The first home Big Ten tournament baseball game in nine years for the University of Michigan had to wait another day.
Four tournament games - two on Wednesday and two on Thursday - had been played by the time a fierce evening thunderstorm washed out the Wolverines' matchup with
Minnesota.
The teams were scheduled to play today at 10 a.m.,
followed by three more tournament games at Ray Fisher Stadium. More thunderstorms, however, are in the forecast.
Michigan coach Rich Maloney, Minnesota coach John Anderson and a Big Ten official walked the soggy outfield before calling the game off at about 8:15 p.m.
"It's a little disappointing, but this is baseball,'' Maloney said. "This happens sometimes where you get the weather like that. It is what it is.''
The change in schedule meant an early wakeup call for the Wolverines this morning for a 7:15 a.m. breakfast before heading to the ballpark.
No matter what happens against Minnesota, Michigan will play twice today.
Following the first game, Purdue and Northwestern were scheduled for an elimination game at 1 p.m. The winner of that game plays the Minnesota-Michigan loser at
footballwolverinesThe Michigan Wolverines added another versatile piece to their recruiting puzzle Sunday morning when Grand Rapids FB/LB Obi Ezeh pledged to the Maize and Blue.
"I committed before I left," Ezeh said. "Coach Carr said, 'about time!' (Laughing) Throughout the recruiting process I've established this comfort level with them where when I go down there, I don't feel out of place. I just feel comfortable with the coaches, and now I feel comfortable with the players."
For Ezeh, the visit was more about affirming the positive feelings he had about Michigan heading in. The information he gathered on the trip sealed the deal for both he and his dad. "I flew down Friday and my dad drove down Saturday," Ezeh said. "He loved it. He basically wanted to sit through my academic meetings and get a feel for what the university was going to give me on an academic basis, and he was satisfied."
"I got a chance to meet most of the players and coaches," Ezeh continued. "We ate dinner down at South Quad, so I got a chance to see what the training table was like…what kind of variety there is on a daily basis and what not. We met our hosts. I had Chris Graham for the weekend. We stayed in the rooms for a little bit. We played some video games, and then we went out to a few parties."
Now that he has officially pledged to the Wolverines, Ezeh has another big decision in front of him. The talented athlete, who is also a Rugby standout, must mull over where he will line up when he gets to Ann Arbor.
"They said there was a possibility I play on either side of the ball," he said. "Right now Coach Carr just wants me to decide where I think I should play. At this point in time, no, I really don't have a preference. I'm probably going to have to figure out where I want to start at least though."
footballwolverines
Maybe an upcoming home date with the tradition-rich Bruins of UCLA affected their state of mind last night as the Wolverines used auto-pilot for certain stretches on their way to a less-than-spectacular 69-49 win over Delaware State at Crisler Arena.
"We didn't play brilliantly at times, by any stretch of the imagination," Michigan coach Tommy Amaker said. "But I give our kids credit for coming with the right mind set. This was a
difficult opponent to play against. With their system and their style - it tries you."
The Wolverines got comfortable with double-digit leads several times against the smaller, quicker team, then saw those advantages whither away. Delaware State was within six points with 11 minutes left in the game, but Michigan leaned on the throttle again and cruised to the 20-point win.
Ultimately, the Wolverines had too much talent and too much size for the Hornets, and 6-foot-11 Courtney Sims was the prime beneficiary of that mismatch, scoring a career-high 33 points for Michigan.
Sims hit 13 of 17 shots, mostly dunks and layups over the smaller Hornets. Sims (13) and 6-foot-9 Graham Brown (12) combined for 25 rebounds, while Delaware State had just 18 as a team.
"I thought our size really made the difference," Amaker said. "Our inside presence with Sims certainly was the difference offensively."
Michigan shot 60 percent from the field, boosted by its multitude of shots in the lane. Delaware State, pushed deep in its offensive sets by a Michigan zone for part of the night, hit just 27 percent of its shots.
"I think our defense had something to do with that," Amaker said. "Our length and our size gave them trouble."
The Hornets were battling the shot clock as much as they were battling Michigan early in the game, and hurried several efforts as they fell behind 9-2 in the first five minutes. Michigan stretched the lead to 16-2 about midway through the first half on a fastbreak dunk by Jevohn Shepherd as Delaware State continued to struggle from the outside.
Three straight baskets by Delaware's Jahsha Bluntt and some sloppy ball management by Michigan allowed the Hornets to quickly cut the lead to just six, and with three minutes left in the first half Delaware State was within 23-20 after a basket by Elyon Bush.
A score off the break by Lester Abram and a 3-point bomb from just inside half-court at the horn by Dion Harris allowed Michigan to move the lead to 32-24 at halftime.
After Delaware State made a push to cut the lead to 45-39 midway through the second half, Sims took control of the game. His fast-break basket was part of an 18-2 run that allowed Michigan to lead 63-41 with about five minutes left.
"He's capable of those kinds of numbers," Amaker said of Sims' performance, in which he had one fewer field goal than the entire Delaware State team. "He got out of the blocks early, and his teammates looked for him, and then got him the ball in position to score."
Michigan, which got 10 points from Abram, has started the season 6-0, its best in five seasons under Amaker, and the program's best start since going 6-0 to begin the 1999-2000 season.
"It feels great," Amaker said. "This group of seniors was 0-6 to start as freshmen, so they've earned this. They deserve it. We've been able to show so far that we can handle different situations. Our kids have been able to step forward and tackle the challenges."
michiganwolverinesThe Alamo Bowl will be the centerpiece for the Nebraska football team’s holiday table.
The Huskers received word Sunday that they would play the Wolverines of Michigan Wolverines on December 28 in San Antonio.
It was a fine end to a weekend which also saw the Texas Longhorns graze upon pastures of plenty as they scattered the Bluffaloes of Colorado with a 70-3 thumping in the Big 12 championship game.
Nebraska and Michigan each take a 7-4 record into their bowl game matchup.
Michigan was 5-3 in the Big Ten in its 11th season under Coach Lloyd Carr. The Wolverines will make their 31st consecutive bowl game appearance, the longest current streak in the nation.
Michigan opened the 2005 season with a 3-3 record, but finished by winning four of its final five games, losing only in the regular-season finale to rival Ohio State.
Among Michigan’s victories was a last-second win over Penn State, the third-ranked Nittany Lions’ only loss of 2005. The Wolverines enter the Alamo Bowl ranked 20th by the Associated Press and 21st in the USA Today Coaches poll.
