The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Wednesday, November 8, 2017 — 7A

Bracket breakdown: Analyzing potential NCAA Tournament opponents

Ranked 
No. 
11 
at 
the 

beginning of the season, the 
Michigan field hockey team has 
proven that ranking was far too 
low. The Wolverines rattled off 
16 wins in a row with 13 shutouts 
to finish off their season. Then, 
Michigan 
dispatched 
Ohio 

State, No. 9 Northwestern and 
No. 5 Penn State to win the 
Big Ten Tournament, securing 
an automatic bid to the NCAA 
Tournament. 

There is no longer any dispute 

about Michigan’s status as a top 
team. The Wolverines earned 
the third overall seed and will 
host Syracuse on Saturday. The 
Daily broke down Michigan’s 
side of the bracket.

No. 3 Michigan
Michigan finished its season 

with an undefeated 8-0 record 
in conference play and swept 
the Big Ten regular season 
and 
tournament 
titles. 
The 

Wolverines have a good balance 
of 
offensive 
and 
defensive 

standouts who work together 
cohesively. They rank second 
in the nation in goals-against 
average, eighth in goals per 
game 
and 
fifth 
in 
scoring 

margin.

Senior 
goalkeeper 
Sam 

Swenson was named the Big Ten 
Defensive Player of the Year, and 
senior forward Katie Trombetta 
the Big Ten Player of the Year. 
Both were unanimous All-Big 
Ten 
First 
Team 
selections. 

Sophomore 
forward 
Meg 

Dowthwaite, who ranks 15th in 
the nation in goals scored, was 
also named to the first team. 
Fifth-year 
senior 
midfielder 

Esther de Leijer, who scored 
the winning goal in the Big 
Ten Tournament championship 
game despite a broken hand, 
made the second team.

Though the Big Ten is not as 

strong as the ACC, Michigan has 
proved it is up to the challenge. 
The Wolverines’ offense has 

been inconsistent at times — 
they were outshot by Penn State 
in the Big Ten Tournament 
final and didn’t score the game-
winning goal until the final 
minutes — which could cause 
them trouble against a top-
ranked defense like Syracuse. 
But if Michigan finds its groove, 
it will be a hard team to beat.

No. 11 Syracuse
Syracuse didn’t make it out 

of the quarterfinals of the 
ACC Tournament, losing 3-2 to 
Louisville. However, the Orange 
managed an at-large bid due to 
the strength of their conference. 
Despite finishing 2-4 in ACC 
play, they were 12-6 overall, 
including seven victories over 
ranked teams.

Syracuse has one of the 

stingiest defenses in the nation, 
ranking third in shutouts per 
game and goals-against average. 
It’ll be a battle of strengths as 
it faces a Michigan team that 
ranks first and second in those 
categories, respectively.

Still, the Orange allowed 

fewer 
shots 
on 
goal 
than 

any team in the tournament 
besides Connecticut, which is 
no small feat considering their 
powerhouse conference. Two 
defenders made the All-ACC 
teams: senior Lies Lagerweij 
was named to the first team, 
and junior Roos Weers made the 
second team.

Offensively, senior midfielder 

and forward Laura Hurff, an 
All-ACC Second Team selection, 
is a standout, but the team ranks 
only 15th out of 18 teams in the 
tournament in goals scored per 
game.

Facing 
one 
of 
the 
only 

other teams that can match 
its defensive prowess will be a 
challenge for Syracuse, and that 
should give the Wolverines the 
upper hand in what will likely 
be a low-scoring matchup.

No. 10 Louisville
If 
Michigan 
makes 
the 

quarterfinals 
on 
Sunday, 
it 

will play the winner of the 

match between Louisville and 
Northwestern.

The 
Cardinals 
advanced 

to 
the 
finals 
of 
the 
ACC 

Tournament, upsetting No. 2 
Duke, 3-2, in the semifinals 
despite being outshot, 31-8. In 
the finals, they lost to North 
Carolina, 1-0, but received an 
at-large bid with a 14-7 record. 
The Cardinals, who are hosting 
the semifinal and final rounds 
of the tournament, fared better 
than Syracuse in conference 
play with a 4-2 record.

Junior goalkeeper Ayeisha 

McFerran, who had a career-
high 18 saves against Duke, and 
senior midfielder Nicole Woods 
were both named to the All-ACC 
First Team. Despite its impact 
players, however, the team has 
a middling offense and defense. 
The Cardinals rank 26th in the 
nation in goals-against average 

and 35th in scoring average. 
They managed only one shutout 
during 
the 
regular 
season 

— against unranked Central 
Michigan — and their scoring 
margin was lower than all but 
one team in the tournament.

But 
Louisville 
has 
come 

through in big games, defeating 
Syracuse and Duke in the ACC 
Tournament. It also played in 
the toughest conference in field 
hockey, meaning that despite 
lackluster stats, the Cardinals 
could 
fare 
well 
against 

teams 
from 
less-competitive 

conferences. Still, most teams 
that are able to make it far in the 
NCAA Tournament stand out on 
either offense or defense, if not 
both. Because the Cardinals do 
neither, they’ll need some more 
big-game magic to keep their 
season going.

No. 9 Northwestern

Northwestern 
made 
it 
to 

the semifinals of the Big Ten 
Tournament, beating No. 20 
Rutgers in the quarterfinals 
before 
falling 
to 
Michigan, 

3-0. The Wildcats received an 
at-large bid with an overall 
record of 14-6 (6-2 Big Ten). 
Northwestern easily dispatched 
lower-ranked 
opponents 
but 

struggled 
against 
tougher 

competition, losing to every top-
10 team it faced except then-No. 
10 Maryland.

The strength of the Wildcats 

lies with three game-changing 
players. Senior defender Sophia 
Miller was one of only three 
unanimous selections to the 
All-Big Ten First Team. Junior 
midfielder Puck Pentenga also 
made the first team and was 
fifth in the nation in assists per 
game. Junior forward Pascale 
Massey, Northwestern’s most 

prolific goal-scorer, was named 
to the second team.

Pentenga and Massey lead 

a high-powered offense that 
ranks 12th nationally in goals 
per game, a feat that is even 
more 
impressive 
considering 

many of the teams ahead of them 
came 
from 
less-competitive 

conferences. 
However, 
the 

defense has at times left a 
little to be desired — only two 
tournament teams allowed more 
goals per game — which could 
explain the Wildcats’ struggles 
against 
top 
competition. 

In 
Louisville, 
however, 

Northwestern 
faces 
a 
team 

that has struggled offensively 
and one it has already defeated 
in the regular season, 2-0. 
With a strong foundation in 
Miller, Pentenga and Massey, 
Northwestern has the pieces to 
repeat that result.

ARNOLD ZHOU/Daily

The Michigan field hockey team enters the NCAA Tournament as the third overall seed and will host No. 11 Syracuse at Ocker Field on Saturday at 11:30 a.m.

ARIA GERSON
Daily Sports Writer

‘M’ defensemen striving for consistency

Wherever Mel Pearson goes, 

offense follows. 

When Pearson became the 

head coach at Michigan Tech in 
2011, the Huskies were coming 
off a 4-30-4 campaign in which 
they averaged just 1.97 goals and 
24.9 shots per game. But after 
only one season, the Huskies 
were outshooting opponents and 
scoring nearly one more goal 
per contest than they had the 
previous year.

As the head coach of the 

Michigan hockey team, Pearson 
has worked similar wonders. The 
Wolverines have gone from 51st 
in the country in shot attempts in 
2016-17 to fourth this season and 
are tied for 10th in scoring.

Pearson’s 
teams 
have 

always been quick to grasp his 
up-tempo brand of hockey. While 
watching 
sophomore 
forward 

Will Lockwood blast down the 
ice or the first line of seniors 
Dexter Dancs, Tony Calderone 
and junior Cooper Marody work 
in perfect harmony, it’s easy to 
forget all about last season.

For 
Michigan’s 
defense, 

however, the learning process 
hasn’t been quite as smooth.

“We’ve got to buy in and make 

a total commitment to team 
defense,” Pearson said after the 
Wolverines’ 5-4 loss to Penn State 
on Oct. 27. “We’ll score goals; 
we’ve got enough guys that can 
score goals. But we’ve got to play 
a lot better defensively.”

Michigan allowed three goals 

in the third period and overtime 
of that contest, as well as 54 
shots on goal. The following day, 
Pearson and the coaching staff 
arranged 
a 
longer-than-usual 

video session, which involved 
watching the game’s last five 
minutes and identifying defensive 
mistakes. This paid off, as the 
Wolverines rebounded with a 
5-2 win over the Nittany Lions to 
split the series.

“The 
last 
three 
goals 
in 

last night’s game, we had the 
puck possession and we just 
gave it away. Just poor puck 
management,” 
Pearson 
said 

after that game. “We (watched 

video) not to be overly critical 
or to pick on anyone but just as a 
learning process going forward, 
so when we get in a tough game 
somewhere down the line, we can 
play with that composure.”

But 
giveaways 
in 
the 

defensive zone have still plagued 
Michigan. Against Ferris State 
last Thursday, the Wolverines 
allowed just two goals, and both 
came as a result of avoidable 
turnovers — junior defenseman 
Nicholas Boka slipped and lost 
control of the puck, and Ferris 
State 
forward 
Lucas 
Finner 

stole the puck from sophomore 
forward Jake Slaker to score the 
Bulldogs’ second goal.

Pearson 
understands 
that 

eliminating 
what 
he 
terms 

“unforced errors” won’t happen 
overnight, and that one strong 
performance 
doesn’t 
mean 

that process is complete. On 
Thursday, he chalked many of 
the Wolverines’ defensive lapses 
up to the competitiveness of the 
blueliners in always wanting to 
make an outstanding play, even if 
one isn’t available.

“Just 
watched 
an 
NHL 

game this weekend and those 
defensemen, 
(if) 
they 
don’t 

have a play, they just gotta get 
it out and live for another day,” 
Pearson said. “I think that’s one 
of the big things. We have to just 

understand the situation.”

The 
Wolverines 
do 
have 

defensemen with the ability to 
contribute on offense — freshman 
Quinn Hughes, junior Joseph 
Cecconi and senior Sam Piazza 
have all tallied at least four points.

But 
priority 
number 
one 

still lies in the defensive zone, 
as Pearson has used statistics 
as motivation for the unit to 
perform.

“You call them together as 

a group to take pride in our 
statistics 
nationally,” 
Pearson 

said. “It’s a good reflection on your 
defensemen, your goals-against. 
... We want to encourage them to 
do some things offensively but we 
want to be rock-solid defensively.”

Sophomore defenseman Luke 

Martin — one half of Michigan’s 
top 
defensive 
pairing, 
along 

with Hughes — also stressed 
developing a rapport with other 
defensemen as a unit is key for 
improvement.

“It’s a lot in practice and a lot 

in preparation, but the big key for 
me is communication,” Martin 
said. “Always talking with your 
partner, always dissecting shifts 
or plays and whatever it is and 
just getting on the same page and 
getting used to the way people 
play. Quinn and I — we’ve been 
talking so much and I think it 
shows that our chemistry and our 

togetherness. It’s gotten so much 
better and I think we still have so 
much left to build on.”

The aspect of chemistry has 

been hugely important to Pearson 
as well. While the Wolverines 
may lack experience or veteran 
presence in many areas, defense is 
not one of them, and Pearson has 
taken advantage of this, going as 
far as seating underclassmen next 
to upperclassmen in the locker 
room to aid their development.

“A lot of these guys won the Big 

Ten championship a couple years 
ago,” Pearson said. “So they’ve 
been through it, they understand 
what you need to do to have 
success and win championships. 
They have it, they experienced, it, 
they earned it. They understand 
what it takes. Even during the 
game, most players, they’re sitting 
right next to each other, they 
can add some advice to them or 
even in the locker room between 
periods and all these practices.”

Michigan’s 
transformation 

into one of the most dynamic 
offenses in the country took 
place quite rapidly. Building 
consistency behind this attack, 
however, has taken a bit longer. 
But 
through 
communication, 

video sessions and a strong focus 
on the defensive zone, Pearson 
and the Wolverines believe that 
stability will emerge in time.

AMELIA CACCHIONE/Daily

Sophomore defenseman Luke Martin emphasized that Michigan needs to establish consistency among its blueliners.

JACOB SHAMES
Daily Sports Writer

MEN’S BASKETBALL
Wolverines emphasize 
improvement on glass

Going into the 2017-18 season, 

the Michigan men’s basketball 
team has some well-documented 
concerns. 

Questions 
of 
Duncan 

Robinson’s 
defense, 
Charles 

Matthews’ shooting ability and 
the 
Wolverines’ 
point 
guard 

competition were the focal points 
of preseason media availabilities. 

But one area of concern that 

has gotten little attention is the 
lack of proven rebounding ability 
Michigan returns this year.

According to UM Hoops, the 

Wolverines return just 40 percent 
of its defensive rebounding from 
a season ago, hurt by the losses of 
D.J. Wilson, Derrick Walton Jr. 
and Zak Irvin – last season’s top 
three rebounders.

That showed in last Friday’s 

exhibition 
when 
Michigan 

allowed Grand Valley State to grab 
15 offensive rebounds and score 17 
second-chance points. 

It’s only November – sure. 

But that statistic isn’t exactly 
encouraging, especially given the 
relative size of the opposition. Of 
the Lakers who played significant 
minutes, only one was taller than 
6-foot-6 – center Drake Baar.

Compare that to what the 

Wolverines will see on a nightly 
basis in the Big Ten. Michigan 
State, for example, features three 
players over 6-foot-8 in its starting 
lineup.

Against larger teams, a lack of 

defensive rebounders could come 
back to bite more noticeably than 
it did in Friday’s 82-50 rout, and 
Michigan realizes this.

“We 
gotta 
do 
better 
on 

defensive rebounds,” said fifth-
year senior point guard Jaaron 
Simmons. “We had a lot of long 
rebounds, so us as guards, we 
gotta help on that.”

Added 
John 
Beilein: 

“(Defensive 
rebounding) 
is 

obviously a concern for us. A lot 
of them were hustle plays, too. 
(Grand Valley State) did a great job 
with that, and fought really hard.”

To limit those second-chance 

opportunities, 
Beilein 
said 

rebounding is a focus of practice 
this week. One of his favorite drills 
– called “takeaways” – emphasizes 
physicality and assertiveness in 
crashing the boards.

“It’s great touching point for 

us to say, ‘This is what we have, 
and now we’ve got to continue to 
emphasize it,’ ” Beilein said. “You 
can emphasize it in practice all day 
long, and you start play in games – 
you’ve got to see in games.”

One player who has already 

displayed a knack for rebounding 
is 
junior 
forward 
Charles 

Matthews. Though he collected 
a mundane four rebounds Friday, 
his hustle and knowledge of the 
glass was evident.

With just over six minutes 

remaining in the first half, 
Matthews jutted into the paint, 
got inside position and grabbed 
the rebound off a missed free 
throw attempt from freshman 
point guard Eli Brooks. Matthews 
then 
looked 
up 
and 
found 

Robinson on the perimeter for an 
open three.

Matthews says he has always 

been that type of player – 
searching for loose balls and 
looking to capitalize off missed 
shots.

“When I was younger, nobody 

passed me the ball, and I wanted 
to score,” Matthews said. “So I just 
said, ‘I’m going to get the rebound 
and go back up with it.’ That’s just 
a natural knack I have – just going 
up and trying to get the ball. And 
coaches are stressing on me to 
do it even more and continue to 
rebound.”

Still, Matthews won’t always be 

there to take advantage of every 
missed shot. He knows the perils 
of giving up too many offensive 
boards – like Michigan did in its 
only exhibition.

“A lot of them was long, 

granted,” Matthews said. “Still, 
we can’t let a team – I don’t 
care who they are – get 15 
offensive rebounds. That could 
be potentially dangerous. We’ll 
correct.”

MARK CALCAGNO

Daily Sports Writer

