Critical weekend for women's hoops

This Valentine's Day weekend will be filled with anything but love for the Michigan women's basketball team. Instead, it will be a weekend composed of conference rivals looking to exact revenge and fighting for a possible NCAA Tournament berth.

Now that March is right around the corner, it's crunch time for the Wolverines (6-6 Big Ten, 14-8 overall) who sit on the bubble of a possible entry into the "Big Dance."

The Wolverines, currently fifth in the conference, rest in between the two teams they will face this weekend, making the contests vital to Michigan's tournament hopes.

Illinois (8-4, 14-8), ranked third in the conference, will travel to Crisler Arena tomorrow vying for its second victory over the Wolverines this season.

The Fighting Illini come off a huge win over Ohio State, moving them into a tie with the Buckeyes for the third spot in the conference.

Earlier in the season, the Illini defeated the Wolverines, 75-65, in overtime, which started Michigan on a downward spiral in the form of a five-game losing streak.

Sunday, the Wolverines will travel to East Lansing to take on the sixth- place Spartans, who currently own only one more conference loss than Michigan. The Spartans would love to steal Michigan's fifth-place spot.

This season's earlier game against the Spartans, played out exactly the opposite of the one against Illinois. The Wolverines pulled out a huge overtime win that ended their five-game losing streak.

But Sunday's game will have a lot more will be on the line then just a turnaround in the season. In order to have a chance at the NCAA Tournament, the Wolverines will need to remain in their current place in the conference.

Last season, the women's NCAA selection committee took only four teams from the Big Ten, but with the Wolverines' impressive non-conference record, they might squeak by.

The only sure way to keep Michigan's hopes alive, though, is for the Wolverines to win the rest of their games. Victories over the two conference rivals could also lead to a first-round bye in the conference tournament, where the Wolverines also need to have an impressive showing.

Michigan has had a tendency to show many sides of itself this season, and they can only hope that the Wolverines of last weekend show up again.

"They go up and down," Michigan coach Sue Guevara said. "Right now I just want them to be consistant."

The Wolverines shot close to 50 percent against both Minnesota and Purdue last weekend, which led them to a huge win over the Golden Gophers, and an almost upset of the No. 2 Boilermakers.

"We were just able to take care of the basketball," sophomore Anne Thorius said after last Sunday's game against Purdue.

If the Wolverines remain consistent, their goal of a second-straight NCAA appearance could be just around the corner.

Tonight

Michigan vs. Illinois

Where:

Crisler Arena

When: 7:30 p.m.

The Latest: Come see the Michigan women's basketball team in one of their last home games of the season. Tickets are free for students.

02-12-99