4B — Monday, February 16, 2015 SportsMonday The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com Michigan squanders late lead Northwestern goes coast to coast in final seconds to upend Wolverines By BRAD WHIPPLE Daily Sports Writer The Michigan women’s basketball team hadn’t scored in just under two and a half minutes when junior guard Madison Ristovski stepped up to the foul line with 14 seconds left in the game. With the Wolverines holding a 62-61 lead and Northwestern clinging to the hope of making a comeback in the final minutes, both of Ristovski’s shots missed. But senior forward Cyesha Goree came in and collected the rebound, so she stepped up to the line with 10 seconds left. Then she missed both tries and the atmosphere in Crisler Center changed dramatically. Wildcat forward Nia Coffey — who ended the game with 25 points — took it to the other end of the court and made a layup with four seconds left. On the inbound, a potential buzzer beater by senior guard Shannon Smith fell short of the basket, giving Northwestern a 63-62 win that will likely prove damaging to the Wolverines’ NCAA Tournament hopes. “Normally, we make those free throws,” said Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico. “Madison, probably in her career, is over an 80 percent free-throw shooter. To miss two is really surprising. Then to miss four is really surprising.” Added Smith: “Every little play matters. Whether it’s a free throw, getting a loose ball, or getting a person out on the defensive end. Every play matters.” Michigan (6-8 Big Ten, 14-11 overall) shot a dismal 27.6 percent from the floor in the second half compared to 46.7 in the first, and missed eight of its last 10 shots. Northwestern (9-5, 19-6) hadn’t held a lead all afternoon, but the final 10 minutes gave the team several opportunities to make it happen. The circumstances were perfect for Northwestern to take the lead: Michigan was in a scoring slump, all of the momentum was on the Wildcats’ side and, most importantly, Goree had to be taken out of the game at four fouls and 12 minutes still left in the game. “Cyesha gets in foul trouble and it just changes the dynamics of our team, really from an offensive standpoint,” Barnes Arico said. “Even if she’s not scoring, she gives an inside presence and that changes what teams do against us defensively.” Despite the favorable circumstances, though, something always went awry for the Wildcats on each of the next few possessions, and it looked like the Wolverines might have a stroke of luck. That thought was short-lived. After the Wildcats went on an 11-0 run to tie the game at 51 with eight minutes left, they stole the ball and guard Karly Roser took it to the other end a wide-open court. With junior guard Madison Ristovski just crossing midcourt, Roser’s layup rolled around the rim for a few moments before falling out and into the hands of Ristovski. Roser got called for a reach-in foul and slammed her hands hard on the floor. It had been just over six minutes since the Wolverines had scored, but Ristovski made her free throws to push Michigan past a potential breaking point. Even after the Roser hiccup, the mishaps continued. On the next Northwestern possession with the game still tied at 51, Roser missed her first on a one- and-one opportunity at the free- throw line, giving the ball back to the Wolverines. Ristovski stole the ball the possession afterward and freshman forward Jillian Dunston made a layup for a four- point lead. Once Dunston had done her part, Goree, freshman guard Katelynn Flaherty and senior forward Nicole Elmblad all subbed back in to finish out the game. Goree grabbed the necessary defensive rebounds — finishing with 10 total boards alongside nine points. But at 2:26, her pair two points from the free- throw line were the final ones for Michigan, holding on to a five- point lead. The Wildcats capitalized on the Wolverines’ inability to score, making a 6-0 run in the final two minutes. “When we go through stretches where we’re not scoring, I think we get a little bit down and it takes away from our defensive intensity,” Elmblad said. “I think that was when they were able to get back in the game and make their run and close it out.” “To try and get them back mentally before this game was incredibly difficult,” Barnes Arico said. “My heart goes out to them because they’ve been so close, and that’s what makes it so difficult.” RITA MORRIS/Daily Sophomore guard Siera Thompson scored 15 points, but Michigan gave away a late lead and lost its third straight game Saturday against Northwestern. N’WESTERN MICHIGAN 63 62 3-pointer from freshman guard Katelynn Flaherty or maybe it was a missed jumper from senior forward Nicole Elmblad. Without any one of those miscues, Michigan wouldn’t have faltered once again. Adding the losses up, Michigan could be 12-2 in the Big Ten and be in position as a No. 3 or 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Even if it had lost half of them, it would likely be squarely in the tournament. On the bright side, the Wolverines have played almost every team in the conference competitively, and they have four games to go against teams below them in the conference before the Big Ten Tournament. So they aren’t permanently out of the NCAA Tournament picture. They just can’t make too many more mistakes down the stretch. It’s not over. But it could be very soon, and in another universe, Michigan’s season could be far from over. Minh Doan can be reached at minhdoan@umich.edu or on Twitter @_minhdoan. MICHIGAN From Page 1B BY THE NUMBERS Michigan vs. Northwestern 4 Missed free throws for Michigan in the last 14 seconds 6:03 Length of the Wolverines’ second-half scoring drought 13 Fouls for Cyesha Goree in Michigan’s last three games, all losses 1 Lead for Northwestern during the game — the 63-62 final score ‘M’ salvages series finale at LBSU By NATHANIEL CLARK Daily Sports Writer A rough start gave way to a good finish for the Michigan men’s baseball team in Long Beach, Calif. The Wolverines (1-2) dropped their Friday and Saturday games against Long Beach State (2-1), 3-2 and 7-2 respectively. But they bounced back on Sunday to top the Dirtbags, 5-3, in 10 innings. “I like how the team responded on Sunday after getting kicked around,” said Michigan coach Erik Bakich. “They fought back and didn’t waiver.” The Wolverines’ offense snapped out of its funk in the fourth inning on Sunday when Patrick hit a single with runners on first and second to drive in a run. Later in the inning, senior shortstop Eric Jacobson came through with a two-run single to put Michigan up 3-0. Long Beach State chipped away at the lead from there as the Dirtbags put up a run in both the fifth and sixth innings, prompting Bakich to pull starter Ryan Nutof after 5.2 innings for Lozer. Lozer got out of the inning before being replaced by sophomore Jackson Lamb. The Wolverines maintained their 3-2 lead into the ninth inning when redshirt junior Matt Ogden was called upon for the save opportunity. But with runners on first and second with two outs, he surrendered an RBI single to the Dirtbags’ Derek Domingues to send the game into extra innings. After failing to score for five innings, Michigan broke through in the 10th when Patrick drew a walk to lead off the inning. Sophomore second baseman Jake Bivens was hit by a pitch with one out to put runners on first and second and a groundout by Jacobson moved both runners ahead by 90 feet. That left the Wolverines’ hopes in the hands of junior first baseman Jacob Cronenworth, who delivered with a two-run single to left field to give Michigan a 5-3 lead that would hold through the bottom of the frame. “You could feel the energy in the dugout after Cronenworth’s hit,” Bakich said. “But it was a team effort. There were a lot of good contributions from a lot of guys.” Michigan got off to a promising start on Friday night when junior right fielder Cody Bruder hit a double to left field in the first inning. Junior shortstop Travis Maezes brought Bruder home with an RBI double on the next at bat. The Wolverines doubled their lead in the fourth when fifth-year senior designated hitter Kendall Patrick doubled down the left-field line and scored on an RBI single by freshman third-baseman Drew Lugbauer. Michigan’s pitching was strong through the fourth inning as well. Sophomore pitcher Brett Adcock surrendered just one hit through the first four innings. “(Adcock) gave us an opportunity to win,” Bakich said. “He was in a groove there for a while.” But it all unraveled in the bottom of the fifth. After the Wolverines turned a double play for two quick outs, Adcock gave up a walk, a single and another walk to load the bases. He then walked in a run before being pulled for Ogden, who missed all of 2014 with an injury. “I felt (Adcock) sort of hit a brick wall in the fifth,” Bakich said. Ogden walked in the tying run, but got out of the inning with a strikeout before more damage could be done. After a scoreless top of the sixth for Michigan, Ogden came back out to pitch the bottom half of the inning. The Dirtbags once again scored with two outs when Tristan Mercadel hit an RBI triple to take the lead. Ogden was subsequently replaced by sophomore Mac Lozer, who nabbed a strikeout to end the inning. Michigan had scoring chances late, especially in the top of the eighth inning when the Wolverines loaded up the bases with one out. But a strikeout and a groundout closed Michigan’s window of opportunity and the score remained 3-2. Ogden was tagged with the loss. “I feel some of the guys were squeezing the bats a little too tightly,” Bakich said. “We need to be in those pressure situations often in order to improve as a team.” Unlike Friday, the Dirtbags wasted no time scoring on Saturday as they were up 2-0 by the end of the first inning and extended the lead to 5-0 by the end of the second. The Wolverines’ starter, sophomore Keith Lehmann lasted 1.2 innings, giving up three runs on three hits. Freshmen relief pitchers Michael Hendrickson and Bryan Pall stopped the bleeding for Michigan as they combined for 5.2 innings, two runs allowed and five strikeouts, but the Wolverines offense was stifled by the Dirtbags’ Tanner Brown. Michigan’s two runs came off of an RBI single by Bruder in the top of the third and a pinch-hit RBI double by sophomore outfielder Johnny Slater in the seventh. Michigan’s weekend trip to Long Beach was the first of several such trips over the next six weeks. By the time the Wolverines face Bowling Green in their home opener on Mar. 24, they will have traveled 11,682 miles. “I don’t think the team is feeling jet lag yet,” Bakich said. “But they probably will by (Monday).” “We need to be in pressure situations like that.” BASEBALL Michigan secures 2-0 start to season Possession edge helps Wolverines rout Detroit By BRANDON CARNEY Daily Sports Writer Detroit may not be the Michigan men’s lacrosse team’s biggest rival, but that didn’t stop the Wolverines from bringing loads of intensity into Saturday’s matchup. Sophomore attacker Ian King led Michigan in scoring, setting a program record with six goals in the game. King’s efforts, combined with strong defense in the second half, were enough for the Wolverines to earn a 15-6 victory and move to 2-0 for the first time in program history. No one was happier to see King score than Michigan coach John Paul, who gave the attacker grief after going scoreless against Bellarmine. “I knew King was going to get his goals,” Paul said. “Last week was kind of an anomaly. I thought he played a smart game too and didn’t take any bad shots or make any mistakes.” King’s fellow starting attackers, seniors David McCormack and Will Meter, also found the back of the net. Sophomore midfielder Mikie Schlosser followed a four-goal outing against Bellarmine last week with two more as Michigan’s offense had no trouble figuring out the Titan’s defense. “We just cut out and got open,” said redshirt junior midfielder David Joseph. “When (Detroit) pressed out, we used it to our advantage. That opened up our attack for easy goals and finishes.” The Wolverines jumped out to an early 5-1 lead thanks to junior faceoff man Brad Lott’s perfect seven-for-seven first- quarter performance. Lott faced two different Detroit players, but regardless of the challenger, he was able to get the job done. Lott’s dominance in the faceoff circle led to Michigan’s complete control of possession and allowed its offense to settle in. “The first period’s big because you want to get into a rhythm,” Lott said. “As a unit we were getting together and figuring out everything we needed to do, so no matter who we faced, we were getting it done.” While the Wolverines’ attack continued to cruise in the second half, Michigan’s defense stepped up to shut down any hopes of a Titan comeback. The Wolverines would continue to maintain possession throughout the period. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Gerald Logan earned six saves en route to giving up only one second-half goal. “(Logan) was seeing the ball better in the second half,” Paul said. “Our offense was getting long possessions. (Detroit) really didn’t have the ball that much. That’s defense, through having a great offense.” Paul believes the Wolverines’ performance against the Titans was one of the most balanced he has ever seen. Michigan outshot Detroit 52-28, and Paul credited the margin to playing mistake-free lacrosse. Not only was Michigan pleased with the result on the field, but also for what the victory means off the field too. Ever since the Titans took Michigan to overtime last year, many players have taken the in-state matchup personally. “So much for us right now is about confidence,” Paul said. “We’re coming out of these first two games pretty confident. When we have a team that hasn’t really proven anything yet, confidence is the step you need to start actually proving it.” MEN’S LACROSSE