-8A - Thursday, January 12, 2012 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com MEN'S BASKETBALL Wolverines dominate offensive glass in win Sophomore guard Tim Hardaway Jr. and freshman guard Trey Burke each scored 19 points in the Wolverines' 66-64 overtime victory against Northwestern. gMiinfnisesWldcats inO By BEN ESTES Jr., who fouled Reggie Hearn Daily SportsoEditor with one second left in the second half and the game tied. That gave All Michigan coach John the Wildcats a chance for the last Beilein could do was breathe a shot, but guard/forward Drew sigh of relief. Crawford was blocked and called It wasn't pretty, and for for a travel when he came downto long stretches they didn't look the floor after his failed jumper. like they "(The fouls) were justdefensive deserved 'to N'WESTERN 64 breakdowns, just scrambling," win, butthe MICHIGAN 66 Hardaway Jr. said. "They were Michigan scrambling to get a shot off. The basketball team held off a pesky refs made good calls, and we were Northwestern team in overtime lucky enough that (Marcotullio) on Wednesday night, taking the missed his first free throw" 66-64 victory. Michigan had to fight just to Playing in the first overtime get a chance to win the game. game of his college career, fresh- For the longest time, it looked man point guard Trey Burke sank like Northwestern (1-3, 11-5) was four free throws in the final 1:05 going to run away with it. In the to give Michigan a three-point first half, the Wolverines looked lead with just seconds to play. But overmatched, especially on the 13th-ranked Wolverines had defense - Michigan struggled to to survive one final scare, when keep up with the Wildcats' Princ- sophomore guard Tim Hardaway eton attack, constantly losing Jr. fouled Wildcat Alex Marcotul- cutters and allowing easy looks lio on a last-ditch, low-percent- underneath the basket. age 3-pointer with 0.3 seconds Northwestern forward John remaining. Shurna, in particular, couldn't But Marcotullio missed his be stopped, speeding away from first free throw, allowing Michi- Wolverine defenders off the ball gan (4-1 Big Ten, 14-3 overall) to and hitting almost all of his shots. hold on for the win. Shurna finished with 21 points to It was the second poor deci- lead all scorers. sion in the clutch for Hardaway Michigan was caught off guard when Luka Mirkovic, the starting center for the Wildcats, was kept on the bench at the beginning of the game - Northwestern coach Bill Carmody had decided to go with a smaller lineup. Beilein also pointed to senior guard Zack Novak's extended absence - he picked up two early fouls - as a factor in his team's first-half defensive struggles. "We didn't have a plan for Shurna as a 5 man," Beilein said. "(Mirkovic) has a total of three 3-pointers on the entire year. (Shurna's) got like 40 or 50. "He's got incredible numbers, one of the best in the country. When that came at us, they got out to an early start on us, and then Zack goes down. I was really proud of the way we foughtback." A 10-0 Wolverine run with 13:38 left in the second half - punctuated by a fast-break, two- handed dunk by Novak - gave Michigan its first lead, 46-44, since early in the first frame. But the Wildcats didn't go away, quickly regaining their composure and retaking the lead. From there, it was a defen- sive battle, as neither team could manage to get many open looks nor hit the ones they did get. Hardaway Jr. was the only one keeping Michigan in it as North- western threatened to break away in the first frame, making four of his five 3-point attempts and finishing the half with 14 points. He saved his biggest 3-pointer for late in the game. Hardaway Jr. hit the shot with a hand in his face with just over two and a half minutes remain- ing, tying the game at 54-54 and setting up the frenetic finish. While the Wildcats got open looks in the paint with ease in the first frame, the Wolverines got nothing out of their frontcourt. When redshirt sophomore for- ward Jordan Morgan wasn't los- ing his man on cuts on defense, he was getting swarmed in the paint and failing to put the ball in the basket on offense. And sophomore forward Evan Smotrycz struggled even more - Beilein was forced to sit him at the 11-minute mark of the firsthalfafterSmotrycz picked up his second foul. Morgan nearly crippled Mich- igan in overtime when he picked up a technical foul with just over two minutes left for throwing an elbow after a Wolverine basket. But Michigan recovered and did just enough to hold on to win. By NEAL ROTHSCHILD Daily Sports Editor If the rebounding effort of the Michigan men's basketball team on Wednesday night could be described in one word, it'd be offensive. But in a good way. NOTEBOOK The Wolver- ines pounded the offensive glass throughout the second half and overtime, which helped them to 13 second-chance points in their 66-64 victory over Northwestern. In fact, Michigan had just two fewer offensive rebounds than defensive rebounds on the game. Twelve second-half offensive rebounds and four more in over- time were instrumental in keeping Michigan's possessions alive and overcoming an eight-point deficit. "It helped give us extra pos- sessions out there on the court, and we really needed those because we really weren't crash- ing the offensive glass in the first half," said sophomore forward Tim Hardaway Jr. "So just get- ting those extra opportunities on offense and getting key plays down the stretch really helped us with the victory." Michigan's 10-0 second-half run, which erased the deficit and gave Michigan a brief lead, was sparked by an offensive rebound. Senior guard Zack Novak followed his miss on a 3-pointer, which gave the Wolverines' possession new life and culminated in an easy layup from Hardaway Jr. And with the Wildcats clinging to a four-point lead with less than five minutes remaining, Michi- gan scrapped for three offensive rebounds on the same possession. Eventually, sophomore forward Evan Smotrycz buried a jumper to end a stretch of eight-straight Wolverine misses. In overtime, with the game tied at 58, freshman point guard Trey Burke rebounded his own miss, then rebounded senior guard Stu Douglass's miss and buried a leaner to give Michigan a lead it would not relinquish. "Trey Burke," said Michi- gan coach John Beilein. "I don't want him ever getting offensive rebounds because I always want him rotating back. I'm glad he got that one. Because that was a big point in the game." In the final minute of the game with Michigan up a point, Hard- away Jr. missed a 3-pointer, but the Wolverines recovered it and Burke knocked down two free throws to give Michigan its final margin of victory. BURKE WORKS OVERTIME: It was a tale of two halves for Burke. But both halves were disappoint- ing, so he used overtime to get the happy ending. The Columbus native went 4-for-15 in regulation and con- tributed to the Wolverines' dis- mal first half. But in overtime, Burke put the last 40 minutes behind him and carried Michigan to its fourth Big Ten victory. He scored eight of the Wolverines' 12 points in the extra frame and was unfazed at the line, knocking down all six of his free-throw attempts. In the final minute, Northwest- ern sent Burke to the line twice. Both times, the Wolverines were up by a point and needed two makes to ensure thatthe Wildcats could do no better than tie. With the crowd of 12,605 qui- eting to a hush on each attempt, Burke stayed cool and found nylon each time. "Thank God we have him," Hardaway Jr. said. "That's what I'm saying. Trey Burke is just growing as the season goes on, blossominginto agreatplayer and a nationally ranked player. Him knocking down these big free throws just gives him more con- fidence going down the stretch of the season." Ryan has tough task guarding Nittany Lions' standout Lucas I mmma * Are you a sophomore with a passion for the environment & sustainability? * Want hands-on training to become a sustainability leader? * Appreciate priority access to, & funding for, field- based sustainability courses? Need help finding a pathway to meaningful, high- impact work that builds sustainable communities? * Interested in engaging with students with similar interests & passions? If you answered "YES" to these ques- tions, then you'll want to apply to the Graham Institute's Undergraduate Sustainability Scholars Program by January 17, 2011. If accepted, in addition to earning a sustainability certificate on your transcript, you'll enjoy special access to, and funding for, a variety of exciting field-based sustainability courses. 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So if you'd like to receive training and support in having a positive impact during this extraordinary time in human history-and earn valuable sustainability credentials with. your degree-then be sure to apply ASAP. n at:b K blue By MATT SPELICH Daily Sports Writer Junior guard Jenny Ryan began practice on Tuesday morning with a couple rounds of power slides. Her drill requires her to stay low, go for the imaginary Michigan at ball and keep Penn State her imaginary defender at Matn St. 1-4; bay. But for Michigan 13-3 Ryan, that defender is When: Thurs- anything but day, 6:00 p.m. imaginary. It Where: Bryce- changes week Jordan Center to week, but TV/Radio: this week, she BigrTen Net- has a very spe- murk cific target in mind - Penn State sophomore guard Maggie Lucas. Lucas, last year's Big Ten Fresh- man of the Year, is one of No. 25 Penn State's three high-scoring guards around the arc. Last Sat- urday, she scored 33 points against Michigan State and has led her team to four 100-plus scoring out- ings this season alone. "They can flat out score," said Michigan coach Kevin Borseth. "Penn State has the most talent of anyone in our conference, hands down. They are extremely strong, extremely athletic, and they have great size. They are a handful to anyone that plays them." Though the bulkofPenn State's offensive production comes from its perimeter players - a scor- ing scheme the Wolverines have matched up well against so far this season - Michigan's bigs are sure to find their hands full with 6-foot-4 junior center Nikki Greene. Though she may not be a main scoring threat, Greene's rebounding and blocking capabili- ties will force the Wolverines to make some major adjustments on both sides of the court. "They have a monster of a kid around that basket that makes life very difficult around the hole," Borseth said. "We have to find a way to rebound around 0l Junior guardJenny Ryan will go up against Penn State guard Maggie Lucas. the basket. (Penn State) grabbed up 25 offensive boards against Nebraska. "The reason Nebraska won was because (the Cornhuskers) were able to score well on the other end. Our keys are going to have to be taking care of the ball, rebounding, and taking shots in rhythm. We have a challenge ahead of us, no question about it." It is difficult to categorize a team as strictly offensively or defensively oriented, but for Ryan, the Wolverines' strength lies in its defense. The numbers are on her side. Michigan has held the bulk of its opponents to about 50 points thanks to a combination of solid one-on-one defense and the abil- ity to steal nearly everything in sight. It has been said on multiple occasions that the Wolverines are flesh-and-blood rebels to the old, steadfast belief that the best defense is a good offense. In fact, Michigan seems to believe the best offense is a good defense. Thursday, the Wolverines will play a team that believes in the old and steadfast, an ideology that has guided the Nittany Lions to several victories surpassing the century-mark. How it will all play out is unclear, but the goal remains the same for Michigan - pull out a win. "We pride ourselves on our defense, and with them being the best offensive team and us one of the best defensive teams, this is going to be a battle of the man- tras," Ryan said. "We're just look- ing to come out with the win." .+ . _