Michigan
Washington
Bies' Free Throws at Washington Net Guevara 100th Win
12/9/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
SEATTLE, Wash. -- The 16th-ranked University of Michigan women's basketball team gained head coach Sue Guevara her 100th career victory in dramatic fashion with a come-from-behind 71-70 win over Washington on Sunday (Dec. 9) at Bank of America Arena. The Wolverines (7-1), who trailed by as much as eight in the first half, took a 71-70 lead on two free throws from LeeAnn Bies (Lakeview, Mich./Lakeview HS) with 10 seconds remaining and then staved off a pair of Husky attempts on the other end in the final seconds for their seventh straight win of the season.
| | Bies |
A couple early triples allowed Washington to jump out to an early five-point lead (12-7) before Bies took over inside. The junior center scored eight of Michigan's 10 points during a 10-3 run as the Wolverines grabbed a 17-15 lead at just under the 14-minute mark of the first half. Michigan's run that led to its two-point lead was also keyed by senior guard Susana Jara (Quito, Ecuador/Tustin, Calif. HS), who tallied a couple of steals in the back court that led to her own breakaway layups.
Despite Bies' effort, the Huskies continued to connect from long range, hitting six of their first 11 from beyond the arc. Washington used its parade of triples to go on a 10-4 run and grab a 28-22 lead. Washington, which would push its lead to as much as eight (34-26) with 5:45 left in the half, missed on its last seven three-point attempts in the half and allowed Michigan to get back in it.
Michigan was playing without starting forward Raina Goodlow (Detroit, Mich./Dominican HS) for third straight game due to injury, and as a result was not able to allow Bies much time on the bench to rest. However, when Bies returned to the lineup her presence seemed to spark the Wolverines as they cut into the deficit over the final five minutes of the half. Alayne Ingram (Lansing, Mich./Waverly HS) drilled her first trifecta of the game on a nice drive and kick from Jara as Michigan eventually pulled within one at 36-35. Washington was able to stem the Wolverine momentum just a little bit in the final minute, scoring with less than 10 seconds left in the half to take a 40-36 lead into the break.
Michigan, which was led by 13 points from Bies in the first half, out-rebounded Washington 22-16 in the first frame and held the Huskies to a mark of .455 from the field, but the six Husky triples were the key to four-point difference at the intermission. Tabitha Pool (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron HS) and Ingram each grabbed four boards in the first half, while Jara led the Maize and Blue with three assists.
Michigan did not lose its momentum in the final minute of the first half as the Wolverines quickly regained the lead with an 8-3 run to open the second half. A steal and layup by Ingram resulted in a four-point trip after she missed the chance for a conventional three-point play and Jennifer Smith (Lansing, Mich./DeWitt HS) grabbed the rebound and sank a pair of free throws. After Michigan took the 44-43 lead, its first since 18-17 midway through the first half, the contest turned into a back-and-forth affair.
Another big triple from Ingram was in the middle of a 6-0 Michigan run that gave the Wolverines its biggest lead of the game (58-53) as the clock ticked to just under the 10-minute mark. The Wolverines' defense was giving Washington a much tougher time in the half-court, evidenced by Washington's .250 (6-24) shooting percentage through the first 10 minutes of the second frame.
Just as Michigan seemed to be taking control of the game, Bies picked up her fourth foul with 6:19 left, which began a 10-0 Washington run that turned a 60-55 Michigan lead into a 65-60 deficit with just over three minutes remaining. Michigan stopped the run as it went back to Bies in the paint as she scored on an amazing no-look pass from Stephanie Gandy (Detroit, Mich./Northern HS). Washington pushed its lead back to five (67-62), but again it was Ingram drilling a key triple followed by four straight points from Bies to give Michigan a 69-67 lead with only a little over a minute remaining.
However, Washington center Andrea Lalum, who led the Huskies with 19 points and 10 boards, drilled Washington's 11th trifecta of the game with 45 ticks remaining. Bies rebounded a missed jumper by Pool with less than 30 seconds left, which gave the Wolverines one last chance at victory. Guevara called a timeout with 0:13 left and designed an in-bounds play that left Bies available in the paint and gave Washington no choice but to foul. Bies, who finished the game 9-10 from the charity stripe, calmly drilled both free throws for the win.
The Maize and Blue remains on the road for the fourth straight contest and the seventh time in its first eight games on Wednesday (Dec. 12, 7 p.m.), with a game at the University of Toledo in Toledo, Ohio. Toledo has already knocked off one ranked team this season on its home floor, with a win over then top-10 Duke earlier this season.
N O T E S
Michigan head coach Sue Guevara earned her 100th career victory in a little over five seasons of coaching at Michigan with tonight's win. She is the program's winningest coach in terms of wins (100-54) and winning percentage (.649).
Michigan's seven-game winning streak is the third longest in school history, trailing only the school-record nine-game streaks put together by the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 teams.
The game featured eight ties and 15 lead changes, with 11 lead changes and three ties in the second half alone.
LeeAnn Bies' 27 points eclipsed by one her previous career high (26 at Penn State, 2/25/01). Bies has been in double figures in seven of eight games this season, including three 20-point outings, and she has three double-doubles in the last four games, averaging 18.5 points and 10.8 rebounds over that stretch.
Q U O T E S
U-M Head Coach Sue Guevara
On the game overall ... "I thought we weathered a lot of storms in this game and we remained calm and cool down the stretch even when Washington took its five-point lead and the crowd was getting into the game. We kept pounding the ball down low because that is our bread and butter and Bies and company came through. I am just very proud of this team and the character they showed tonight."
On winning on the road without a pair of seniors ... "To come in this arena and beat a pretty darn good team without two of our seniors is a great feeling and a great testament to these kids. They did a great job, and when people go down on good teams, other people step up and that is what is happening right now."
Junior Center LeeAnn Bies
On the final free throws ... "I remember our first practice out here on Thursday night and at the end of it we split the team up for a free-throw shooting drill and the end of practice. My team picked me in the tiebreaker and I missed my second one, so when I was on the line I was thinking about that drill and getting a second chance at the same basket during the game."
Contact: Rich Marion (734) 763-4423
