4B — February 22, 2016
SportsMonday
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Maryland back on top for good.

The game had the makings of 

a shootout from the beginning. 
Both teams traded blows to start 
the game tied at 12 points apiece, 
with Robinson — who hit five 
3-pointers in the Wolverines’ 
upset of the Terrapins in January 
— scoring seven quick points and 
showing off a rare inside game 
with two layups.

But after a seven-and-a-half-

minute stretch in which Michigan 
missed 13 straight field goals and 
fell victim to a 17-1 Maryland run, 
the contest took on the look of the 
Wolverines’ blowout home losses 
to Indiana and Michigan State 
two weeks ago.

This time, though, Michigan 

refused to allow the first-half 
run to put the nail in its coffin. 
Walton started cold, but he ended 
the Terrapins’ scoring run with a 
layup and later picked Trimble’s 
pocket for a contested fast-break 
layup as part of a 7-0 Wolverine 
run. Walton and seldom-used 
sophomore 
forward 
Kam 

Chatman also knocked down two 
3-pointers apiece late in the half 
to leave Michigan trailing by just 
five points heading into the break.

“I’m proud of our kids, the 

way they battled (after) we got 
ourselves in a little trouble in 
the first half,” Beilein said. 
“Thank goodness, because that 
thing can go the wrong way very 
quickly in this building and with 
their team.”

The Wolverines ended up 

showing a similar fight right 
until the end, outscoring the 
Terrapins in the second half, 
but it wasn’t enough to secure 
a potential NCAA Tournament 
résumé-boosting win with just 
three games remaining on the 
regular-season schedule.

The loss was the end of two 

notable streaks for Michigan. 
With Walton’s offensive foul 
marking his fifth of the game, 
it was the first time all season a 
Wolverine has fouled out; it was 
also the first time Michigan has 
lost under Beilein when scoring 
80 points or more.

MARYLAND
From Page 1B
Donnal’s effort falls short again

By SIMON KAUFMAN

Daily Sports Editor

COLLEGE PARK — Mark 

Donnal was the Michigan men’s 
basketball team’s best option on 
Sunday, and it almost worked.

After a game-high 17-point 

performance in a losing effort 
Tuesday 
against 
Ohio 
State, 

Donnal had the game’s best mark 
again against No. 6 Maryland in 
another road loss.

The junior forward hit only one 

field goal — a 3-pointer — in the 
first half at the Xfinity Center, but 
Donnal got hot early in the second 
frame and went off for 22 points, 
finishing with a game-high 25.

After the Terrapins pushed 

out to a 16-point lead with eight 
minutes left in the first half, the 
Wolverines started to chip away, 
eventually cutting the lead down 
to six points with just more than 
a minute left. Maryland tried to 
extend the lead back to double 
digits before halftime, but two 
big blocks from Donnal late in 
the frame kept Michigan within 
arm’s reach heading into the 
locker room.

To kick off the second half, 

sophomore guard Muhammad-
Ali 
Abdur-Rahkman 
found 

Donnal twice early in the paint 
for two quick buckets. Donnal 
fought through contact on the 
second attempt to help Michigan 
cut the lead to just three.

“They kind of played uphill off 

the ball screens,” Donnal said. “So 
we knew the late drop-off pass 
was going to be there, so that’s 
kind of something we emphasized 
at halftime.”

A 
possession 
later, 
after 

a 
Maryland 
basket, 
Donnal 

got open from beyond the arc 
and knocked down his second 
3-pointer of the game. He went 
3-for-4 from deep in the game 
after entering it shooting just 25 
percent from 3-point range.

“I hit my first (3-pointer), and it 

gave Coach the confidence to draw 
up the same play,” Donnal said. 
“He gave me some good looks, and 

we were able to execute.”

But despite Donnal hitting 

from inside the paint and behind 
the arc, Maryland continued to 
take it to him on the other side. 
After his made triple, 6-foot-11 
center Diamond Stone bullied 
him down low, putting in an easy 
bucket of his own.

Donnal 
kept 
playing 

aggressively, though, even as 
Michigan’s only weapon to combat 
Maryland’s size. Five minutes into 
the half, Abdur-Rahkman found 
Donnal again, and the big man 
slammed down a dunk, giving the 
Wolverines their first lead since 
early in the first half. He nailed 
another 3-pointer one minute 
later, and when he got fouled down 
low two possessions after that, he 
hit both of his free throws to keep 
Michigan ahead by a point.

Perhaps his impact was best 

felt when he was off the court. 

When Donnal picked up his 
third foul with 12:30 left in the 
second half, Michigan coach John 
Beilein opted to sub in sophomore 
forward Ricky Doyle. Maryland 
took advantage of Donnal’s time 
on the bench, picking up four 
quick points in the paint.

“We didn’t keep him out for 

that long, but yeah (it was hard to 
take him out),” Beilein said. “His 
defense on Stone was good — he’s 
strong. He’s got more experience, 
but he’s going to have to have a rest 
anyhow. The way the wrestling 
match is down inside, he’s going 
to have to have a rest whether he’s 
hot or not. Your big men have to 
get a little bit of an extra breather 
that the other guys don’t get.”

Doyle filled in for just three 

minutes before Donnal reentered. 
Donnal picked up right where he 
left off and used two quick layups 
to cut an eight-point Terrapin lead 

to just four.

But Donnal couldn’t handle all 

of Maryland’s size himself. With 
five minutes left in the second half 
and Michigan up one, Maryland 
forward Robert Carter Jr. put up 
a close-range jumper. The shot 
missed, but Donnal was outsized 
by 6-foot-11 forward Damonte 
Dodd. Dodd grabbed the board 
and put up a shot of his own 
from inside the paint. This time, 
he missed, and Carter grabbed 
another 
Maryland 
offensive 

board. Carter went up again, 
putting in an easy bucket from 
point-blank range.

The Wolverines actually had 

the edge in offensive rebounds, 
12-9, but Maryland capitalized 
on its second chances more, 
scoring 13 second-chance points 
to Michigan’s eight.

The Carter bucket reclaimed 

the lead for the Terrapins, and 

they never looked back, closing 
out Michigan down the stretch 
for an 86-82 win.

For Donnal, though, Maryland 

marked his second straight game 
as Michigan’s most productive 
player. Along with his 25 points, 
he also picked up five rebounds 
and five blocks.

It didn’t change the end result 

for Michigan — another Big 
Ten loss on the road — but for 
Donnal it appears to be changing 
his confidence. After losing his 
starting job just three games into 
the season before working his way 
back into the starting five after 
a big performance in Michigan’s 
Big Ten opener at Illinois, Donnal 
has established himself as far and 
away the Wolverines’ best option 
down low on both sides of the floor. 

Against Maryland’s physicality, 

though, Michigan’s best wasn’t 
enough.

AMANDA ALLEN/Daily

Junior forward Mark Donnal exploded for 22 points in the second half to try to lead Michigan from behind Sunday at Maryland, but the Wolverines fell, 86-82.

Compher powers top line
W

ith the Michigan 
hockey team on the 
power play against 

Ferris State on Friday night, 
junior 
forward JT 
Compher 
cradled a 
pass from 
fellow junior 
forward Alex 
Kile and rifled 
the puck 
toward the 
net.

Bulldog 

netminder 
Darren Smith got a pad on 
Compher’s shot, but the rebound 
went right across the crease to 
freshman forward Kyle Connor, 
who buried the puck upstairs 
past a sprawling Smith.

Connor’s goal gave him 50 

points on the year, a massive 
accomplishment for the freshman 
phenom, and his teammates 
surrounded him to give 
congratulatory pats on the back.

But lost in the commotion 

was another milestone. With 
his second assist of the game, 
Compher, Michigan’s captain, 
hit 100 points in his career 
and became the first junior to 
do so since Carl Hagelin, who 
currently plays in the National 
Hockey League with the 
Pittsburgh Penguins, in 2010. 
The assist propelled Compher 
to tie New Hampshire’s Tyler 
Kelleher for first in the NCAA 
in helpers.

Unlike a week ago, when 

senior forward Boo Nieves 
scored his 100th point, there 
was no fanfare. A public 
announcement came and went 
with little crowd applause.

And that’s fine to Compher. 

That’s how it’s been all year.

While his linemates put up 

flashy goal totals — Motte has 
scored in 12 straight games 
and Connor has 51 points on 
the season — Compher doesn’t 
get enough recognition for the 
intangibles he provides to the 
line.

On a line with two of the 

most prolific goal scorers in the 
country, some could argue that 

Compher is the most important 
member of the line. He’s a key cog 
in a very well-oiled machine.

There’s no one reason that’s 

the case. And that’s the point. 
Compher does a multitude of 
things very well.

Compher does the dirty work. 

He gets to loose pucks in the 
corner, and he retrieves pucks on 
dump-ins. He gets the pucks that 
give his line mates chances to pad 
their goal totals.

That’s not saying that the 

Motte and Connor don’t do the 
dirty work. But as the center 
on the line, Compher’s job is to 
facilitate, and he’s one of the best 
in the nation at doing just that.

“JT demands the puck, and 

he’s got speed,” said Michigan 
assistant coach Bill Powers. “He 
can carry it, and he sees the ice 
exceptionally well. So you have 
a centerman that doesn’t have 
a weakness, and the other two 
players feed off him.”

Take for example, Motte’s 

first goal of the weekend against 
Wisconsin.

Compher retrieved a loose 

puck just inside the blue line 
with his back to the goal. Before 
he turned, though, Compher 
saw a streaking Motte cutting 
behind two Badger defensemen. 
He spun around and fired a pass 
straight to Motte, who banged it 
home to give Michigan the one-
goal advantage.

The play exemplified 

everything Compher does on 
the line. His hustle, vision and 
skill make him the perfect third 
linemate for Motte and Connor.

“The one thing that you really 

look to our lines is the center on 
the line dictates so much because 
everything starts with him on 
the faceoff,” Powers said. “A lot of 
time, the puck gets to the middle 
of the rink. So that’s our centers 
getting the puck in the middle 
of the rink, so when Kyle and 
Tyler get the puck, a lot of times, 
it is dictated by a puck-carrying 
centerman.”

Earlier in the week, when 

Compher was asked about which 
player on his prolific line should 
win the Hobey Baker Award, 
given annually to the best college 

hockey player in the nation, 
Compher didn’t have an answer.

“We haven’t talked about 

anything like that,” Compher 
said Monday. “That’s out of our 
control and not something we 
worry about.”

But Compher should be in 

the conversation. You could 
even make a pretty convincing 
argument that Compher should 
be the frontrunner.

Not only is Compher a big 

reason why the CCM line is 
playing well; he is also one of — if 
not the best — penalty killer on 
the team.

With penalty killing, a lot of 

success comes from working 
harder than your opponent to get 
the puck and send it down the 
ice. Compher does that better 
than any player on the team. He 
doesn’t take one play off.

“There’s no way JT shouldn’t 

be in the discussion (for the 
Hobey Baker),” Powers said. “Is 
JT the third wheel on that line? 
No, he’s as important as the 
other two.”

Added Motte: “His impact 

freshman year all the way 
through now has been 
unbelievable for the program. 
The guy works hard every day. 
I can’t give him enough credit 
for what he’s done, not only 
individually, but for the team as 
well.”

Compher has never put 

personal accomplishments 
before team accomplishments, 
not at Team Illinois, not at the 
United States National Team 
Development Program and 
certainly not now Michigan.

And with Compher on the cusp 

of leading the Wolverines to their 
first NCAA Tournament in three 
years, the tournament berth will 
probably feel a whole lot better 
than hitting 100 career points 
Friday night.

Because the fact of the matter 

is, Compher isn’t just a key cog 
on his own line. He’s the engine 
that keeps Michigan’s scoring 
machine running smoothly.

Doan can be reached at 

minhdoan@umich.edu and 

on Twitter @_minhdoan.

MINH
DOAN

‘M’ beats Ferris State

By KEVIN SANTO

Daily Sports Writer

Oct. 23, 1992.
Back 
when 
the 
Michigan 

hockey team was still a part of the 
CCHA. Back when the Wolverines 
put together 
their third 
consecutive 
NCAA 
Tournament appearance, before 
stringing together another 19 
afterwards. 
And 
back 
when 

Michigan coach Red Berenson 
faced coach Bob Daniels for the 
first time.

Now fast forward to Friday 

night, 23 seasons later, and take a 
look at the two benches. There are 
the players — some in white and 
blue, the others in all red — but 
they come and go over the years. 
So take a look behind them, and 
you will find something that has 
stayed the same.

Berenson, 
behind 
his 

Wolverines, and Daniels, behind 
Ferris State. For the 63rd time.

No one knows if this is 

Berenson’s last season at the helm 
of Michigan’s hockey program yet. 
But if this season is his farewell 
tour, it’s fitting that he’ll be able to 

leave with a win against the team 
the Wolverines have faced every 
year since 1982.

No. 6 Michigan took the lead 

just under six minutes into the 
first period and didn’t relinquish 
it the rest of the night, cruising to 
a 5-2 victory against the Bulldogs 
and giving Berenson his 43rd 
win against Daniels — the most 
against any coach he has faced.

“It’s 
a 
good 
relationship,” 

Berenson said. “He came in — he 
had his daughter with him this 
morning — and we had a long talk 
about how it’s going in the WCHA 
and how their team is doing.

“And his teams play hard. They 

don’t hand over the games to 
Michigan. But we’ve had maybe 
one or two more players that could 
get us over the top — difference 
maker players or players that 
could score that might have made 
the difference.”

But Berenson’s 63rd meeting 

against Daniels wasn’t the only 
piece of history that happened 
Friday night.

Just over 12 minutes into the 

second 
period, 
Ferris 
State’s 

Ryan Lowney went to the box for 
slashing. It took just 49 seconds 
on for freshman forward Kyle 

Connor to make the Bulldogs pay 
for the penalty. Connor coolly 
put away a rebound from junior 
forward JT Compher’s shot — the 
captain’s assist marked his 100th 
point in a maize and blue sweater, 
making him the first junior to 
reach the milestone since Carl 
Hagelin in 2010.

But after Connor found twine 

to give the Wolverines a 3-1 lead, 
Michigan cruised until the final 
horn sounded.

The Wolverines added two 

more to their goal tally off the 
sticks of Connor and sophomore 
defenseman Zach Werenski. It 
took Werenski just 90 seconds 
in the third period before he 
singlehandedly carried the puck 
in on goal from the offensive 
blue line and netted a backhand. 
Connor’s goal, on the other 
hand, required some help. Junior 
forward Tyler Motte carried 
the puck into the offensive zone 
before feeding freshman forward 
Cooper Marody in the left circle. 
After tapping the puck off his right 
skate, Marody reversed direction 
and sent a perfect pass sailing 
toward his fellow freshman. 
Connor finished the chance easily 
to put an exclamation point on 
Michigan’s victory.

Though Ferris State responded 

with the final goal of the game, 
senior goaltender Steve Racine 
and the Wolverine blueliners 
put together a unified stand 
throughout the matchup. The 
senior netminder made a number 
of critical and acrobatic stops in 
front, tallying 24 in total.

There’s no telling if this is the 

last year Berenson will be on 
Michigan’s bench. But if it is, he 
got to watch his junior captain 
write his name in program 
history. He got to face Bob Daniels 
one last time. And he got one last 
victory against him.

So if it is the last time Berenson 

coaches on a bench opposite of 
Daniels’, that’s not a bad way to 
cap off a friendly rivalry.

“He’s successful because he’s 

very loyal to his players, and I 
believe his players are very loyal 
to him,” Daniels said. “I think the 
world of Red, and I think he’s a 
great coach. If you want to try to 
emulate someone, he’s your guy.”

ICE HOCKEY

JAMES COLLER/Daily

Freshman forward Kyle Connor scored twice Friday to lead Michigan.

FERRIS STATE
MICHIGAN 

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