Michigan
Team Prestige (ex)
Michigan Downs Team Prestige to Finish Exhibition Slate
11/14/1999 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Six Wolverine players hit for double figures, with junior Josh Asselin (Caro, Mich./Caro HS) leading the way as he finished 8-of-10 shooting for 16 points and added six rebounds. Four Michigan freshmen followed, led by Jamal Crawford (Renton, Wash./Rainer Beach HS), who hit for 15 points, seven assists and a block. Gavin Groninger (Plainfield, Ind./Plainfield HS) and LaVell Blanchard (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer HS) each chipped in 14 points and Kevin Gaines (Las Vegas, Nev./Clark HS) had 13. Sophomore Leon Jones (Battle Creek, Mich./Winchendon Prep) finished with 13 points, two assists and two steals.
In the first half, Team Prestige took the early advantage as it jumped out to a 10-6 lead, but the Wolverines came back with an Asselin dunk and a Crawford layup to even the score at 10-10. Then behind back-to-back Groninger three-pointers and then another Asselin thundering dunk down the lane, the Wolverines built a 10-point lead, 31-21.
For the next six minutes, the two teams exchanged fast-break points, but the Wolverines still held a nine-point lead, 45-36 with 3:23 left in the half. Led by former Purdue star Loren Clyburn, Team Prestige had an 8-0 run to bring bring it within one, 45-44, with 1:21 to go. But U-M guards Crawford and Gaines took over and the Wolverines scored the last six points of the half to build the Michigan lead to six, 51-45, at halftime.
In the second half, the Wolverines extended their lead to 13 before a Curtis Blair layup and a Gaines foul cut it back to 10 after Blair finished off the three-point play. But the Wolverines continued their pressure and added to their lead with another Groninger three-pointer to extend it to 16 points, 73-57, with 11:52 left. Team Prestige had a 6-0 run, but Michigan countered with a Leland Anderson (Attleboro, Mass./Attleboro HS) steal, leading to a Groninger 15-footer bring the lead back up to 12, 75-63 with 7:51 remaining.
The Wolverines started to pull away with 2:57 left as they built a 20-point lead, 89-69, after to back-to-back Asselin dunks from Crawford assists. Michigan continued its momentum, allowing Team Prestige just five points in the final three minutes as the Wolverines closed out the game with a 101-74 win.
Michigan opens the regular season Friday (Nov. 19) against Oakland. Tipoff at Crisler Arena is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
GAME NOTES
-- For the second straight exhibtion, Michigan head coach Brian Ellerbe continued to experiment with his lineup. Starting the first half were: sophomore Leon Jones, freshman Jamal Crawford, freshman Gavin Groninger, junior Josh Asselin and sophomore Chris Young. Starting the second half were: Crawford, freshman Kevin Gaines, freshman LaVell Blanchard, Jones and Asselin.
-- Freshman guards Jamal Crawford and Kevin Gaines combined for 12 assists with Crawford's seven dishes and Gaines' five against Team Prestige. The Wolverines finished the game with 24 assists. The highest total last season for the Wolverines was 21 against Florida (Dec. 27) and at Michigan State (Jan. 9).
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
