With just MICHIGAN 57
44 seconds
left to play in Thursday's game,
Iowa's Kamille Wahlin hit a go-
ahead 3-pointer.
It was the Hawkeyes' first lead
of the game.
On the ensuing possession,
the Wolverines (7-6 Big Ten, 18-8
overall) looked to put the ball in
the paint, giving it to senior guard
Carmen Reynolds.
But Reynolds' shot was
blocked and Michigan had to
send someone to the foul line to
get one more possession. Junior
guard Jenny Ryan unwisely
chose Wahlin, an 87-percent
free-throw shooter, to shoot the
1-and-1.
The Wolverines got a lucky
break.
"I wasn't too happy when it
didn't go in,"Wahlin said. "Michi-
gan took a timeout, and we went
to the bench and my teammates
* picked me up and said, 'Hey we
got your back, we're going to get
this stop.'"
As the shot clock ran down
for Michigan, Iowa (8-6, 17-10)
clogged the paint and forced
junior guard Nya Jordan to kick
the ball out to junior forward Sam
Arnold.
Rebow
T he final score of the
Michigan women's bas-
ketball team's loss to
Iowa on Thursday night was
58-57.
But the deciding number was
18 - how many more rebounds
the Hawkeyes pulled down than
the Wolverines.
Most noticeable was the dif-
ference in offensive rebounds.
Iowa out-
rebounded MICHAEL
Michigan, LAURILA
20-9. Though
this number On Women's
isn't mind Basketball
blowing, it
led to a Hawkeye advantage of
16-8 in points after offensive
rebounds.
The Wolverines led by as
many as 13 points going into
the first half, but were still
dominated 10-4 in the offensive
rebounding category. But Iowa
couldn't hit the broad side of the
barn - shooting an abysmal 21.6
percent from the floor.
"When you're not shooting
the ball, you better crash," said
Iowa coach Lisa Bluder. "You've
got to crash to get those second
and third opportunities, and
I'm proud of our team for doing
that."
For Iowa, the crashing of the
boards, as Bulder said, didn't
come from the Hawkeyes' lead-
ing rebounder, 6-foot-5 junior
Morgan Johnson. It came from
freshman Samantha Logic.
Logic tallied 18 total
rebounds, nine of those coming
on the offensive glass. This gave
her a career high in the catego-
ry, as well as probably earning
her a game ball. But one player
wasn't the downfall for the Wol-
verines. The true problems were
an all-around lack of boxing
out and being undersized in the
paint. On multiple occasions,
Johnson used her size to shoot
a lay-up. Miss. Get her own
rebound and put up another
shot. Miss. Get a third consecu-
tive rebound and, finally, either
score or get fouled.
This series of plays brings
back memories of youth games,
where one tall player could
dominate a game, whether they
were talented or not. Unfortu-
nately for Michigan, this wasn't
a YMCA game.
Though the Wolverines "lost
the game" because they couldn't
convert on their two opportuni-
Blue readies for
talented pool at
Florida Atlantic
Wolverines eye
rematch with
No. 22 Kentucky
on Saturday
By DANIEL FELDMAN
Daily Sports Writer
After sweeping a four-game
tournament last weekend, the
No. 11 Michigan softball team
looks to maintain its perfect
record in this weekend's Florida
Atlantic Kickoff Classic.
The Wolverines will play five
games between Friday and Sun-
day, including a pair of double-
headers. After games against
Maryland and Long Island on
Friday and No. 22 Kentucky and
Florida Atlantic on Saturday,
in last year's NCAA tournament.
As much of a disappointment as
that was, the Wolverines will
look to avenge their early exit.
Though Kentucky, is ranked
while Michigan's other four
opponents are not, the team's
mentality will not differ as they
play each game.
"Everyone competes to play,"
Chidester said. "It's just a num-
ber out there. It's not something
we really look towards."
Something the Wolverines
will look toward this weekend
will be the performance of fresh-
man pitcher Sara Driesenga, who
is coming off of a two-win week-
end, highlighted by a no-hitter
through five innings that earned
her Big Ten Freshman of the
Week honors.
Lost in Driesenga's dazzling
pitching display last week was
Junior forward Sam Arnold missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer, but shared the team lead with 12 points.
Arnold launched a 3-pointer,
and the Hawkeyes - as they had
done 27 times earlier in the game
- pulled down the defensive
rebound.
Wahlin's teammates got their
stop, and Iowa got the win,
58-57.
Arnold's shot may not have
been ideal for the Wolverines,
but they had no other options.
Iowa's defense didn't give up
any opportunities in the paint,
and Arnold was open at the top
of the key.
But Michigan coach Kevin
Borseth seemed to think a jumper
was the best choice.
"We tried to get around the
basket," he said. "We went down
with Carmen (in the previous
possession) and didn't get a foul
called, so I didn't know if I want-
ed to go under the basket again
and put it in the hands of the offi-
cials."
Regardless, it didn't work out
well for the Wolverines. Despite
12-point efforts by Arnold and
senior guard Courtney Boylan,
the team was unable to maintain
the 14-point lead it took into the
half.
After shooting at a 46-percent
clip in the first half, Michigan was
unable to keep up the pace, com-
pleting just 21 percent of its shots
in the second frame.
But Iowa smelled blood as a
result, and it was clearly the bet-
ter second-half team. Wahlin's
efforts led the Hawkeyes, as she
had 11 of her 18 points in the sec-
ond stanza, and Samantha Logic
tallied a double-double.
Logic dominated the glass
on both ends of the Crisler Cen-
ter court, pulling down 18 of the
team's 48 total rebounds. But
while Iowa was limiting Michi-
gan's offensive possessions, the
Hawkeyes were creating second-
chance opportunities of their
own.
Iowa had 16 points off of 20
offensive boards, and limiting
the Wolverine post players was
the most significant aspect of the
Hawkeyes' game plan according
to Iowa coach Lisa Bluder.
"We told them at halftime,
'We're going to win this game
with defense and rebounds,' and
that's exactly what we did in the
second half," she said.
Michigan gets another chance
to play the Hawkeyes in the last
game of the season in Iowa City.
And Borseth knows that the
team has to make a case for an
NCAA Tournamentbid.
"We've got to win the last one
- that's the one you want to win,"
he said. "Because that's the one
the committee looks at."
Ids were the difference
ties at the end of the game to
hit a game winner, it wasn't the
only reason. Almost every sec-
ond-chance opportunity result-
ed in either an Iowa basket, free
throw or another miss.
But this isn't a new problem
for Michigan. All season, the
Wolverines lack of size has
tormented them against bigger
teams, especially those in the
Big Ten. They play a help-ori-
ented defense to limit opposing
post players. At 6-foot-2, junior
forward Rachel Sheffer fronts
the post and relies on backside
help from the guards.
On Thursday, this strategy
seemed to work in the first
half, as Michigan tallied nine
turnovers. Problems arose
when the ball got into the post,
because it seemed the Wolver-
ines only option was to hack-a-
shaq.
Sure, the Hawkeyes scored
39 second-half points compared
to its
hita3
left, b
to win
was w
has we
while
the gl
lost th
game.
not
ba
19 first-half points and Though that isn't illogical,
-pointer with 44 seconds the bigger picture showed: if the
ut Michigan's inability Wolverines want to capitalize
the battle on the boards on their post-season aspira-
hy Iowa won. Michigan tions, something will need to
on games this season change in the paint. With only
still losing the battle for three remaining regular-season
ass, but Thursday, they games, if Michigan hopes to end
at battle, and in turn, the its 11-year tournament drought,
something will have to change -
rebounding or otherwise.
They have a long road to go,
and Borseth knows the impor-
Vhen you're tance of the remaining games
since the NCAA Tournament
shooting the selection committee focuses
more than just on wins and
11, yOu better losses. It looks at the momentum
a team has coming into the end
crash." of the year, as well as its confer-
ence-tournament play. Michi-
gan's abilityto rebound and
control the paint - or at least
m Logic had 18 rebounds," to limit opposing teams in the
th said. "That was the big paint - could be the difference
ence. Either that or making between another NIT berth and
;t shot." an invitation to the Big Dance.
the team will the stellar
conclude the defense behind
weekend's her. Through
tournament "Everyone Driesenga's
with a match- two outings,
up against competes to play. spanning t
Wright State. nRankings) innings, she
A major rea- are has just tallied
son for Michi- * ab two strikeouts.
gan's 4-0 um "The coach-
start is senior es tell her all
third base- the time, 'Let
man Amanda the defense
Chidester. Through four games, help you,"' said senior center-
Chidester has hit two home runs, fielder Bree Evans. "We have a
tying her with sophomore first really good defense this year."
baseman Taylor Hasselbach for Despite the fact that the sea-
the team lead. son is very young, the team's
"I don't need to get all the hits goals are already set.
and big hits," Chidester said. "We hope for the same things,"
Her first home run of the year said Evans.
was a walk-off to defeat then-No. "We hope to win the Big Ten
22 LSU, 2-L This weekend's tour- like we have been and we hope
nament is headlined by a match- to make to the World Series
up with No. 22 Kentucky, which and have a shot for the national
upset and eliminated Michigan championship."
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