Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Friday, March 10, 2017 — 7
‘M’ set for
rematch
vs. Purdue
WASHINGTON — Wednesday
afternoon, the Michigan men’s
basketball team was set to fly to
Washington
D.C.
for
the
Big
Ten
Tournament.
But a plane
accident
derailed
the
Wolverines’
plans,
and
they
were
forced to fly
out
Thursday
morning,
landing
just
three hours before the noon tip-
off and not arriving at the Verizon
Center until about 10:40.
That didn’t stop Michigan,
though, as it came out on fire,
jumping out to a 20-point lead and
ultimately won, 75-55.
Now, less than 24 hours after
that victory, Michigan will have an
even tougher test in No. 13 Purdue.
“That’s the beauty of the (Big
Ten Tournament),” said sophomore
forward
Mortiz
Wagner.
“Somehow you gotta get to the next
one in any way. It doesn’t matter
what happened. We (did) it once
now, we can do it twice.”
“Luckily, we just played Purdue,
so we still know the strategy, we
still know how they play.”
The two squads met just 12 days
ago back in Ann Arbor, where
the Wolverines pummeled the
Boilermakers, 82-70, on Senior
Day. Wagner scored 24 points,
including 20 in the first half, on
10-of-15 shooting.
Even more impressively, he did
it with Big Ten Player of the Year
Caleb Swanigan on him for most of
the game. Swanigan couldn’t keep
up with Wagner, allowing him to
get open frequently for pick-and-
pop shots.
On the other side of the court,
Wagner and redshirt sophomore
forward DJ Wilson shut down
Purdue’s duo of big men Swanigan
and Isaac Haas, holding the pair
to a combined 26 points and 11
rebounds. They average 31.3 points
per game in addition to 17.7 boards
per game.
“I think for me personally it
helps a lot too because (they) won’t
change
their
whole
playbook
through two weeks or one week,”
Wagner said. “So you know what
they’re going for.”
Added Wilson: “My biggest
thing is trying to stay in front of
them and box them out. They’re
two great rebounders, especially
on the offensive glass. So I need to
try to stay in front of them, chest
them up and box them out.”
Michigan,
though,
shot
an
astronomical 65.5 percent in the
first half, and replicating that
performance against the No. 1 seed
in the Big Ten will be a tough act.
“We know that they’re Big Ten
champs,” Wilson said. “They’re a
great team, they have a great post
presence and they shoot the ball
well from 3.”
Outside of its frontcourt, Purdue
boasts guards Carsen and Vince
Edwards (no relation), who average
12.3 and 10.6 points, respectively, as
well as guard Dakota Mathias, who
is one of the Big Ten’s most prolific
3-point shooters, shooting 47.8
percent from behind the arc on 136
attempts.
The Wolverines will also see
a familiar face in guard Spike
Albrecht,
who
transferred
to
Purdue this past offseason after
four years in Ann Arbor, though
Albrecht has played a minimal
role on the Boilermaker team. He
averages just 12.9 minutes per game.
Since Senior Day in Ann Arbor,
Purdue has won twice. But as
well as the Boilermakers have
played this season, Michigan’s
confidence might be at an all-
time high after it has won seven
of its last nine games.
“To be honest with you, I think
this group can beat anyone,”
Wagner said. “That’s how much I
believe in this group.”
That confidence grew Thursday
when the Wolverines beat the
Fighting lllini just hours after their
flight. Now, the biggest challenge
for Michigan will be to play with
the same adrenaline when a bit of
normalcy returns to their lives.
Wolverines have a chance to play spoiler
It is fitting that the Michigan
hockey team will end the regular
season against No. 11 Penn State.
Nearly
three
years
after
a
bitter
loss
that continues
to
linger
in
the minds of
six
seniors,
the roles are
reversed in this
weekend’s two-
game
series
against
the
Nittany
Lions
in Ann Arbor.
One storied
program
has
endured
a
recent but significant decline — a
downward trajectory that began
with an opposing program seeking
to make a name for itself in the
wake of its birth. In the aftermath,
a rivalry has blossomed between
two schools that share just four
years of history between them.
Senior weekend at Yost Ice
Arena is upon Michigan, and with
the finality there is inherently
introspectiveness — especially
for the home team, as it concludes
a long season that has not gone
the way anyone had hoped. The
Wolverines
will
look
across
the rink and find an offensive
juggernaut clawing its way to an
NCAA Tournament bid — a team
that resembles Michigan teams
of years past. Penn State will take
the ice against a team that, in some
ways, resembles early iterations
of the Nittany Lions: hungry and
desperate, with nothing to lose.
Just how did these two teams
end up in this position, mirroring
each other’s pasts?
The rivalry began four years
ago during the 2013-14 season —
the second year of Penn State’s
existence as a Division I program
and its first in the newly formed
Big Ten. The Nittany Lions were
upstarts looking up at teams like
Michigan, a program that already
had decades to establish its place
within the hierarchy of college
hockey. The Wolverines were the
class of the conference, coming
off a 22-year NCAA Tournament
streak that had ended the year
before. Their success as a program
was what Penn State would hope
to emulate.
The Nittany Lions spent much
of that year punching up at other
teams, hoping to knock down a
few of them. It just so happened
that they first experienced success
against Michigan — and in doing
so,
derailed
the
Wolverines’
season.
Michigan’s 4-0 loss in State
College on Feb. 8 that year was
Penn State’s first Big Ten win in
program history. The Wolverines’
5-4 overtime loss on Feb. 21 was
the Nittany Lions’ first road Big
Ten victory. And then, the final
blow came at the inaugural Big Ten
Tournament, where Penn State
beat Michigan in the first round.
The Wolverines’ unexpected loss,
coupled with the previous two
losses to Penn State that had hurt
their PairWise Ranking, ended
their season and attempt to return
to the postseason. And a rivalry —
however improbable its existence
may have seemed before the
season — was forged.
“It kinda came out of nowhere
… especially in hockey, they’re a
new team,” said senior forward
Alex Kile. “You just didn’t really
expect it. That first year, they
basically ruined our season. They
ended our season in the Big Ten
Tournament, but throughout the
year they just beat us, and the
same with sophomore year —
they beat us. We kinda felt like we
always had the better team, but
they found a way to beat us.”
The Nittany Lions got the
better of Michigan the following
year as well, splitting a series in
Ann Arbor before sweeping the
Wolverines at home. Through
two years, Michigan had just a
3-6 record against Penn State,
with each of those losses playing
a crucial role in keeping the
Wolverines
from
the
NCAA
Tournament.
This year, again, the Nittany
Lions have owned Michigan,
winning the first two meetings by
a combined score of 11-2.
Nagelvoort
attributes
Michigan’s difficulty against Penn
State to the Nittany Lions’ “run-
and-gun” style — a high-octane
offense that peppers opposing
goaltenders with shots. The past
few years have also seen the
Wolverines struggle tremendously
on defense, often giving up many
more shots than they generate.
That slide, coupled with Penn
State’s offensive strategy, is one of
the reasons why the Nittany Lions
had so much early success.
It’s
not
inconceivable
that
those earlier Michigan teams
made the mistake of overlooking
Penn State, all while the Nittany
Lions
regarded
those
games
as benchmarks for the young
program’s progression — the type
of games to circle on the calendar.
It is true that Michigan coach Red
Berenson has instilled his team
with a mentality to take games one
at a time. But the regular season is
long, and players are acutely aware
of how talented their opponents
are. And in those early years,
the Wolverines had the definite
on-paper advantage over the
Nittany Lions — perhaps leading
to some glancing past them.
“They surprised some teams,”
Nagelvoort said. “We were one of
those teams. … I think they had
performances that were above
their paygrade at the time —
which, give them credit for. They
beat us and they beat some other
teams that they quote-unquote
shouldn’t have beat.”
At this point, though, there
appears to be little possibility that
Michigan overlooks Penn State,
which is 21-9-2 and in position for
its first NCAA Tournament berth,
or is surprised by its offensive
scheme going forward.
They have finally accepted their
new role — however unfamiliar
or unexpected it may be — as the
scrappy underdog. It is a different
type of reality: Michigan can no
longer move up in the Big Ten
standings. An NCAA Tournament
berth won’t be on the line for them
this weekend. But the motivation
is easy to find — for the six seniors
whose careers will be celebrated
after
Saturday’s
game,
the
weekend provides one last chance
for retribution against Penn State.
They have an opportunity to end
their careers differently than how
they began them, as the spoiler
instead of the spoiled.
“Last year, we got our way with
them, and this year, as seniors, we
remember the feeling (from) our
freshman year of them knocking
us out of the tournament,” Kile
said. “We have an opportunity
where if we sweep them, we can
make it really hard on them to
make the tournament, so that’s
our goal. … We want to sweep
them this weekend and screw up
their season.”
SOFTBALL
Michigan tries to ease
pressure in Kentucky
Michigan
softball
coach
Carol Hutchins has noticed
a simple theme plaguing her
team.
“I think when the kids feel
the pressure, they try too hard,”
Hutchins said. “That’s exactly
what is going on with them.”
Despite the success that
the 17th-ranked Wolverines
typically enjoy against the
nation’s
elite
programs,
Michigan has gone just 2-5-1
against
ranked
opponents
this season — including three
shutout losses in California
over Spring Break.
So in this weekend’s Jim
Cropp Classic, which features
two matchups against No. 19
Kentucky and contests with
Evansville and
Kent
State,
Hutchins
simply
wants
her hitters to
relax
at
the
plate.
“This year’s
been
tougher
than previous
years
—
we
haven’t started
the
way
we
wanted to,” said senior right-
hander Megan Betsa. “One of
the biggest things (Hutchins)
keeps stressing is do less. One
of the biggest things we need
to focus on is that it’s just a
softball game.”
Thus, this week’s practices
were centered around mental
composure
and
hitting
under pressure — both of
which have developed into
significant shortcomings in
the opening month. Michigan
even took two practices off
at the beginning of the week
following a 10-day California
trip in hopes of collecting
themselves.
Junior first baseman Tera
Blanco has fallen victim to
this tension more than any
Wolverine, as her batting
average has plummeted 180
points from last season’s .404
mark. Blanco — statistically
Michigan’s
best
returning
hitter
from
2016
—
has
especially been a focus of the
relaxed approach Hutchins is
trying to instill in her team.
“Tera tries too hard, and
tried so hard that her swing
gets really big,” Hutchins said.
“We did a couple good drills
that helps you stay short to the
ball and smack it, and she was
better at my station today, but
she’s got to quit trying.”
Sidelined with an injury,
sophomore outfielder Natalie
Peters didn’t play in the second
California tournament over
spring break. Hutchins said
that she hopes to use Peters
this weekend and will continue
to
tweak
the
batting
order
until
Michigan finds
consistent
offensive
production
—
not
a
single
lineup
was
repeated
in
the team’s five
games
last
weekend.
Sophomore
second
baseman
Faith
Canfield
combated the sluggish trend
set by Wolverine hitters last
week, suggesting that she
could see more at-bats near
the top of the order. She hit
.538 and provided the team
with its only two runs in a
2-0 victory over Cal State
Fullerton last Friday.
While Canfield has enjoyed
recent progress, a matchup
with a ranked Kentucky team
provides Michigan with the
challenge the Wolverines have
faced all season, balancing
pressure with performance.
But for the team to have
success,
as
Hutchins
has
reminded them all week, it’s as
simple as not trying too hard.
“I think when
the kids feel the
pressure, they
try too hard.”
MARK CALCAGNO
Daily Sports Writer
ORION SANG
Daily Sports Editor
EVAN AARON/Daily
Senior forward Alex Kile gets one last crack at a Penn State team that has caused problems for Michigan over the years.
Penn State
at Michigan
Matchup:
Penn State
21-9-2;
Michigan
11-18-3
When: Friday,
Saturday
7:30 P.M.
Where: Yost
Ice Arena
TV/Radio:
BTN Plus
MATTHEW VAILLIENCOURT/Daily
Sophomore infielder Ako Thomas leads Michigan with 10 stolen bases heading into this weekend’s road trip.
‘M’ heads to Lipscomb for series
The Michigan baseball team
(9-3) is fresh off a stellar spring
break trip in California, but the
Wolverines couldn’t care less.
The only thing on their minds
is their upcoming series against
Lipscomb (8-4) this weekend.
“Hank Aaron told us when
he spoke to us, ‘What you did
yesterday is only good for
wrapping dead fish,’ ” said
Michigan coach Erik Bakich.
“Spring Break has nothing to
do with today or the weekend
moving forward. We’ve got to
re-center, get back to training
and busting our butts and
working hard to allow us to have
success moving forward.”
Michigan will kick off the
three-game
series
Friday
afternoon in Nashville, Tenn.
Though the team may not be
interested in what happened
last week, it has surely garnered
some national attention.
The Wolverines entered the
D1baseball.com poll at No. 24 and
the Collegiate Baseball News poll
at No. 19. If Michigan continues
with its impressive offense, these
rankings will only improve.
After a hot start, redshirt
sophomore
outfielder
Miles
Lewis has not cooled down and
has led the Wolverines with
a .340 batting average, while
three of his teammates are also
batting above 300.
Sophomore
infielder
Ako
Thomas follows closely behind
Lewis with a .333 average, 17
hits and 10 RBIs. He’s also tied
for fourth in the nation in stolen
bases, in which Michigan also
ranks first as a team, success that
comes from a more aggressive
style of play.
“We’re just as fast as we were
last year,” said senior infielder
Michael Brdar, who also already
has seven steals this season. “It
was (Thomas and my) first year,
didn’t have all the confidence
we do now. I think now when
we run the bases we have more
confidence and trust ourselves.”
The Wolverines may not have
faced any similar opponents to
the Bisons this season, but they
know what to expect.
“Our coaches do a very good
job at scouting,” Thomas said.
“They’ll give us the scouting
report on who we’re going to
face: pitching, types of hitters
they have, the kind of defense
we’re going to be in and things
like that. That usually helps
prepare us most for teams we’ve
never played before.”
Michigan’s junior left-hander
Oliver Jaskie has established
himself as the best on the mound
for the Wolverines. He boasts a
2.25 earned-run average, 16
strikeouts and has only allowed
11 hits through 16 innings.
Lipscomb’s
biggest
threat
on the mound is right-hander
Dayton Tripp, but due to a
rescheduled
game
against
Tennessee Tech, Tripp pitched
on Wednesday and is unlikely
to see the field against the
Wolverines.
The Bisons may be riding
a high from a two-game win
streak, most recently beating
Tennessee Tech and Auburn,
but if they’re anything like this
Michigan team, they will only be
looking ahead.
PAIGE VOEFFRAY
Daily Sports Writer
Michigan
vs. Purdue
Matchup:
Michigan 21-11;
Purdue 25-6
When: Friday
12 P.M.
Where: Verizon
Center
TV/Radio: ESPN
MINH DOAN
Daily Sports Editor