4B — December 12, 2016
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SportsMonday

Michigan 
beat 
then-No. 
4 

Boston University in front of a 
raucous crowd. With that win, 
the Wolverines appeared to be 
on their way to turning a corner 
after an uninspiring start.

As Michigan enters a short 

break, 
it 
remains 
unknown 

whether Saturday’s win will 
change the course of the season.

“I think the core of the team 

really needs to have a message 
that resonates with every player,” 
Martin said. “... I think as we 
leave, every player needs to search 
themselves a little bit and know 
their role, what they have to do 
for the second half of the season, 
coming back and being ready to 
play, being a true Michigan hockey 
team and being winners.”

HOCKEY
From Page 1B
Martin extends scoring streak to three

Freshman 
forward 
Jake 

Slaker had already tallied an 
assist on the first goal of the 
game, but he wasn’t done. With 
just over seven minutes left in 
the first period, Slaker trapped 
a pass and left the puck floating 
on the ice in front of junior 
defenseman 
Cutler 
Martin. 

Martin 
quickly 
jumped 
on 

the opportunity, scraping up 
the puck and shooting it past 
Wisconsin 
goaltender 
Jack 

Berry.

The goal came during the 

second game of Michigan’s 
weekend split against Wisconsin 
and was one of four goals 
recorded in the 4-1 win. Martin 
also contributed a shorthanded 
goal the night before on a 
two-on-one 
breakaway, 
but 

Michigan (1-3-0 Big Ten, 7-8-1 
overall) was already down by 
two goals and unable to come 
back from its deficit.

In the Wolverines’ weekend 

split, 
Martin 
has 
recently 

proved to be instrumental in 
the scoring process. So far 
this season, he has tallied four 
goals, three of which came in 
the last three games.

“I’ve been playing forward 

since what, the third game of 
the season now?” Martin said. 
“Never played, or I played two 
or three games last year, just 
a few shifts here and there. I 
think now I’m finally getting 
the hang of it, finding the 
right spots. I’m playing with 
a lot of guys that are really 
good, they’re finding me and 
getting the puck in the slot, 
so they make it pretty easy for 
me. But the coaches are in my 
ear — ‘Shoot it, 
shoot it, shoot 
it! Don’t pass 
it!’ — so I’m just 
trying to shoot 
it.”

So far, it looks 

like 
that 
has 

been 
working. 

Two of Martin’s 
goals 
have 

come 
during 

important times 
in games for the Wolverines — 
his first goal of the season tied 
the game against Michigan 

Tech, and his most recent 
gave Michigan a two-goal lead 
against Wisconsin, a team that 
had previously pounded them 
one night earlier, 7-4.

After primarily playing as a 

defenseman at the beginning 
of 
the 
season, 
Martin’s 

promotion to left wing on the 
second line this past weekend 
has recognized that effort. 
The series featured physical 
performances from both teams, 
and the Wolverines racked up 

a high number 
of 
penalties. 

Martin’s goal on 
Saturday helped 
guide the team 
to 
a 
victory 

despite 
those 

penalties.

But Michigan 

can’t 
rely 
on 

scoring 
to 
be 

there to pick up 
the pieces every 

time it tallies penalties, and 
Martin acknowledges that.

“We’re obviously trying to 

play tough out there,” Martin 
said. “Our team this year, we 
have to play tough in order to 
win. I think that the officiating 
is what it is, and we have to 
go out there and play as hard 
as we can and just try to find 
a way not to be in the box. We 
kind of knew (Friday) the way 
they were calling the game 
that we’re going to have to play 
clean, so that’s on us to stay out 
of the box. We can’t take that 
many penalties and continue to 
win games. It’s just not going to 
work.”

The Wolverines will now 

have a break until the Great 
Lakes Invitational at the end 
of December, which means 
they’ll have plenty of time to 
patch up inconsistencies with 
the penalties. Michigan has 
been experimenting with lines 
as well, so it’s unclear whether 
or not Martin will remain at 
his position on the second 
line. But with Martin’s recent 
production, it will be hard to 
downsize his role. 

Junior defenseman lights lamp in both games against Wisconsin as Wolverines earn split at home

LANEY BYLER
Daily Sports Writer

“I think now 

I’m finally 
getting the 
hang of it.”

Wolverines fall short at UCLA

Five seconds remained in the 

first half when UCLA’s Lonzo 
Ball dialed one up from a different 
planet, 
canning 
a 

3-pointer 
from 
the 

center court logo at Pauley 
Pavilion.

The shot from deep tied the 

game at 50, the latest ludicrous 
shot in a matchup that seemed to 
be following a defense-optional 
rule.

The scoring didn’t end with 

Ball’s long triple, but the trend 
quickly started to favor the 
Bruins, as the Michigan men’s 
basketball team fell victim to 
UCLA’s high-scoring offense and 
came up short in a barnburner, 
102-84.

“They only missed 19 times 

and they got nine of those back, 
so that hurt, too,” said Michigan 
coach John Beilein. “Now, the 
ball bounced our way a couple of 
times. I thought we got off to a 
good start, but I mean, they made 
some shots in that game that we 
were right in them. …That takes 
the wind out of you after a little 
bit.”

Michigan 
knew 
it 
would 

have its hands full entering the 
matchup against the second-
ranked Bruins. UCLA (10-0) 
was averaging 97 points per 
game — good for second in the 
nation — and was coming off a 
marquee road win against then-
top-ranked Kentucky on Dec. 3.

In the first half, though, 

Michigan (7-3) rode its success 
from beyond the arc and looked 
poised to go toe to toe with the 
Bruins’ juggernaut offense.

The Wolverines opened the 

game with a 3-pointer from 
senior guard Derrick Walton Jr., 
and they didn’t shy away from the 
triple for the rest of the frame, 
shooting 75 percent from deep.

UCLA, delivering a dominant 

showing in its own right, went 

10-for-14 from three and handed 
over the reigns to Ball, who 
poured in 14 points in the first 
half.

Neither team seemed capable 

of missing, but Michigan led 
for just 5:47 of the first half. It 
did so without its third-leading 
scorer in sophomore forward 
Moritz Wagner, who played just 
12 minutes after picking up two 
fouls in the first frame.

Still, 
despite 
Wagner’s 

absence, Michigan led by seven 
with 1:22 left. Much like their 
games against Texas and Virginia 
Tech, though, the Wolverines 
allowed UCLA to go on a 9-2 run 
— capped off by Ball’s long three 
— to close the half.

By the time the first buzzer 

sounded, it seemed the stars 
might have been aligning for 
Michigan to pull off an upset.

But in the second half, trying 

to beat the Bruins at their own 
game caught up to Michigan.

As 
quickly 
as 
the 
shots 

from beyond the arc gave the 
Wolverines life, they took away 
any hope of surviving against 
the Bruins. Michigan shot just 
2-for-10 from deep in the second 
half and posted a field-goal 
percentage of 34.5. If the first half 
was perfect, then the second was 
just the perfect storm.

UCLA claimed an eight-point 

lead after posting an 8-2 run over 
the first three minutes, as the 
Wolverines opened the second 
half 1-for-6 from the floor, and 
never 
trailed 

from there.

Though 
the 

Wolverines kept 
the margin at 10 
points or fewer 
for 
roughly 

15 
minutes, 

eventually, 
the 

second-ranked 
offense 
in 
the 

country 
turned 

a shootout into 
an offensive clinic. The Bruins 
missed just seven shots in the 
second half, and with 4:31 left, 

Bryce Alford and TJ Leaf put 
daggers into Michigan’s hopes 
for an upset.

Behind 
Leaf’s 
dunk 
and 

Alford’s 
free 
throws 
and 

3-pointer, UCLA 
scored 
seven 

unanswered 
points to claim 
a 16-point lead. 
The Wolverines 
had no answer 
from there, as 
they never cut 
the deficit below 
14. 
While 
the 

Bruins’ 
offense 

only got hotter, 

Michigan’s was put on ice.

“(UCLA’s) really good at what 

they do,” Beilein said. “They 

spread you out. They’ve got 
shooters everywhere. We tried 
to take away the three ball and 
give them the tough two, and 
we didn’t do either one very 
well. When they would see the 
matchup they liked, they would 
just take us. And so if you’re 
giving a lot of help, they’re a 
really good passing team. This is 
a rare team right now that shoots 
the ball at that level and can 
really pass the ball.”

For 20 minutes, there was the 

hope that the Wolverines would 
be taking off from a California 
runway with a marquee win of its 
own under its belt. But by the end 
of the second 20, they could only 
leave with the thought of what 
could have been.

‘M’ splits weekend trip

After beating San Diego State, 

92-57, on Friday, the Michigan 
women’s basketball team had its 
second opportunity to defeat a 
top-10 team this season. Instead, 
the margin this time was wider, 
as the Wolverines fell 84-64 to 
No. 9 UCLA on Sunday.

It was never a close game. The 

Bruins went on a 14-0 run before 
Michigan 
managed 
a 
single 

point, and they refused to give up 
that lead.

Michigan’s 
leading 
scorer, 

junior guard Katelynn Flaherty, 
had a hard time getting through 
the Bruins’ tough defense in the 
first three periods. Flaherty had 
just five points going into the 
second half, despite averaging 
20.1 per game this season. But 
UCLA guard Jordin Canada was 
difficult competition.

“(Canada) 
is 
really 
an 

exceptional 
player,” 
said 

Michigan coach Kim Barnes 
Arico. “All around player, great 
passer, 
great 
scorer, 
great 

defender. I remember watching 
her in high school on film one 
night … and my husband looked 
up and goes, ‘Man that girl can 
play quarterback for my football 
team, the way she runs her 
team and the way she can throw 
those passes.’ And not much has 
changed since her high school 
days. She’s really a special player.”

Despite 
her 
competition, 

Flaherty exploded in the fourth 
quarter, scoring nine points 
on 3-for-4 shooting. Flaherty’s 
nine points in the frame tied 
senior guard Siera Thompson’s 
record of 215 career 3-pointers. 
It was not enough to make up the 
deficit, though.

In addition to Flaherty’s 14 

points, three other Wolverines 
tallied double digits. Freshman 
guard Kysre Gondrezick scored 
18, sophomore forward Hallie 
Thome added another 15 and 
junior guard Jillian Dunston 
scored 10.

Gondrezick 
was 
the 
only 

double-digit scorer who is not 
a starter for Michigan. As a 
freshman, she has made quite an 
impact off the bench, capitalizing 
on opportunities when Flaherty 
is getting targeted on defense as 
she was Sunday night.

“(Gondrezick 
is) 
just 
the 

presence that we need alongside 
of Katelynn and Siera,” Barnes 
Arico said. “Hopefully people 
start keying on her. And then 
we talk about it all the time, 
the other team’s best defender 
is 
guarding 
Katelynn, 
their 

second best defender is guarding 
(Thompson), 
their 
third-best 

defender is guarding our next 
guard and that gives a great 
matchup for a kid like Kysre. And 
she really took advantage of it 
tonight.”

Despite some bright spots, the 

Wolverines struggled. The lack 
of scoring early on meant that 
Michigan could never set up its 
defense fully. The Wolverines 
also ran into trouble when Thome 
had three fouls in the first half, 
which presented an obstacle that 
was too big to overcome.

Even though Michigan was 

unable to topple the Bruins, 
the 
trip 
to 
California 
had 

some redeeming factors. The 
San Diego State game was the 
antithesis of the UCLA game. 
The Wolverines never once fell 
behind, ending the game with 
several impressive statistics.

Thompson had her first double-

double of the season, scoring 11 
points and notching 11 assists. 
She broke her previous career 
record of eight assists. Gondrezick 
proved to be consistent with 18 
points, and Flaherty had 21 points 
in just 26 minutes of playing time.

Though the game against 

the Aztecs ended in victory 
for the Wolverines, Michigan 
will be leaving California with 
a sour taste in its mouth. The 
Wolverines learned that they 
can’t rely solely on offense, and 
even with high scoring, they can 
still be defeated. Defense has to 
be a priority, or teams like UCLA 
will exploit it every time.

KEVIN SANTO
Daily Sports Editor

EVAN AARON/Daily

John Beilein’s team entered halftime tied, but lost on the road to No. 2 UCLA.

MICHIGAN
UCLA 

84
102

“They only 

missed 19 times, 

and they got nine 

of those back.”

MAGGIE KOLCON

Daily Sports Writer

RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily

Junior defenseman Cutler Martin has become a scoring threat in the past couple of weeks for the Wolverines.

