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The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Wednesday, March 19, 2014 - 7A
Bench Bromance: McGary and Dakich's antics
By DANIEL WASSERMAN
Daily Sports Editor
INDIANAPOLIS - At one end
of thebench sits an All-American;
on the other, a 19-year old that
needs his uniform to convince
you that he's on the Michigan
men's basketball team.
The injured Mitch McGary
- clad in a suit and tie for
now - sits next to the coaches
while Andrew Dakich is almost
out of earshot from them.
Symbolically, it couldn't be
more fitting. Yet moments after
almost every single meaningful
bucket Michigan scored at the
Big Ten Tournament,' the two
came together - for a high five,
a dance, a handshake - to form
basketball's unlikeliest, and most
endearingbromance.
It's March after all, the month
synonymous with madness. It's
a time when as a nation we fall
in love with unknowns from
- Adam Morrison and Stephen
Curry -- and turn them into
household names.
McGary, an injured
sophomore forward, made
a name for himself on the
recruiting trail before coming to
Michigan, but it wasn't until last
March - when he played in 184
of'the Wolverines' 240 NCAA
Tournament minutes - that he
cemented his superstar status.
The freshman guard Dakich,
on the other hand, will likely
never play a single minute of
meaningful basketball in his
collegiate career. Despite playing
just three minutes this month
- each in the final moments
of lopsided contests - his
sideline celebrations have firmly
established himself as Ann
Arbor's latest cult hero.
In the past week alone, not
one, but two YouTube highlight
videos have been dedicated to his
dance moves.
beganmidwaythroughtheseason
when team chemistry reached
a point when he no longer felt
he had to be an under-the-radar
freshman. The dice roll, he says,
is his favorite, but normally, "I
just do something with my hands
where I wiggle them around and
just see whatI can come up with."
None of the Wolverines saw
the first highlight reel, which
has more than 14,600 hits, until
someone stumbled upon it on
Twitter while the team was on
the bus en route to Indianapolis
last week. Players and coach alike
loved it, but no one more than
McGary. Together, the pair has
begun calling themselves the
'Bench Mob.'
"Once he saw that, he wanted
tobeapartofit,"Dakichsaid. "We
came up with some handshakes,
some skits we can do. ... We don't
try to be like the stereotypical
guys who just clap. We try to mix
it up a little bit."
On almost every Wolverine
jump shot attempted over the
weekend, Dakich andbench mate,
freshman guard Sean Lonergan,
would stand in anticipation of
a make, a bit problematic since
more than 55 percent of the time
they'd immediately sitback down.
But on makes, Dakich would
make his way over to McGary
or even past him, in front of the
coaches, to celebrate with dice
rolls or dance steps.
So far, none of the coaches have
seemed to mind. In fact, Michigan
assistant coach Bacari Alexander
encourages Dakich to get "the
moonwalk in my repertoire."
"I honestly don't even know if
(Michigan coach John) Beilein
even knows they are doing it half
thetime,because heissoinvolved
in the game," said sophomore
point guard Spike Albrecht. "It's
hilarious to sit next to them and
listen to some of the things they
say - they're out of control.
"I love it when (Dakich)
literally ... ends up six chairs
PAUL SHt
Freshman guard Andrew Dakich has made a name for himself not on the court, but on the sidelines this season.
down, right in front of Coach. I'm fact that neither he nor Beilein
like, 'Dude, where the hell are you has shot down the ideacompletely
going?'" has given some fuel to the fire.
Though Dakich's moves have Regardless of whether he suits
been the more impressive of up this year or next, and even if
the pair, it's he will play
McGary's another game
ability to even as a Wolverine,
jump out of his "It's hilarious there's no
seat and dance question in
that's lending to sit next to his mind
excitement that he'll be a
to some fans them and listen better player
holding out whenever he
hope that the to some of the returns.
forward will "From the
make a surprise things they say." mental aspect,
return later I'll be five-
this month. times, 10-times
"If I get too greater, just
excited, coaches start yelling because I see what's going on,"
at me, telling me to sit down," McGary said. "I've had a whole
McGary said. "But right now, season to sit out to and watch the
where my body and my back is, I game, learn from it, learn from
think I'm alright to start jumping the coaches."
around a little more." His time in a suit and tie has
Thus far, the sophomore hasn't been so rewarding that it has
indicated a postseason return is reshaped his future plans.
even being considered, but the "I definitely see a coaching
career in my future," he said. "I
never really even thoughtof it, but
just because of my presence and
my attitude, I'm good at talking
to people, I would love to coach in
the future."
Alexander started calling the
sophomore 'Coach McGary,' to
which McGary responds, "It's
weird. I say I'm still a player."
But for the time being, he'll
remain bound by the bench,
at least until someone on the
floor makes a big play and the
bromance rekindles on the
Michigan sideline.
And the deeper the Wolverines
go in their pursuit of another
Final Four run, the brighter
the Bench Mob's spotlight will
be. Dakich pointed to another
YouTube sensation, the Colby
College basketball team, as an
inspiration for what lies ahead.
"We're trying to steal some
of their stuff," he admitted, but
beyond that, he remained coy on
any future moves.
"Stay tuned."
PATRICK BARRON/Daily
Sophomore forward Mitch McGary has made his impact off the bench this year.
HOCKEY
In Penn State, an ideal foe
By ERIN LENNON
Daily Sports Writer
In the postseason, a team with
plenty of talent and heart, but
one long prefaced by "conference
bottom-feeder" is aquintessential
Cinderella-story in the making.
Penn State is a second-year
program with a sparkling new
arena competing in a newly
formed conference against
some of the oldest, most storied
programs in college hockey. The
Nittany Lions won just four of 18
games and lost 16 of 20 Big Ten
matchups in the regular season.
Still, eight of those losses
were decided by one goal, often
late in regulation or in overtime.
Penn State has skated with No. 1
Minnesota and No. 5 Wisconsin,
holding both teams to games
decided by a single tally. So with
everything to gain - an outright
birth to the NCAAtournament -
and nothing to lose, Penn State is
not to be overlooked.
But if there is a team in this
league that knows not to be
caught off guard by the last-
seeded team, it's the No. 13
Michigan hockey team.
Though this is the inaugural
year of Big Ten hockey, these
two programs have history, if
only in the recent past. Less than
one month ago, the second-year
program embarrassed Michigan.
The Wolverines carried a 3-2
lead into the third period before
a series of egregious defensive
mistakes secured the Nittany
Lions' sixth win of the season.
And to make matters worse,
the upset was Penn State's
second conference victory of
the season and its second over
Michigan in two weeks.
"That's the thing, we're not
playing a last-place team, we're
playing a team that's literally
.500 with us," said Michigan
coach Red Berenson. "I think
that's motivation and it's
respect, and that's the game that
we're pointing at."
After a sweep over Michigan
State, this was supposed to be
the Wolverines' triumphant ride
into a second-place finish in the
conference, but instead it was
the start of another detrimental
losingstreak. Michiganfollowed
a dominant but not surprising
7-3 thwart of the Nittany Lions
in State College on Friday Feb.
7 with an abysmal 4-0 loss. In
it, freshman goaltender Zach
Nagelvoort lasted fewer than 15
minutes in net and surrendered
a trio of goals.
Though it wasn't only his
performance that decided a
loss to Penn State at home,
Nagelvoort was the goaltender
on record in the 4-3 overtime
contest.
"It would probably be easy
for any team on any given night
On Saturday, Senior Night at
Yost, Michigan was forced to
dig itself out of a hole it spent
nearly three months digging.
Having fallen out of the top
16 in PairWise rankings to
Minnesota the night before,
the Wolverines needed a win to
keep their postseason dreams
from turning into last season's
nightmare, and they had to do
it against the No. 1 team in the
nation. So with all that pressure
mounted in its home building,
Michigan played its best game
of the season, routing the
Golden Gophers, 6-2.
Though they've made a habit
of easing up after a win this
to come in season, the
against Penn Wolverines
State and say "W e'rep laying - who have
'this is a game VVJ A recorded just
we should a team that's three series
win,' but sweeps this
they've proven literally 500 season - are
that they're arguably at
not going to be with us." their best
overlooked," when their
Nagelvoort backs are
said. against the
Despite his gloomy personal boards.
history against the Nittany "We're confident with a sense
Lions, Nagelvoort is expected of desperation," said freshman
to get the starting nod in net, forward JT Compher.
Berenson said Monday. Added Nagelvoort: "From
Nagelvoort impressed in his here on out, it's playoff hockey
first appearance against No. 1 and anyone can beat anyone.
Minnesota last Friday, standing We've struggled against Penn
on his head long enough to State, and it doesn't matter
force an eighth overtime who you're playing, you gotta
contest at Yost Ice Arena. The pretend like it's the best team in
next night, the netminder the country."
made mindboggling saves that The ticket to the NCAA
prevented the Golden Gophers Tournament isn't punched. If
from erasing a four-goal deficit. Michigan doesn't want history
With each catch of the puck, - one that left it out of the
Nagelvoort flipped it just a little NCAA Tournament for the first
bit higher, a sign that he'd gotten time in 22 years - to repeat
his early season swagger back. itself, it will need at least one
A player who thrives on the win in the Big Ten Tournament.
big stage, a player who knows The stakes couldn't be higher.
what Penn State can do to So Penn State might be a
an unsuspecting goaltender, Cinderella in the making, but
Nagelvoort isthe right goalie for the Wolverines knows what size
the job. skate it wears.
What might be more
promising, though, is this team's Need more sports coverage?
ability as a whole to perform Check MichiganDaily.com
when the stakes are at their
highest.
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