8 — Friday, January 9, 2015
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Behind Enemy Lines: Richard Pitino

By JAKE LOURIM 

Managing Sports Editor

The Big Ten added another 

young name to its list of top 
college basketball coaches in 
2013 when Minnesota hired 
Richard 
Pitino.

Pitino 

spent 
two years 
working 
as 
an 

assistant 
to his dad, Rick, at Louisville 
from 2010 to 2012. The elder 
Pitino has reached seven Final 
Fours and won two national 
championships 
during 
stops 

at Providence, Kentucky and 
Louisville.

After 
a 
year 
at 
Florida 

International in 2012-13, the 
younger Pitino missed the NCAA 
Tournament in his first year at 
Minnesota but won the NIT.

In some ways, his defensive 

style resembles his dad’s with 
its full-court pressure. Last 
season, Michigan beat Pitino’s 
Minnesota team twice — 63-60 
in both teams’ Big Ten opener 
in Minneapolis, and 66-56 on 
March 1 at Crisler Center. In 
the latter game, the Wolverines 
clinched a share of the Big Ten 
title, while the Golden Gophers 
dropped 
to 
7-10, 
severely 

hurting their chances of earning 
an at-large bid to the NCAA 
Tournament.

The Daily sat down with 

Pitino at Big Ten Media Day in 
October to discuss the coach’s 
outlook on the season after 
winning the NIT championship.

The 
Michigan 
Daily: 

Last year, it seemed like your 
team played with a little bit 
of a chip on its shoulder going 
into the NIT and getting the 
championship. How does that 
translate into this season?

Richard Pitino: The beauty 

of winning the NIT is, when 
you 
make 
the 
NIT 
you’re 

obviously very close to making 

the NCAA Tournament. That 
means you missed out on the 
NCAA Tournament. So you’re 
disappointed. But then, what 
I was proud of was our guys 
regrouped, didn’t feel sorry for 
themselves and then corrected 
all the mistakes that kept us out 
of the tournament. Our defense 
got better, our rebounding got 
better, we cut our turnovers 
down — all those things I think 
they learned from, and we 
were really playing our best 
basketball at the end. So there’s 
a lot to be learned from winning 
the NIT, and there’s a lot to be 
proud of, certainly.

TMD: You won your last 

game, which not a lot of teams 
get to do. Does that, maybe even 
rather than losing early in the 
NCAA Tournament, does that 
bring more confidence into this 

year?

RP: It’s all how everything 

is 
perceived. 

It’s 
all 
how 

the 
media 

perceives 
it 

and the fans 
perceive 
it. 

We 
certainly 

understand 
that. What I 
liked 
(was) 

we played a 
really 
good 

game 
versus 

SMU (in the 
title game). You can win some 
games, and you don’t play really 
well. I thought our guys played 
a very good team, a very well-
coached team in SMU, and they 
performed. That was nice to see, 
and I think our guys are proud 
of it, and they’re excited to build 

off of it.

TMD: Mid-season last year, 

you 
played 

four 
top-15 

teams and split 
those 
games. 

When 
you’re 

a team with 
postseason 
aspirations 
like you are, 
how tough is 
that schedule 
when you run 
into a stretch 
like that?

RP: It’s funny, because you 

do these press conferences and 
the media implies that, ‘Oh, you 
got three tough games by then.’ 
There’s no easy games in the 
Big Ten. You’ve got 18 of them. 
I don’t even look at the schedule, 
I really don’t. I couldn’t tell 

you who we open up against 
because I don’t want to have 
that anxiety. I want to sleep at 
night. Because there’s not one 
easy win. I remember our first 
win — Ben Johnson, who’s my 
assistant coach, turned to me 
because he’s been in the league 
lately, he said, ‘It’s a win in the 
Big Ten. That’s all you need to be 
happy about.’ And certainly we 
understand that.

TMD: Michigan won in your 

building to start last Big Ten 
season, then down the stretch 
beat Minnesota at Crisler. Is that 
something that enters into your 
mind at all going into the season?

RP: No, I try to forget about 

that. 
(Laughs.) 
Michigan 

certainly is a very good team. 
I thought we actually played a 
much better game at their place 
last year — I thought we played 

pretty well, if I can remember. 
Certainly they’re a very good 
team. (Beilein) does a great job. 
I don’t know if we play them 
twice this year, but when that 
time comes, we’ll address it.

TMD: 
You 
lost 
Austin 

(Hollins), but you’ve got Andre 
(Hollins) back. Is he stepping up 
as a leader for you?

RP: 
Yeah, 
absolutely. 
I 

haven’t decided captains or 
anything like that, but if there’s 
a clear-cut guy, it’s him. He’s 
focused, he’s stepped up, he’s in 
great shape, he’s healthy, which 
is huge, and if there’s a leader on 
this team, it’s Andre Hollins.

TMD: 
You’ve 
also 
got 

DeAndre (Mathieu) — it’s got 
to be nice to have two senior 
guards in that backcourt.

RP: It is. Our guys last year, 

DeAndre had never been through 
the Big Ten. He had never 
played major minutes in a major 
college program before. (Drake 
transfer) Joey King was in the 
Missouri Valley, so he goes up a 
conference. Mo Walker lost 75 
pounds. Elliott (Eliason) hardly 
played. So we had guys who may 
have appeared older, but they 
were very, very inexperienced. 
It’s not that way anymore, so 
now they understand what needs 
to be done. Now it’s a matter of 
doing it.

TMD: Finally, you talked 

this morning about a little bit of 
the full-court press and a little 
bit of the running game. Are 
those some things you hope to 
implement more this season as 
you kind of get into your systems 
more?

RP: 
I 
think 
it 
was 

implemented, 
it 
wasn’t 

implemented as well as I like 
it to be implemented. In my 
opinion, like any system that 
you do, right or wrong, you’ve 
got to recruit to it. So we bring 
in a couple of guys this year, I 
think they fit that, and I think 
we’re going to continue to move 
in that direction and hopefully 
get stronger every single year.

ALLISON FARRAND/Daily

Caris LeVert and the Michigan men’s basketball team host second-year coach Richard Pitino’s Minnesota team Saturday after a season sweep last year.

BEHIND
ENEMY
LINES

“There’s no easy 
games in the Big 
Ten. You’ve got 

18 of them.”

‘M’ hosts Minnesota in pivotal series

Wolverines, Golden 
Gophers battle at 
Yost for early Big 

Ten edge

By ERIN LENNON 

Daily Sports Editor

In September, the six Big 

Ten hockey coaches gathered at 
Joe Louis Arena and cast votes 
to 
predict 

how 
the 

conference’s 
second season 
would 
shake 

out. 
Not 

surprisingly, 
preseason 
rankings listed 
Minnesota 
— which lost 
to 
Union 
in 

the 
National 

Championship 
last 
season 

— 
on 
top, 

followed 
by 

Michigan and 
a young Wisconsin squad.

Now, three months later, 

with the Badgers limping into 
the new year at 2-11-1, it seems 
this three-team race will come 
down to the two facing off at 
Yost Ice Arena this weekend.

While it’s only early January, 

when 
the 
Wolverines 
take 

on No. 8 Minnesota in their 
first series of 2015, the results 
will likely play a major role 
in determining the Big Ten 
champion come March.

“We talked about it a little 

bit this week, how hard it is 
to win (in Minneapolis),” said 
junior forward Andrew Copp. 
“There’s some added pressure 
on winning the weekend here, 
for sure, and then trying to steal 
some points up there.

“I think everyone in our 

locker room knows, not just for 
the Big Ten but for the Pairwise 
(Rankings) too, we’re in a 
pretty good spot if we win the 
weekend.”

The 
reigning 
Big 
Ten 

champion, Minnesota (1-0-1 Big 
Ten, 10-5-1 overall) currently 
occupies fourth place in the 

conference standings, having 
earned a win and a tie in its only 
Big Ten series against Michigan 
State.

Though the Wolverines will 

have the upper hand at even 
strength — Michigan boasts 
the No. 5 offense in the country, 
scoring 3.65 goals per game — 
the Golden Gophers will be even 
tougher to beat if the game is 
decided by special teams.

Minnesota 
has 
converted 

on 30 percent of its power-play 
opportunities this season, good 
for second-best in the nation. 
Four players — forwards Kyle 
Rau, 
Connor 
Reilly, 
Justin 

Kloos and Travis Boyd — have 
combined for 14 of the Gophers’ 
18 power-play goals, heading 
the lethal unit.

Both teams will also benefit 

from the return of key players 
who participated in the 2014-15 
World Junior Championships in 
Canada.

Minnesota forwards Ryan 

Collins and Hudson Fasching 
returned to the team following 
the 
United 
States’ 
loss 
to 

Russia in the quarterfinals. 
The Russians also sent Swedish 
forward Leon Bristedt back to 
Minneapolis after the semifinal 
round.

And though they managed 

two 
wins 
and 
a 
Great 

Lakes Invitational title, the 
Wolverines managed just four 
goals in the tournament without 
three of their top six forwards 
and 
their 
offensive-minded 

defenseman in freshman Zach 
Werenski. The offense will 
welcome the return of freshman 
Dylan Larkin — who scored 
seven points, including a team-
leading five goals in four games 
— as well as sophomores JT 
Compher and Tyler Motte.

Larkin will return to his 

position at center on the second 
line, flanked by sophomore Alex 
Kile and senior Zach Hyman. 
Kile and Hyman skated on the 
top line with Copp during the 
GLI and stood out as the most 
productive 
trio 
during 
the 

tournament.

Still, the versatility the three 

displayed in those two games 
means 
Berenson 
will 
have 

options should the lineup need 
changing.

Beyond conference bragging 

rights, a win over Minnesota 
would be impactful to the 
Pairwise Rankings at the end of 
the regular season.

Though Michigan bettered 

its resume with a win over 
No. 5 Michigan Tech in the 
GLI, it will need wins over its 
strongest opponents to secure 
a postseason bid. And given the 

weakness of the Big Ten, the 
Golden Gophers are the team to 
beat.

Following an MVP-worthy 

performance in net at the GLI, 
junior goaltender Steve Racine 
will likely get the start Friday 
against 
Minnesota. 
Racine 

made both losing starts against 
the first-ranked Golden Gophers 
in Minneapolis last season, but 
sophomore 
netminder 
Zach 

Nagelvoort secured the starting 
position by March, when the 
Wolverines 
split 
the 
home 

series.

No matter who starts in 

net this weekend, Berenson 
reiterated that there is still a 
decision to make in practice 
each week.

“I want them to battle,” 

Berenson said. “I told coach 
(Josh Blackburn) to tell them 
that this job is wide open. We 
need a goalie to step forward 
and earn the right to be our 
starting goalie.”

Still, Racine has been off 

ice for the better part of the 
last two weeks, and he, like 
the rest of his teammates, will 
have a tough first opponent in 
Minnesota.

“I don’t know if playing (the 

Golden Gophers) is nice or not,” 
Berenson said. “I’ll tell you after 
the weekend.”

Minnesota 
at Michigan

Matchup: 
Minnesota 
10-5-1; Michi-
gan 10-7

When: Friday 
6:35 P.M.; 
Saturday 
4:05 P.M.

Where: Yost 
Ice Arena

TV: BTN; Fox 
Sports Detroit

LUNA ANNA ARCHEY/Daily

Junior goaltender Steve Racine will look to continue his momentum from the GLI in this weekend’s series.

Behind Enemy 
Lines: Cait Craft

By JACOB GASE 

Daily Sports Writer

For the second time in a week, 

the Michigan women’s basket-
ball team will be looking to use a 
home rivalry game to build some 
momentum in the Big Ten.

Just 

seven days 
after 
a 

thrilling 
nine-point 
victory 
over then-
No. 
24 

Michigan State, the Wolverines 
welcome another rival to Crisler 
Center in Sunday’s matchup with 
Ohio State.

The Buckeyes, who finished 

last season with a 5-11 conference 
record, come to Ann Arbor with 
three Big Ten victories and an 11-5 
overall record. Their most impres-
sive victory, an 85-68 rout over 
No. 24 Rutgers in Columbus, came 
against an opponent that beat 
Michigan by 13 on Wednesday.

The Wolverines (2-2 Big Ten, 

10-5 overall) nearly pulled off the 
upset in Piscataway, at one point 
eliminating a 19-point deficit to 
tie the score midway through the 
second half. But Michigan ulti-
mately dropped the game, 81-68.

The 
Wolverines 
will 
face 

a similar defensive challenge 
on Sunday. Ohio State’s roster 
features two guards scoring 
over 20 points per game: fresh-
man Kelsey Mitchell and junior 
Ameryst Alston. Mitchell has 
averaged 25.7 points, more than 
any other player in the country.

Along with Alston, junior 

guard Cait Craft is one of two 
upperclassmen in the Ohio State 
starting lineup. Through three 
seasons in Columbus, Craft has 
endured a coaching change — 
coach Kevin McGuff is in just his 
second year — and become a role 
model for a young team on the 
rise.

The Daily sat down with Craft 

at Big Ten Media Day in October 
to discuss her role in the pro-
gram, her team’s young talent, 

and of course, her brother Aaron, 
the former Buckeye basketball 
star.

The Michigan Daily: What’s 

it been like playing for an up-and-
coming program with a second-
year coach?

Cait Craft: It has been differ-

ent. The whole style is different 
here from my first year at Ohio 
State, but I definitely like it a lot 
better. I think it fits our team bet-
ter. Especially with the recruits 
they brought in, his style of play 
fits our team better than the old 
style of play I was once a part of. 
It is different, but I think every-
body has adapted to the change. 
We have such a young team that 
this style of play is all they know, 
so it’s really not a transformation 
for them at all.

TMD: Playing guard at Ohio 

State, I’m sure you get asked a lot 
of questions about your brother 
Aaron. How do you feel about 
your parallel stories, and do you 
think it’s cool or annoying to be 
asked about?

CC: It’s cool to be compared to 

him. Personally, I think Aaron is 
one of the best people that I know. 
To be compared to him as a play-
er and a person, honestly, to me, 
it’s a huge blessing and an honor. 
Certain people get annoying — 
certain people ask questions I 
really don’t have answers for. But 
it is nice to have him. Now that 
he’s gone, it’s kind of awkward for 
me, honestly. I haven’t adjusted 
to it very well yet, it’s different. 
It’s weird not having him.

TMD: Now that Aaron has 

graduated, are you excited at the 
opportunity to make your own 
name for yourself without being 
tied to your brother?

CC: I am. Around campus, it’s 

like you should just introduce 
yourself as, “Hey, I play basket-
ball,” or, “Hey, I’m Aaron’s sister,” 
because that’s all people see. Peo-
ple don’t really know just me as 
myself. In that respect, it’s kind 
of nice to be my own person now, 
not, “Oh, you’re still just Aaron’s 
sister.” As nice as that is, I like to 
be known for me.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

BEHIND
ENEMY
LINES

