The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SportsMonday
January 25, 2016 — 3B

WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS
‘M’ earns first Big 
Ten road triumph

By MATTHEW KENNEDY

Daily Sports Writer

After 
easily 
defeating 
No. 

25 Ohio State a week ago, the 
Michigan women’s gymnastics 
team repeated its dominating 
performance Saturday against No. 
17 Illinois in Champaign.

The third-ranked Wolverines 

(2-0 Big Ten, 5-0 overall), who fell 
from their No. 1 national ranking 
last week, led from the get-go 
and 
never 
relinquished 
their 

lead to defeat the Fighting Illini, 
196.900-195.150. The victory gave 
Michigan its first Big Ten road win 
of the year.

Regardless of whatever event 

was going on, though, one thing 
was always notable: The team 
seemed to be having fun. The 
gymnasts were cheering each 
other on, smiling and doing 
the routines with each other. 
During the floor routine, even the 
normally stern judges cracked 
smiles 
while 
watching 
the 

Michigan gymnasts.

“This is a fun team, this is a 

fun group of girls,” Plocki said. 
“We focus a lot on, the more fun 
we’re having, the more successful 
we’re going to be because having 
fun means you’re relaxed. And 
if you’re relaxed, you’re going to 
go out there and do what you’re 
capable of doing. Typically, if 
you’re nervous and stressed out, 
that’s really not a performance-
enhancing kind of thing.”

The battle for the all-around title 

was significantly closer than the 
meet itself, though with one caveat: 
It was between two Michigan 
gymnasts. Freshman Olivia Karas, 
competing in her home state of 
Illinois, narrowly edged out junior 
All-American Nicole Artz, 39.550-
39.425, to take home the all-around 
crown. Sophomore All-American 
Brianna Brown finished fifth in the 
all-around standings with a score 
of 38.975.

Brown, who was Big Ten 

Co-Freshman of the Year last 
season, had to fill in for senior 
Briley Casanova, who had a minor 
injury, on the vault. Artz also had 
her shin wrapped due to soreness, 
though Plocki said the wrapping 
was there to prevent the soreness 
from turning into an injury.

Michigan started off the night 

extremely strong, with sophomore 
Nichelle Christopherson and senior 
Lindsay Williams both sticking 
their landings on the uneven 
bars. Artz had great extension 
throughout her routine to tie for 
first in the event with a 9.900.

The 
Wolverines 
continued 

to set the night’s dominating 
mood on the vault, where Karas 
propelled herself to a career-
high 9.950. As the Wolverines 
were competing on the vault, two 
different Illinois gymnasts fell off 
the uneven bars, all but spelling 
doom for the Fighting Illini.

Surprisingly, Michigan’s worst 

event of the night was on the floor, 
where it is ranked second in the 
nation. A strong performance on 
the beam, though, guaranteed the 
Wolverines a 47th consecutive 
win against the Illini.

With Illinois, the next-highest 

ranked team in the Big Ten after 
the Wolverines, out of the way, it 
appears that Michigan is in the 
driver’s seat to repeat as Big Ten 
champions. To Michigan coach 
Bev Plocki, though, the victory 
doesn’t change the team’s mindset.

“Our 
goal 
from 
the 
very 

beginning of the year — and for 
several years — has been not only 
to win the Big Ten, but to win a 
national championship,” Plocki 
said. “I really like where we are, 
and we have made improvements 
in all four events. It’s just a matter 
of putting that all together and 
having all of that show up in the 
same competition. That’s when 
we feel like we’ll be really hitting 
our stride.”

Michigan wins twice 
at home tournament

Wolverines rout San 
Francisco, slip past 
No. 23 Kentucky in 

ITA Kick-Off

By TOR THORNE 

For the Daily

The No. 14 Michigan women’s 

tennis team clinched its seventh 
consecutive trip to the ITA National 
Team 
Indoor 
Championships 

this weekend, as the Wolverines 
defeated San Francisco and No. 23 
Kentucky en route to winning the 
ITA Kick-Off.

In Michigan’s sixth consecutive 

year hosting the event, home-
field advantage at a particularly 
noisy 
Varsity 
Tennis 
Center 

helped the Wolverines breeze 
through San Francisco by a score 
of 4-0 on Saturday. In prior weeks, 
Michigan coach Ronni Bernstein 
pressured 
the 

Wolverines 
to cheer each 
other 
on 

to 
create 
a 

louder, livelier 
atmosphere.

Sunday, key 

victories 
by 

freshman Kate 
Fahey at No. 
3 singles and 
senior 
Ronit 

Yurovsky at No. 1 singles gave 
Michigan a 4-3 match victory over 
the Wildcats.

In doubles, aggressiveness at 

the net propelled No. 1 doubles 
pair freshman Brienne Minor and 
sophomore Mira Ruder-Hook and 
No. 2 doubles pair Yurovsky and 
sophomore Alex Najarian to easy 
6-2 victories to earn the doubles 
point for the Wolverines.

In singles, Kentucky grabbed 

the first two points, taking a 2-1 
match lead as Michigan’s No. 4 
and No. 5 singles each fell in two 
sets, 6-1, 6-1, and 6-1, 6-4.

The Wolverines tied the score 

at 2-2 as freshman Brienne 
Minor won the No. 2 singles 
match, 6-2, 6-3.

The bottom of Michigan’s lineup 

continued to struggle, as junior 
Sara Remynse fell in the No. 6 
singles match, 1-6, 5-7, to relinquish 
the team’s lead to the Wildcats.

With the Wolverines down, 

2-3, in the meet, Fahey displayed 
mastery in painting the line, 
taking victories in several long 
vollies and finishing off her 
opponent in the No. 3 singles 
match, 6-3, 6-4.

“It was definitely more pressure 

than I’ve ever felt,” Fahey said. 
“But I was thinking, ‘It’s either 
you or her, and it’s either Michigan 
or Kentucky going to indoors,’ so I 
had to step up and take it.”

After winning the first set, 6-0, 

Yurovsky found herself locked in 
a 6-6 tiebreaker in the second. 
With all eyes on her, Yurovsky 
outlasted 
Kentucky’s 
Aldila 

Sutjiadi to take the set and the 
match for Michigan.

Despite the pressure at the 

end, Yurovsky emphasized the 

importance 
of 
finding 

success 
in 

those 
types 

of 
situations 

going forward.

“I 
was 

shaking 
on 

the 
court,” 

Yurovsky 
said 
with 
a 

laugh. 
“But 

I think what 

got me through this match was 
how I fought and stayed in it and 
competed for every point.”

Despite not getting wins from 

every 
player, 
the 
weekend’s 

tournament 
was 
crucial 
for 

developing a sense of community 
among the Wolverines.

For 
Bernstein, 
finding 

accountability in a multitude of 
places as they did Sunday will be 
key for Michigan’s success going 
forward.

“For 
Brienne 
(Minor) 
and 

Kate (Fahey) to come through 
as freshmen in that situation, 
and Ronit (Yurovsky) clinching 
it when she knew it was on the 
line, that’s what we need to do,” 
Bernstein said.

WOMEN’S TENNIS

“It was 

definitely more 
pressure than 
I’ve ever felt.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL
Walton earns double-double in win

By KELLY HALL

Daily Sports Editor

With 2:49 left in the Michigan 

men’s basketball team’s game 
against Nebraska on Saturday, 
junior guard Derrick Walton Jr. 
stepped up to the free-throw 
line. Michigan fans wouldn’t 
have wanted the ball in anyone 
else’s hands. 

After trailing the Cornhuskers 

(4-4 Big Ten, 12-9 overall) for 
less than a minute the entire 
game, Michigan (5-2, 15-5) was 
given a run for its money in the 
final minutes. So, when Walton 
was fouled late in the game, fans 
gave a sigh of relief. He sank 
both free throws, giving the 
Wolverines a more comfortable 
four-point cushion. 

Michigan hung on and then 

some, hitting its final 10 free 
throws in Lincoln to beat the 
Cornhuskers, 81-68.

“When (Walton) had the key 

turnover and all of a sudden it’s a 
two-point game and they fouled 
him and now he goes to the line. 
… I mean those babies hit nothing 
but the bottom of the net,” 
Michigan coach John Beilein told 
reporters. “That shows another 
step in him in just being another 

leader of this team and a guy he 
can look to.”

Walton scored 19 points on 

5-for-8 shooting, grabbed 12 
boards and had six assists — 
three of them coming in the first 
four minutes — to get Michigan 
running right out of the gate. 

He 
first 
found 
freshman 

forward Moritz Wagner, who was 
the first big man off the bench 
following junior forward Mark 
Donnal’s early foul. 

He was there again 26 seconds 

later, feeding it to redshirt 
sophomore 
guard 
Duncan 

Robinson for Robinson’s second 
3-pointer of the night. Another 
26 seconds later, Walton was at 
it again, giving it to sophomore 
forward Aubrey Dawkins from 
beyond the arc. 

All of a sudden, Michigan was 

out to a 12-4 lead. The Wolverines 
made six of their first eight shots. 

“We got off to a really good 

start, and I think that helped 
us a great deal,” Beilein said. “A 
couple of our away games we lost, 
we got off to a very bad start. It 
just wears on you, fighting back. 
I think we had early confidence.”

Though 
the 
Wolverines’ 

defense 
seemed 
impenetrable 

in the first five minutes, the 

Cornhuskers quickly figured out 
how to fight back. They hacked 
away at Michigan’s lead all the 
way up until halftime, when 
they headed into the locker room 
trailing by just three, and again 
in the middle of the second half, 
bringing the game within two 
points in the final two minutes. 

“We 
withstood 
a 
charge 

at the end of the first half, a 
charge during the second half 
— a couple charges during the 
second half,” Beilein said. “I’m 
really proud of the way these 
kids responded to a great college 
atmosphere in Nebraska.”

Walton scored 13 points in the 

second half, including a 3-pointer 
in the game’s final seconds. 
Walton claims he didn’t shoot 
the ball to be disrespectful, even 
though 
the 
Nebraska 
crowd 

booed it, but his teammates and 
coaches told him to shoot it to 
avoid the shot clock violation. 

Walton tends to listen to his 

coaches and teammates, and 
Saturday, he wanted to give most 
of the credit to them. 

“Our coaches did a really good 

job of preparing us,” Walton said. 
“The things that were happening 
out there were things we really 
emulated in practice the last 

couple days. The way we prepared 
really helped me see the floor a 
little easier today and think my 
plays through a little better than 
I usually do.”

Though 
Walton 
earned 
a 

double-double and started his 
team’s rally in the final minutes, 
he seems to be happiest about the 
Wolverines’ ability to play without 
senior captain and guard Caris 
LeVert, who is still recovering 
from a lower-leg injury.

Walton isn’t a captain, but 

with both LeVert and co-captain 
Spike Albrecht cheering from 
the sidelines, he’s shouldering 
most of the responsibility. On 
the road against Nebraska, he 
looked like one. 

“My freshman year at home, we 

had a really good stretch against 
Nebraska, we shot the ball really 
well,” Walton said. “Tonight, it 
was a little different. It was a 
little more special because we 
were down without one of our 
brothers; our leader, Caris, and 
guys were just making some plays 
that he wouldn’t normally make. 

“Looking over and seeing him 

happy for the guys who were 
getting the opportunity with him 
being out, I think it made it a lot 
more special.”

Wolverines top Nebraska

Even without 

LeVert, Michigan 
holds on for fifth 
Big Ten victory

By LEV FACHER

Daily Sports Writer

It took a shout of desperation 

from Derrick Walton Jr. for 
Aubrey Dawkins to realize his 
predicament. Dribbling in the 
wrong 
direction, 
seemingly 

unaware that just three seconds 
remained on the shot clock, 
Dawkins was forced to rise, 
simultaneously fade away and 
perform a 180-degree twist, for 
an impossible shot. 

It was the culmination of yet 

another defensive triumph for 
Nebraska, which refused to the 
bow in the face of Michigan’s 
16-3 
second-half 
run. 
The 

Cornhuskers put the Wolverines 
on lockdown, chipping away at a 
lead that had reached 18 points 
minutes earlier.

Dawkins’ 
shot, 
however, 

found bottom, and the packed 
house at Pinnacle Bank Arena 
in 
Lincoln 
fell 
silent. 
The 

backbreaking 
jumper 
put 
a 

damper 
on 
Nebraska’s 
run, 

which eventually wasn’t enough 
to 
change 
the 
outcome 
in 

Michigan’s 81-68 win Saturday.

The win, which the Wolverines 

opened on an 18-6 run, was the 
opposite of Michigan’s last road 
trip, an 82-71 loss at Iowa last 
Saturday. That game saw the 
Wolverines 
immediately 
fall 

victim to a 9-0 burst from the 
Hawkeyes, but this time, the 
Wolverines came prepared.

“We just have the mindset 

that when we got off the bus, 
we’re down (by) 10,” junior 
forward Zak Irvin told reporters 
after the game. “Against Iowa, 
we had a sluggish start, and that 
hurt us as the game went on. So 
going into today’s game, we just 
wanted to stay together. We had 

a great start to both halves.”

The first-half start was keyed 

by Michigan’s specialty: 3-point 
shooting. The Wolverines stayed 
true to their reputation of a team 
that lives and dies from beyond 
the arc, shooting 52 percent 
from long distance.

Nebraska, on the other hand, 

found no such success from 
the perimeter, especially in the 
face of the 2-3 zone defense 
Michigan coach John Beilein 
employed in the first half. The 
Cornhuskers shot just 6-for-22 
from 3-point range for the game, 
including a 2-for-8 outing from 
Andrew White III.

Instead, 
the 
bulk 
of 

Nebraska’s scoring came in the 
paint, much of it in transition. 
The Wolverines’ 12 turnovers 
prevented them from putting 
the nail in the coffin until the 
final minutes.

“We mishandled the ball, 

(sophomore forward Kameron 
Chatman) had one go through 
his hands — you’re gonna have 
stuff,” Beilein said. “But you’ve 
got to be under 10 (turnovers). 
I really think you’ve got to be 
under 10, or shoot the way (we) 
did tonight.”

As well as it shot, though, 

Michigan changed tacks in the 
second half to take advantage 
of the room it had created in the 
interior, as redshirt sophomore 
guard Duncan 
Robinson 
found himself 
on 
the 

receiving end 
of 
multiple 

backdoor 
passes. 
Robinson, 
leading 
the 
nation 

in 
3-point 

shooting 
percentage, finished consistently 
at the rim, and finished with 
more points scored inside the 
arc than outside for the first 
time as a Wolverine.

“What he’s realizing now is 

that people are going to play him 
a certain way, and his movement 
without the ball is going to be 
really important,” Beilein said. 
“He’s learning — all the video, 

all the synergy 
— that people 
are going to 
sit 
on 
him 

different 
ways, and he’s 
got to do more 
than 
stand 

and wait for 
people to get 
him open.”

Robinson’s 

21 
points 

on 6-for-12 shooting led the 
Wolverines, and Walton added 
19 points of his own while 
cementing his status as the 
team’s 
leading 
rebounder, 

pulling down 12 boards on the 

afternoon.

As they did in Wednesday’s 

74-69 win over Minnesota, the 
Wolverines found success from 
the free-throw line down the 
stretch. Michigan shot 20-for-23 
as a team, including an impressive 
6-for-8 performance from junior 
forward Mark Donnal.

Beilein said in his postgame 

press 
conference 
that 
the 

Wolverines have been practicing 
their 
free-throw 
shooting 

“religiously,” 
in 
end-of-

practice drills wherein players 
have to contend with loud, 
piped-in music to simulate an 
intimidating road environment.

Redshirt freshman guard D.J. 

Wilson did not appear in the 
game, as Beilein opted to use 
only Donnal, freshman Moritz 
Wagner and sophomore Ricky 
Doyle at the ‘5’ spot.

JAMES COLLER/Daily

Derrick Walton Jr., pictured here on Wednesday, had a double-double Saturday.

“When we got 

off the bus, 
we’re down 

(by) 10.”

