Lemire, Johns shoot down helpless Birds

Many basketball teams rely on one player to score points in key situations of games. Last night against Illinois State, the Michigan women's basketball team proved that it is not one of those teams.

In their three games this season, three different players have led the Wolverines in scoring. Against the Redbirds, it was junior guard Ann Lemire who stepped up her game, pouring in 24 points as Michigan defeated Illinois State, 93-81. The Wolverines ran their record to 3-0 while the Redbirds remain winless at 0-3.

KEVIN KRUPITZER/Daily Michigan guard Ann Lemire joined up with center Pollyanna Johns to score 48 of the Wolverines' 93 points in a victory over winless Illinois State. Lemire and Johns split the scoring duty evenly, netting 24 points apiece.

"I wasn't pleased with my performance this weekend, so I felt that I had to pick up my game a little bit," Lemire said. "It's mostly a mental thing and I tried to stay focused tonight."

Illinois State outrebounded Michigan early, but Pollyanna Johns took matters into her own hands, pulling down seven boards in the first half alone, including five on the offensive end. Thanks mostly to Johns' prowess in the paint, Michigan outrebounded the Redbirds, 22-13, in the first half.

Despite the convincing margin of victory, the game was much closer than the score would indicate. The Wolverines actually trailed, 55-53, with 13 minutes remaining. Michigan co-captain Molly Murray erased the Redbirds' lead with two straight 3-pointers, staking Michigan to a 59-55 lead.

"Illinois State took the lead on us in the second half and we didn't fold," Michigan coach Sue Guevara said. "We came right back at them."

Michigan has received consistent scoring from several of its players in every game thus far. Last night was no exception. Five Wolverines scored in double digits. Both Lemire and Johns scored 24 points and Tiffany Willard added 11. Anne Thorius and Murray both posted 10 points.

Stacey Thomas, last year's Big Ten freshman of the year, scored only four points, well below her 13 points per game average last season.

Once again, free throws were a problem for Michigan, which has struggled from the charity stripe so far this year. The Wolverines were 13-for-21 for the game and are shooting just 58 percent from the free-throw line this season.

The two teams traded baskets for the first seven minutes of the game. With 12:50 left in the first half and the score tied at 12, Lemire hit a 3-pointer, igniting a 16-5 Michigan run that put the Wolverines ahead, 28-17.

But, Illinois State came right back with a 3-pointer by Kristen Valdez, and a layup by Jenn Schmidt, to close to 28-22.

The first half ended with Michigan leading, 41-37, but the four-point lead was erased less than a minute into the second half. Corinne Vossel led the Redbirds with 25 points and 14 rebounds.

11-26-97