Exhibition #2
11/10/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
WAYNE STATE warriors
- When: Sunday, November 12, 2000
- Where: Crisler Arena (13,562), Ann Arbor, Mich.
- Tipoff: 1:00 p.m.
- Television: none
- Radio: WTKA-AM (tape delayed, starting at 4 p.m.)
(Doug Karsch play-by-play; Jim Moore color) - Tickets: Available (Blue Seats $18, Gold Seats $14)
- Head Coaches: Michigan -- Brian Ellerbe (4th season)
Wayne State -- Ron Hammye (13th season) - Rankings: Neither team is ranked
- Wayne State Website: www.wayne.edu
Season Continues with Second Tune-up
Michigan will play its second and final exhibition game when it hosts Wayne State on Sunday (Nov. 12) at 1 p.m. in Crisler Arena to close out the preseason. The Wolverines opened the 2000-01 campaign with a last-second 71-70 exhibition loss to the CBA's Grand Rapids Hoops (Nov. 7). The game featured former Wolverines Mark Hughes (1986-89), who is the head coach and was a member of U-M's 1989 national championship team, and Eric Riley (1990-93), who played center.
Season Opener Sold Out, Will Be Televised by WADL
The Wolverines will tip off the 2000-01 regular season on the road at Oakland, Friday, Nov. 17, at 7 p.m. in Rochester, Mich. The game against the Golden Grizzlies is sold out and will be featured on WADL-TV (channel 23 on MediaOne). Oakland's new 3,000 seat 'O' Rena was recently completed in 1999.
Blanchard Still Feeling Affects of Ankle Sprain
Sophomore LaVell Blanchard (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer HS) continues to nurse a tender left ankle and is listed as doubtful for the final exhibition game against Wayne State. He has practiced lightly during the week but is still not 100 percent. Blanchard hurt the ankle in practice Saturday (Nov. 4) and missed the Wolverines' first exhibition contest, against the CBA's Grand Rapids Hoops.
Welcome to Junior's Neighborhood
Freshman Bernard Robinson Jr. (Washington, D.C./New Hampton Prep [N.H.]) made an impression in his new neighborhood -- Crisler Arena. In his first collegiate exhibition game against the CBA's Grand Rapids Hoops (Nov. 7), he started and went 10-of-18 from the field for a game-high 28 points in 36 minutes of action. Robinson showed it all, cutting through the lane, on long range bombs (going 4-of-7 on three-pointers) and making plays down the stretch. He finished with three rebounds, three steals, two assists and one block.
No Pressure ... It Just Stuck
With the Wolverines down three to the Grand Rapids Hoops (Nov. 7), junior Leon Jones (Battle Creek, Mich./Winchendon Prep [Conn.]) had a opportunity to tie the game after being fouled on a three-point attempt with 1.2 seconds to go. He sank the first two before the Hoops called a timeout. Jones came out after the timeout and missed the free throw, giving a 71-70 win to Hoops. Jones' reaction when he got to the pressroom: "It just stuck a little bit," he said, laughing. "Every guy wants that opportunity with the game on the line. This is what basketball is all about, everybody dreams about being in that position."
Gentle Giant Makes Debut
Freshman Josh Moore (Newark, N.J./St. Thomas More Prep [Conn.]) may be 7-2, 300 pounds and intimidating, but he showed a nice touch around the basket in his first collegiate exhibition game, against the CBA's Grand Rapids Hoops (Nov. 7). He started at center and finished with 12 points and eight rebounds in 28 minutes of action.
Blanchard Voted to Preseason All-Big Ten Squads
Sophomore LaVell Blanchard was selected to the preseason All-Big Ten Conference men's basketball team by both the coaches and media. The preseason polls and all-conference picks were announced Oct. 29 at the Big Ten's annual Media Day. Joining Blanchard on the team selected by the coaches were Illinois' Cory Bradford, Michigan State's Charlie Bell, Indiana's Kirk Haston and Ohio State's Ken Johnson. Joining Blanchard on the media's team were Bradford, Bell, Johnson and Penn State's Joe Crispin. Blanchard led the Wolverines in scoring (14.4) and rebounding (7.9) in his rookie season and was honored as the Big Ten's Freshman of the Year by both the coaches and the media.
Here Come the Marathon Men
Senior Josh Asselin (Caro, Mich./Caro HS) has played in 92 consecutive games for the Wolverines and has played in 93 total career games, missing only one game, due to illness during his freshman season at Towson (Nov. 24, 1997). Juniors Leon Jones (Battle Creek, Mich./Winchendon Prep) and Chris Young (Plymouth, Mich./Detroit Catholic Central HS) have played in every game in their Michigan careers, a stretch of 60 consecutive games. Jones started 21 of 29 games last season while Young made the first five starts of his career.
Asselin Moves Back to Familiar Ground
After a successful junior season at center, senior Josh Asselin moves back to his more natural position as the power forward in the post. After changing positions and playing nearly seven less minutes a game, he finished last year averaging 8.6 points and 5.3 rebounds, a shade under his breakout sophomore year stats. He also collected 35 blocks and shot 59.4 percent from the field.
The New Quarterbacks
After the Wolverines lost their 1999-2000 freshman backcourt of Jamal Crawford (NBA) and Kevin Gaines (dismissed), coach Brian Ellerbe has replaced them with two more freshmen -- Avery Queen (Moreno Valley, Calif./Redemption Christian Academy, N.Y.) and Maurice Searight (Orchard Lake, Mich./St. Mary's HS). Queen finished his senior season averaging 20.0 points and 6.0 assists a game, while Searight averaged 16.1 points and 8.1 assists a game.
Blanchard Looking to Continue Freshman Year's Success
LaVell Blanchard is hoping to continue his success during his sophomore season after being named the 2000 Big Ten Conference's Freshman of Year as selected by the media and sharing the same honor with Illinois' Brian Cook as selected by the Big Ten coaches. Blanchard closed out his first season playing in 28 games, missing only one game due to a knee sprain. He led the team with 14.4 points and 7.9 rebounds. He played 30.6 minutes a game and passed out 1.5 assists a game. In addition, he collected nine double-doubles, shot 44.8 percent from the field, 36.3 percent on three-pointers and a team-best 82.7 percent on free throws. He led the team in rebounding in 19 games and in scoring 11 times.
The Tall and the Short of It
Freshmen Josh Moore and Avery Queen have already made an impact in the Michigan history books. Moore comes to Ann Arbor one of the tallest players in Michigan history. The 7-2 Moore ties Jon Antonides (1981, '83-84) as the tallest player in history. Conversely, Queen comes to Ann Arbor as the shortest player ever. His 5-7 frame beat out 5-8 Dave Hart (1971-72) for the honor.
Wolverines Add Two More Players
The 2000-01 Michigan squad increased its numbers by two as freshman Colin Dill (Saginaw, Mich./Birmingham Country Day) and junior Ron Garber (Golden Valley, Minn./Hopkins HS) were added to the squad. Dill walked on to the squad in early September, while Garber was invited to join the Wolverines after walk-on tryouts in October. The 6-7 Dill played basketball and football at Birmingham's Country Day (1996-98), with Duke All-American Shane Battier. Dill suffered a leg injury and went to St. Thomas More Prep in Connecticut before enrolling at Michigan this year. The 6-8 Garber never played basketball in high school, but made a name for himself lettering four years in cross and country and in track, where he was a high jumper. He tried out last season, only to be one of the last players cut.
Trost Promoted, Green Added as Assistant
Scott Trost was promoted to associate head coach this summer and Terence Greene replaced Lorenzo Neely, who left for an assistant position at Western Michigan. Trost's primary responsibilities will be expanded in areas of game plan strategies and practice plans, scouting of opponents, individualized skill instruction, on-campus recruiting and supervision of academics. Greene will work on practice plans, scouting and recruiting. Greene most recently was an assistant coach at Eastern Michigan during the 1999-2000 season. He helped the Eagles to a 15-13 overall record and a trip to the Mid-American Conference tournament. Prior to EMU, he was an assistant coach at Mott Community College in Flint, Mich., during the 1996-97 season and helped that team to a No. 1 ranking in the national junior college ranks.
Schedule Shapes Up as One of Toughest Around
After playing one of the toughest schedules in the country the last two seasons, U-M will again continue the trend in 2000-01. The Wolverines will face two Final Four teams from a year ago -- Michigan State, the defending national champion, and Wisconsin -- as well as six other NCAA Tournament teams and three NIT participants, including 2000 NIT champion Wake Forest. In addition to the tournament teams, the breakdown of the schedule also includes the 10 other Big Ten Conference teams, three Atlantic Coast Conference teams, three Mid-American Conference teams and one team each from the Atlantic 10 and Big East conferences.
ACC/Big Ten Challenge Comes to Ann Arbor; In-Season Tourney Back on Schedule
For the second straight year, the ACC and Big Ten will play the nine-game challenge series for the Commissioner's Cup. Michigan will host Wake Forest Tuesday, Nov. 28, in the day's prime matchup. After a year hiatus from an in-season tournament, the Wolverines will travel to Washington, D.C., to play in the BB&T Classic Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 2-3, at the MCI Center. Michigan will play Maryland in the opening game and then play either St. John's or George Washington the following day.
Michigan and the Tube
All of Michigan's Big Ten Conference games will again be televised through the ESPN network, and eight of the 16 Wolverine games will be featured on national television, with six tentatively scheduled for ESPN and two tentatively scheduled for CBS. The Wolverines' non-conference matchups against Wake Forest (Nov. 28) and Duke (Dec. 9) will be on ESPN and the season opener at Oakland (Nov. 17) will be broadcast on WADL (channel 23 on Ann Arbor cable).
Four More Years: Michigan Extends Series with Duke
Michigan and Duke, two of college basketball's most prominent programs, have extended their men's intersectional series four more years, through the 2004-05 season. The two universities, which have met during the regular season every year since 1989-90, have agreed to play on Dec. 8, 2001, in Ann Arbor; Dec. 14, 2002, at Durham; Dec. 13, 2003, in Ann Arbor; and Dec. 11, 2004, at Durham. All dates are subject to change. The schools already were scheduled to meet during the 2000-01 season, on Dec. 9, 2000, at Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium. Michigan and Duke have played each other 12 times since 1989 -- including the 1992 NCAA championship game -- and have met 21 total times in the series history, with Duke leading 14-7.
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
