The Mixer

Last week, I took the LSAT exam and so in preparation for that test, I was not able to get around to getting up last week's Mixer. And just in case you are wondering why I took the LSAT... well, let's just say blogging doesn't pay the bills.

Valentine's Day: With Valentine's Day coming up, I thought we'd throw in a special V-day video. I have a soft spot for WOLV TV, having done some work with this group myself. Here is the Average Joe's take on Valentine's Day:



I've known Joe for longer than I can remember and really like the work he's done in a short time at WOLV. Unethical to use your friends in the Mixer, you ask? Hey, if it works for Bill Simmons, it can't hurt.

Michigan Clip of the Week: In honor of a fellow blogger, I'm going to show Veronica Hicks some love and put her B10 PSA as the winner. An engineering student from just outside Chicago, her story is an interesting one. The blog is a cool idea to give her team some exposure, and she's been a consistent contributor to Women's Bball the entire season...and she killed it at Mock Rock X! Keep up the good work and writing!



Tiger's Cub: Congrats to Tiger Woods on the birth of his second child, Charlie Axel Woods. I'll be interested to see what kind of childhood this kid receives with a high-profile father, and with the way Tiger was brought-up himself by Earl Woods. Only time will tell. Until then, enjoy what I consider to be one of the greatest commercials of all time:



Whenever I'm out on a golf course, I always try to re-create this commercial when I am on the tee waiting for the group in front of me to finish. The most I've gotten to is 11. When this first came out, every kid with a set of sticks immediately went out into his/her yard to mimic Tiger. The fact Tiger did this without digital effects is absurd.

Top Stories:

Kwame gets a job: If this man can get a job after publicly stealing 8 million dollars from Detroit, AND getting caught cheating on his wife, theoretically we should all be getting jobs with no problem. Thanks, Peter Karmanos.


Miracle on Ice: The Sequel?: A look inside the possible roster for the '10 USA Hockey team. Former Wolverine stand-out Jack Johnson is among those mentioned.

Great Journalism Lives Here: Dan Wetzel gives a great account of Billy Joe Johnson's tragic story. I'm a big fan of Wetzel, a local guy from S.E. Michigan, and I'm glad this story has gotten some much-deserved recognition.

103: The Names Which Must Stay Secret

Performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) have given an era of baseball a black eye.

George Mitchell provided the knock-out blow.

And, now, Alex Rodriguez's name has been released as one of 104 players who tested positive for PEDs in 2003 during an anonymous drug test for the purpose of determining if mandatory drug tests were necessary.

Cue the clamors for a public release of the other 103 names.

"It's unfair to A-Rod!" "The rest of the players are innocent and we should know who they are!" "Because the people -- baseball fans -- deserve to know!"

Here's my request: stop telling me who did steroids in the past and work on eliminating steroid use in the future.

The Mitchell Report has forever legitimized the practice of investigating PEDs for the purpose of exposing the "cheaters."

A 409-page report which detailed Major League Baseball's failure to adequately respond to the problem of steroids has been boiled down to a he-said, he-said court battle between Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee.

A 409-page report which proposed substantive changes in the infrastructure of Major League Baseball is remembered for 87 names.

A 409-page report which was supposed to prove that a problem exists across the entire league relied on two sources. And they are both criminals.

However, the primary issue with the Mitchell Report is that it came with the implicit message that the list of players mentioned was exhaustive -- that players not on the list are innocent. And now we learn that, in 2003, 104 players tested positive for PED use.

Where does it stop? How many lists of names need to come out before we take a page out of Mark McGwire's book and stop talking about the past?

Let's look past the "fairness" issue as it pertains to Alex Rodriguez. He cheated, and he admitted it. He lost the right to "fairness" a long time ago.

Let's also ignore the plea from baseball fans that they have some inherent right to see who cheated. This list of 104 players was supposed to be kept secret, and everyone was willing to turn a blind eye when Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire rescued the game from "The Strike Era."

And let's be honest: people want to see the list because they are interested in tabloid news.

The best argument for releasing the other 103 names is that the presence of the anonymous list casts a shadow of doubt over the rest of the league; fans and media sources will continuously speculate on whom that list contains.

The problem with this argument is that the speculation never stops. We are entrenched in an era of baseball that has been forever tarnished by cheaters, and we have been taught to trust nobody.

We can stop guessing the other 103 names once this list is released, but will anyone believe that every other baseball player is clean? Will anyone believe that this list is the exhaustive one?

And why should they? From Barry Bonds to Roger Clemens to Alex Rodriguez, our imaginations have been stretched to include the unthinkable. We are prone to expect the next headline to include a new allegation of steroid use.

Stop. While we can still save the game, let's move forward.

Clearly, the status quo is not working. Major League Baseball has mandatory drug testing in place, and players are still stupid enough to use PEDs. Shame on them.

Let's get serious about moving past "The Steroid Era." Let's focus on what the current game has to offer: speed, defense, and youth. Oh, and the stories.

This offseason has been spent discussing steroids, Manny Ramirez, and Joe Torre. Remember when a 10,000-loss team won the World Series against a team that finished the year with a record above .500 for the first time in franchise history?

Baseball has given its fans plenty to talk about.

Now, it's time to move on.

Nonstop Bias from Jay Bilas

In the UNC-Duke game last night, Kyle Singler threw an elbow to Tyler Hansbrough. No surprise that Jay Bilas, working in the studio for ESPN last night, didn't call for Coach K to get his program under control.

READ MORE ABOUT THIS HERE!!!

Joaquin Phoenix Disaster On Letterman

We have been chronicling the bizarre story of former actor, now rapper Joaquin Phoenix over the last month.  The story that keeps on giving took another strange turn on Letterman tonight.

WATCH HERE!!!

Pitchers & Catchers To Report

With Spring Training now upon us, a chance to re-live how I waxed poetic on the 2008 Phillies World Championship.  Click below to listen to my monologue on the 10/31/08 Game of the Week. Good memories, let's do it again!

LISTEN HERE!!!

ID: wcbn

Password: wcbnfm

Michigan State @ Michigan Archive

Really, Manny, really??? Re-live loss #10 in its entirety by clicking below.

1st Half

2nd Half

*** MICHIGAN-MICHIGAN STATE LIVE AT 6:45PM ON WCBN ***

WCBN will have LIVE coverage of Michigan-Michigan State from sold out Crisler Arena tonight starting at 6:45pm ET.  LISTEN ON THE WCBN SPORTS STREAM!!!

Renewal of a Rivalry: #9 Michigan State @ Michigan

As they'll all be heading down the stretch, tomorrow night's game is of great importance for Michigan and their NCAA Tournament chances. Michigan (15-9, 5-6) plays host to #9 Michigan State (19-4, 9-2) at 7pm from Crisler Arena. MSU is a 4.5 point favorite.

Programming Info: The game is on ESPN at 7pm with Brent (much younger and working for CBS in the picture to the right) and Steve Lavin on the call, with Erin Andrews as the sideline reporter. WCBN will have a preview of the game on the Tuesday DSR (5:15) and LIVE coverage of the game on the WCBN Sports Stream starting with an expanded pregame at 6:45.

Michigan-UConn Recap: An encouraging performance against the #1 team in the country on the road. Michigan led by as much as eight in the first half and had a genuine chance to pull off the upset going down the stretch. The game seemed to turn between four and six minutes left in the 2nd half when the Wolverines failed on three consecutive possesions to score down 57-53. Stu Douglass was terrific yet again, scoring a career-high 20 points (6-8 from 3). If Sims, Novak or LLP gave you a bit more offensively, Michigan would have had their third top five upset this year. I think the parallels to the Maryland game (ACC-Big Ten Challenge) are fair, as in both games Michigan led at the half, played with the road favorite for 35 minutes, before being unable to make a few plays in the end. After the Maryland loss, Michigan beat Duke later that week, a potential forerunner of what could come against MSU this Tuesday.

Why Michigan Will Win: #1-Stu Douglass: As has been rightly pointed out by others, Michigan seems to perform best when the team has a viable and consistent scoring option outside of Manny Harris. Douglass has been red hot in the last two games (12-19 from 3) and adds a different dimension to the Wolverines offense. #2-Raymar Morgan's health: The junior for MSU averages more than twelve points a game, but missed the Spartans last two games due to an illness, specifically mono. Without Morgan or even with Morgan playing at less than 100%, the Spartans are forced to go deeper into their bench and depend on Marquise Gray and Draymond Green to play more minutes and provide more production offensively. #3-Crisler crowd: The third sellout of the season at Crisler Arena is expected on Tuesday night with an attendance of close to 14,000. Due to the unbalanced Big Ten schedule, the Michigan-MSU game on Tuesday night will be the only meeting of the season this year between the two in-state rivals. The Wolverines are 12-2 at home this year and should use the home crowd to their advantage.

Why Michigan Will Lose: #1-Rebounding: As expected, Michigan was soundly out-rebounded by UConn (a 2-1 margin) on Saturday in Storrs and will likely face the same fate in that department on Tuesday. Tom Izzo's teams always take pride in beating their opponents on the glass and this MSU team is no different, leading the nation with a rebounding margin of better than +10. #2-Kalin Lucas: The 2nd team Preseason All-American has a remarkable turnover-assist ratio this year and is averaging 17 points a game in MSU's last twelve. Lucas will be among those in the discussion for Big Ten Player of the Year, with Talor Battle of Penn State and Manny Harris of Michigan. #3-Tired Legs: The MSU game will be Michigan's 3rd in just a seven day span, two of which have been played against top ten teams. Add to that the freshmen wall that LLP & Zach Novak seem to have hit and there is good reason for concern. For MSU, the game at Michigan will be their fifth in the last thirteen days.  It seems pretty simplistic, but the fresher team has a huge edge.

Final 7: Well, it doesn't seem that long ago that I was preparing to call the Michigan-SVSU exhibition game back in November. Now, all that Michigan has gone through this year: their early season success featuring wins over UCLA and Northeastern and a split with Duke to the adversity of losing five of six games in conference where Novak and Manny were ejected in consecutive games comes down to the final seven games of the season. If Michigan wants to assure itself a position on the bracket come Selection Sunday, four wins are necessary to finish the year at 9-9 in the Big Ten. Just three wins and a 8-10 Big Ten record certainly would put Michigan in the conversation, but the Wolverines would have a hard time arguing their case if they were left out. Winning four of the remaining seven will be difficult, as four games are on the road and Wisconsin and Minnesota are practically not winnable. That means, even if Michigan (currently 1-6 on the road) wins at Iowa and Northwestern, it will still have to win two of their three remaining home games (MSU, Minnesota, Purdue), which is easier said than done. Again, if I were putting money on it right now, I'd say Michigan gets two at home and one on the road, leaving them with eight conference wins and squarely on the bubble. I won't even get into the Big Ten Tournament or other teams in the Big Ten (Wisconsin & Penn State) that will be battling with Michigan for the sixth bid out the league. I'll leave that discussion for a later time.

Prediction: While I forecasted a loss in this game a few weeks ago, I firmly believe Michigan has hit their stride and is due for a big win. Heading back to the 2nd half of the Ohio State game two weeks ago, the Wolverines have been playing much better on both ends of the floor. I was genuinely discouraged by the performance of MSU at home against Indiana on Saturday and am concerned about their health and fatigue. I still believe MSU will win the Big Ten, but they can afford a few more losses. Manny goes for 25, DeShawn scores 18 and Zach Gibson (yes, Zach Gibson) scores in double figures.

Michigan 68 Michigan State 63

A-ROD: A-FRAUD, A-ROID

A-Rod interview on steroids w/ Katie Couric... WATCH HERE!!!

MUST WATCH: Costas interview w/ Selena Roberts (SI)... Full interview available on mlb.com

The rehearsed admission... CLICK HERE!!!

Penn State @ Michigan Archive

Re-live Michigan's 15th win of the season over Penn State in its entirety by clicking below.

1st Half

2nd Half

Michigan-Penn State LIVE on YouCastr @ 7pm

It's a 'must-win' tonight.  Our coverage from Crisler Arena begins just prior to 7pm LIVE.  LISTEN HERE!!!

Joe Buck Joins HBO

Earlier this week, word broke that Bob Costas was leaving HBO after 8 years to join MLB Network. HBO moved quickly to replace Costas and today signed Joe Buck of FOX Sports to a multi-year contract. Buck will begin at HBO in May and will host a show in a live town hall format four times a year, similar to "Costas Now" in 2008.  Good hire for HBO.

Mock Rock X

Playing a sport at U of M allows kids to show-off their athletic skills on one of the biggest "stages" in sports... a Big Ten stage. However, tonight was a chance for the student body at Michigan to see student-athlete classmates show off their skills on an actual stage. Mock Rock (the annual variety show put on by Michigan's athletic teams) has been a tradition at Michigan over the past decade, but I was only able to experience my first one this year. There should be highlights and interviews of the event up on MGoBlue and Wolverine Sports Magazine in a couple days. But before then, here was my take on the event.

Initial Impressions: Having performed in one variety show myself (Greek Week 2007 at Michigan), I know how hard it is to get up on stage and do something out of one's element. While my dancing career was short lived (my team didn't place and I haven't done anything like it since), I enjoyed it and was looking forward to a good show. The night got off to a rocky start when the two co-chairs (Cody Waters of Wrestling and Laura Dunn of Rowing) stumbled through the intro. It was a 15 minute intro that only should have taken 5 minutes. Having covered both these sports (and these two athletes), I knew it'd be an interesting introduction to begin with but I hadn't expected the awkward pauses after each sentence. Both are pretty talkative, and good with a microphone in front of them, so it was a fast recovery. In fairness, it's not easy to throw an event like this so props to them.

The Judges and MC:
Desmond Howard: Howard did much better than I expected him to in hosting the event. He played to the crowd, had some great jokes ("If Bill Martin offered me Rich Rod's salary, I'd leave me wife! To hell with West Virginia! I'd leave my wife!"), and had good chemistry with the judges. One interesting thing to note: Howard had more wardrobe changes than a Madonna concert. Seriously! The guy wore 5 different shirts (not including the leather jacket and hat he wore to begin the show) in just over 2 hours. There has to be a Man-Law written about this if there already isn't one..

Jimmy King- Fab Five member and color-commentator for U of M Basketball Radio, King was just like he is when he does games: funny, had plenty to say, and was a little awkward at times. Example: After he gave the Women's Swim team their score (7 out of 10), King said they weren't very "loose" and their act might've been better performed after having "a couple drinks." He also said the best thing he liked about the dance team were their 'risque' doll-house outfits. Way to keep it PG, Jimmy.

Interesting side note: Both Howard and King alluded to the Fab Five a number of times and King said that they would be back at Michigan "this year." I don't know how much truth there is to that as it was said in a off-the-cuff manner, but I wish they would have flashed a split screen of Bill Martin and Mary Sue Coleman on the stage's projection screens when King said this. The pale expressions would've been priceless! However, with King judging a U of M event and Jalen Rose getting his own day last year, it has got to make you wonder about what King said....

Marcia Pankratz: I attended this event with Stu and not even 15 minutes into the show I turned to him and said, "I can't believe I'm going to graduate and not have a chance to interview this coach!" She was great and rivaled King for some of the best jokes from the judges pannel. Pankratz had a somewhat dry sense of humor, but it really worked well for the event. She took teams to task when she saw a lack-luster act and even poked fun at the performing team's coaches if an act was really outrageous. Her only 10 out of 10 was for her Field Hockey girls, but I guess that was expected. She seems like someone I'd have an easy time playing for. Good luck to her going forward.

Peter Vanderkaay: The gold medalist from Beijing has always been percieved as having a very professional personality about him and tonight was no different. The Rochester Hills native was pretty critical and even penalized the Men's Soccer team (one of the better acts) for having done an act that he remembered from before most of the soccer players even attended this school! He also didn't bite on the homage to Phelps from Women's Soccer when one of their members dressed in a Michigan swimsuit with 8 gold medals and did the Phelps' "arm flap" that he does before he takes his mark. PVK was also very gracious to the special guest judge (a 12 year old named Katie who is raising money for her own cancer foundation).

The Acts: All-in-all, the acts were about average. With so much time spent practicing their respective sports, I didn't expect a whole lot. But the top acts were all pretty good. Here were my top three:

1. Marching Band: "Single Larry": This skit was great, but I don't know how to count them amongst the actual teams because the stuff they did with their dance and pre-recorded sound bites were things they do every week for football games...only with instruments in hand. Nevertheless, it was very entertaining and had a lot going on. It was about a geek (Larry) learning dance moves to attract women. The dances and idea were top-notch.
2. Men's Lacrosse: "Workin' for the Weekend: Look at the non-varsity sport groups taking the top two spots! This team parodied the famous SNL skit where Patrick Swayze and Chris Farley compete for the spot as a Chippendale's dancer. The whole team dressed like the dancers, but the "finalists" nailed the final part of the act. The two guys who performed in the Sawyze/Farley roles were great. It was fantastic, and the guy who played Farley should get the MVP award for the competition.
   
3. Men's Soccer: "In Synch": This skit started out with the guys doing synchronized swimming moves behind a blue tarp so as to give the illusion they were really swimming. The second part was a traditional dance routine where four guys dressed like the dancers from the group Jabbawockeez (i.e. the dudes with the masks on the new Gatorade commercials). The routine didn't really have much fluidity to it, and they always depend on Cam Cameron break dancing to get them through their recent skits. But I thought the synchro-swim idea was pure genius and by far, the most creative use of props with the blue tarp, and pink swim caps.
   

The crowd was mostly comprised of student athletes supporting their teammates, and unenthusiastic fraternity/sorority kids who were attending in order to earn "Greek Week" points for their teams. The crowd energy could have been better, but it was good to see the money spent on tickets going to a good cause. If you like Michigan sports, I'd recommend seeing the show if you get the chance next February if you've never been to one.

Breaking News: Gus Johnson at Crisler Thursday

The Big Ten Network team of Gus Johnson and Jim Jackson with Mike Hall as the sideline reporter will call the Michigan-Penn State game at Crisler Arena on Thursday night at 7pm.  Gus called the Michigan-Penn State game in State College last month. It is the first time I can remember that Gus will broadcast a game from Crisler. Get ready for a ton of "RISE and FIRE's!"

Other Broadcasting News: Bob Costas officially signed with MLB Network today as an on-air contributor and a play-by-play voice for select games. Costas anchored MLB Network's re-broadcast of Don Larsen's perfect game on January 1st. Costas remains in his position with NBC as the Olympics and Football Night in America studio host, but will no longer work for HBO in any capacity. Great hire for MLB Network that gives the channel wide-ranging credibility.

Extra Points Archive: 2/2/09

Topics include a recap of Super Bowl XLIII and poor officiating calls in the Michigan-Notre Dame hockey game and Michigan-Purdue basketball game.

ID: wcbn

Password: wcbnfm

LISTEN HERE!!!

Michigan @ Purdue Archive

Click below to LISTEN to WCBN's call of Michigan basketball at Purdue from West Lafayette, IN on Saturday.

1st Half

2nd Half

Michigan Hoops: Reason for Optimism

Sure, it doesn't look good.  Michigan is 1-5 in its last six games and two games under .500 in the Big Ten for the first time all year.  That 10-2 start seems like a long time ago. If the Big Ten conference tournament started today, Michigan would face Wisconsin in the opening round with Michigan State looming in the next round.  Yet, in my judgement, Michigan needs ONLY 4 more wins to make the NCAA tournament for the first time in decade.  A 8-10 finish in the Big Ten would put the Wolverines on the bubble, but I project their RPI and non-conference wins would put them in.  With the weakness of other "BCS" conferences (Big 12, Pac 10 and SEC) and mid-major leagues (MVC, A-10), I think the Big Ten will get 7 teams in to the NCAA tournament. Let's dissect the remaining schedule:

2/5: Penn State- A must-win, plain and simple.  Going through multiple scenarios, I failed to find one where Michigan makes the Tournament without first beating PSU.  Like when the Wolverines played Northwestern a couple weeks ago, Michigan gets a Penn State coming off their first ever win in East Lansing on on Sunday. While Penn State has been the surprise team in the Big Ten this year, I think it is too much to ask that they win consecutive games on the road in the state of Michigan.  The Wolverines are the more desperate team and will win, in a similar fashion to the Northwestern game.

Projection: WIN

2/7: @ UConn- The lone non-conference game remaining on the schedule is one in which Michigan has nothing to lose, as their RPI will rise win or loss.  The size of UConn with Thabeet is a major problem and I'd be surprised if Michigan was competitive, especially if now #1 UConn loses to Louisville tonight.

Projection: LOSS

2/10: Michigan State- In the unbalanced Big Ten basketball schedule, rivalry games are not protected and therefore Michigan gets MSU only once and on their home floor.  MSU is a legitimate top ten team and final four contender and will probably out-rebound Michigan by a 2-1 margin.  That being said, I think Michigan will keep it close before MSU pulls away late.

Projection: LOSS

2/15:  @ Northwestern- NW has been playing as well as anyone in the conference since mid-January. NW, OSU, Wisconsin and Michigan are likely battling for 2 NCAA spots.  While I'm still not sold if NW is a tournament team, I expect huge games from Craig Moore and Kevin Coble in this win and a 8 point NW win.

Projection: LOSS

2/19: Minnesota- While the Gophers have size with Ralph Sampson III and Colton Iverson down-low, with the exception of the Wisconsin game, they have been a prototypical Big Ten team, winning big at home and losing by a large margin away from home. Michigan cannot afford any more home losses if they are to make the tournament and I think they'll squeak out a huge win over Tubby Smith and Minnesota right before spring break.

Projection: WIN

2/22: @ Iowa- Like the PSU game this week, this game at Iowa is a must-win for the Wolverines tournament chances. With the backloaded conference schedule and the difficulty of the remaining home games, Michigan has to win at least 1 on the road.  This is certainly their best chance, even though the Wolverines will play a much better and healthier team (with Cyrus Tate) than they saw at Crisler 3 weeks ago.  Michigan by 4 in OT.

Projection: WIN

2/26: Purdue- It won't help that this game is over spring break, but Michigan-Purdue will still attract a large crowd. I think Manny will be fired up to play Purdue again following his ejection in West Lafayette this past weekend. While this win would certainly constitute an upset, Michigan is certainly going to need a few to get into the Tournament. Michigan by 5.

Projection: WIN

3/1: @ Wisconsin- As poor as Wisconsin is playing right now (3-6) and as well as Michigan played at the Kohl Center last year (only lost by two), I don't like the matchup for the Wolverines, especially with Jon Leuer coming off the bench.  Easy win for Wisconsin.

Projection: LOSS

3/8: @ Minnesota- This game could have great meaning for Minnesota, in terms of Big Ten tournament seeding.  I would be shocked if Michigan would win at Minnesota on Senior Day. Minnesota by a comfortable dozen.

Projection: LOSS

Overall, through my calculations, I have Michigan going 4-5 in their final nine games and finishing the year at 18-13 (8-10), a record likely good enough to secure a bid for the NCAA Tournament.  The 4 most important remaining games on the schedule are Penn State, Minnesota, @ Iowa and @ Northwestern.  Michigan MUST win 3 of those 4. Certainly, it will be interesting to see how things play out over the final month of the season. Stay tuned...

UM-Purdue: Hello, Middle-of-Nowhere USA

Here is the incident. I go into detail why this was a terrible call in the previous post. I don't know which is more annoying: Chris Kramer's flop, or the girl from palestra.net in this video:



Aside from the terrible on-camera open, the fact the incident isn't shown, and the over-all annoying, condescending quality of this girl's voice, notice how Kramer doesn't seem to have a scratch on him. In the press conference, his face looks brand new. Where's the blood? Stitches? Evidence that he was even touched?! This just speaks to the fact that Manny shouldn't have gotten tossed.

Side note: Props to Patrick Beilein these past two games. He has been the guy to usher off both Manny Harris and Zack Novak after they were thrown out in their respective games. Patrick went to put his arm around Harris' waist in the huddle while the officials reviewed the incident. Right then I knew Harris was done. The police escorted Harris off the court with Beilein yesterday, but at OSU Beilein was the only line of defense between Novak and the Buckeye slappies. Leave it to OSU to give no police protection to a Michigan player.

Here are some more notables:

OHHH, CANADA: Jevohn Shepherd was tied as the leading scorer (10 pts.) for U of M in the game. The guy who played virtually no minutes since December FINALLY gets the chance to play after I've been clamoring for this change for weeks...Coach Beilein must read my blog.

The argument is to play the freshman (Novak and Douglass) in place of Shepherd. I disagree with this. Shepherd has just shown he can score, is a very athletic defender, and can provide more size on the glass. Play him. He's given the coaching staff no reason not to (as far as we know).

Air out of the balloon: When Harris left, this team looked like they had just watched their family pet get run over by a car. The Boilermakers went on tear, outscoring the Maize and Blue 42-23 in the second half. To be leading at the half, without Novak, was a great accomplishment. But asking this team to do for another half, without Manny Harris, is asking too much. There was very little offensive production: Sims only getting 10, Shepherd 10, and Puls 6....wait, PULS?!?! Yeah, Eric Puls is your third leading scorer for this game. Just over 3 minutes of playing time, 2 for 3 for 6 points. Excuse me, I have some drinking to do...

Home Court Advantage: If you ever get the chance to see a basketball game at Mackey Arena, I highly suggest you go. This was provided the Boilermakers with a huge advantage. The students are stacked on top of each other in the same way they are at the Big House. The stadium isn't very big, the bleacher seating inside gives off the illusion that the crowd is rising straight toward the ceiling. When Kramer hit the floor, got back up, and then starting waving his arms to the crowd, I swear the stadium was shaking. It was louder than any arena in the Big Ten and these people love their basketball. Having one of the best home courts is one of the reasons why I think Purdue has been able to have so much success of later.

Evidence to this point: Michigan came into the game shooting close to 78% from the free throw line as a team. That led the Big Ten. In the Purdue game, they shot 53%. Why? Most of the free throw attempts came in the second half, when Michigan was shooting at the basket right in front the student section. Putting the black-shirted "Paint Crew" behind the hoop was genius. It was like shooting into a black abyss. Combine that with the fact that the students are right on top of the court (the same way volleyball fans are at Cliff Keen Arena at U of M) and it's a very intimidating place to play.

UM-Purdue: The Flop heard round the World

This was a game that Michigan could have won.
It was a game Michigan needed.
Yet, as the Wolverines were up by three just minutes into the 2nd half, the bottom fell out on the upset bid when Chris Kramer hit the deck on a Manny Harris elbow.

Harris deserved to have a foul called. Swinging your your body with your elbows out is like baiting a ref to call a foul. But clearing space is a legal thing to do. Zack Novak deserved what he got with an obviously intentional elbow and the suspension that came with it vs. OSU. But there is no way Manny should have been thrown out. He made a basketball move. If Kramer hadn't acted like he had be blown away in a Tarantino movie, I don't think Manny would have been tossed.

Calling someone out for faking an injury, or embellishing, is a double edged sword. You want to argue that Kramer took a dive to get Manny tossed? OK. But some could argue that what we saw last weekend with Steve Kampfer (having played this week after the MSU incident) could be something along the same lines. How can a guy act like he was hit by a bus and then come back a week later?

The difference with Kampfer and Kramer was that Kampfer seeked additional medical treatment. He took a stick to the head (twice) after nearly dying from a head injury just a few months back. He wasn't ready to come back out and play and needed further attention after the incident. After lying on the ground for two minutes, Kramer hops up and starts waving his arms to get the crowd fired up. Five minutes after that, he is back on the floor with a mask ready to play. Both these athletes lay prone on the playing surface this past week, but only one had a reason too.

This was a game Michigan needed. And, even more sadly, could be seen as the one that got away come March.

Michigan-Purdue LIVE from Mackey Arena

Listen LIVE as WCBN completes its Journey Through the Midwest in West Lafayette, Indiana.