Open Thread: Big Ten Elite: 1989 Basketball team
Figured we could talk about the "documentary," if you will, here.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:14 PM ^
really does look like a mad scientist type.
January 15th, 2014 at 9:30 AM ^
If you look at him during and just after games, there he is all sweaty with a towel draped over his shoulder. Looks like he just recovered from a panic attack.
Prior to 1989, Michigan had other teams that were just as talented. Perhaps even more talented. But always lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament, to much less talented teams.
One year Michigan almost lost their first-round game against Farliegh Dickenson.
Frieder always looked panicked at the end of a close, important game, and so did his teams.
I'll never forget guard Gary Grant's statement after yet another poor performance by both him and Michigan in the NCAA's "the NCAA tournament and Gary Grant do not go together." He was a reflection of Frieder and his teams.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:16 PM ^
Glen Rice stayed all 4 years. Boy it was a different world back then.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:17 PM ^
Granted, I was all of 11 when the transition happened, but I really didn't think of the transition of Schembechler to being athletic director as being a potential motivator to Frieder looking to leave. The clash of personalities was evident, but the in-depth stuff is very interesting, to say the least.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:19 PM ^
What ever happened to Wayne Larrive? He used to always broadcast Big 10 games.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:47 PM ^
I think he does radio in Wisconsin ... or maybe just does radio for the Packers
January 14th, 2014 at 11:25 PM ^
He's the Packers PBP guy. Still kicking around.
January 14th, 2014 at 11:20 PM ^
Raycom baby. Still remember dunking on my mini basketball hoop watching Maceo Baston and Travis Conlan ball out on Saturday afternoons. Despite all of the scandal/controversy, Louis Bullock was revolutionary in my eyes (at the time) and had a huge influence on the way I played PG in high school and college.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:21 PM ^
in 1989 seems a lot like our run last year. Midseason struggles against teams that should've beat and turning it on when it mattered most. I was in ATL for Final Four last year and can say it was one of the best sports weekends I've ever experienced despite the outcome. I hope we have the chance to experience another run soon!
January 14th, 2014 at 10:30 PM ^
This documentary reveals what a "michigan man" is.
/s
January 14th, 2014 at 10:35 PM ^
When Michigan lost to winless PSU last year I talked people off the ledge reminding them of that loss to Alaska-Anchorage in 1988-89.
At least PSU was Big Ten and DI. UAA is a division 2 school that is only known for hockey and they aren't even the better of the two D2 Alaska schools.
BY FAR the worst loss in program history. But nobody remembers it for something that happened in March-April.
Seeing video of that game in this doc....oh man that was awful.
January 15th, 2014 at 12:36 AM ^
You weren't even born when that game happened, and you're going to declare it the worst loss in program history? Get a grip, kid. Not even close.
January 15th, 2014 at 7:15 AM ^
I love it. The age thing is great. As if I can control what year I was born in.
I didn't live in 1929, but I know it was the worst economic crash in the country's history based on the facts.
How in the world are you going to defend an elite team stockpiled with NBA talent losing to a Division 2 school from Alaska, in a regular season game?
You can't. And nobody cares about it because Michigan won the whole damn show that season.
That's unheard of. Not as bad as Chaminade vs Virginia, though.
January 15th, 2014 at 7:18 AM ^
wasn't it an exhibition? if they were DII, it shouldn't have counted in oficial stats
January 15th, 2014 at 7:45 AM ^
No, it counted.
It was a holiday tournament in Utah.
January 15th, 2014 at 11:36 AM ^
I harp on the age thing because it so often clouds your perspective. A fairly meaningless holiday tournament no one cares about in a season Michigan won the freaking tournament is not the worst loss in program history. I'm sorry, but it's just not.
Let's start with Michigan giving up 114 and losing by 50 to MSU in 2000, pretty much cementing the way that rivalry (and college basketball in Michigan) was going to go for the next five years. The infamous 34-2 run Duke put up to start the game the next season, which was just about as embarrassing as it could get. Giving #1 Illinois a run in 2005, only to choke it away at the end in what could have been a major turning point for a program that desperately needed a break. Not to mention the fact the Orange Krush punked our Athletic Department and took over the freaking arena.
Like I said, perspective is key. Losing to Alaska was essentially meaningless. But if you live Michigan Basketball through Wikipedia and YouTube, it might mean something to you?
January 15th, 2014 at 12:40 PM ^
Are mostly meaningless outside of getting you into the NCAA tournament. They are pseudo-exhibition games. They don't count towards the Big Ten title, and unless they keep you out of the NCAA tournament, they don't really affect you at all.
Was losing to Alaska embarassing? Sure. Did it have any affect on the season other than as a wake-up call? Nope. Hell, Alaska wasn't even the worst loss of 88-89. That would be probably be the buzzer-beater Indiana won down in Bloomington because it pretty much ended Michigan's shot at the Big Ten title. I remember being CRUSHED by that loss. The Alaska game? Bah, it barely registered other than a WTF. The beatdown Illinois put on us in the last game of the season would probably be #2, though by that game the title was already decided.
Calling it the worst loss in program history shows a complete lack of perspective. The worst losses in program history came in games that actually meant something.
Was it the worst loss in terms of the opening POINT SPREAD in history? Maybe. But the worst losses in program history cost us Big Ten titles or even National Titles, IMO.
January 15th, 2014 at 2:46 PM ^
Yeah, and what do all of those games you mentioned have in common? They were all against top 10 opponents and Michigan wasn't expected to win.
UAA didn't deserve to be on the same floor as that Michigan team. That's my criteria for worst losses. Games you had no business losing. Last year @PSU is up there as well.
Sorry I didn't experience something I wasn't even alive for. That doesn't not give me the right talk about past games and teams and look at it. But oh well, not the first person to dislike me and certainly not the last.
January 15th, 2014 at 3:02 PM ^
Michigan was 16-5 and ranked #13 in the country at that point. Indiana was 15-4 and ranked #4. The first matchup in Ann Arbor had been a 1-point game.
Was Indiana slightly favored, yeah. Was a Michigan win unexpected? Absolutely not.
What does that have to do with it being a terrible loss? They essentially were ahead when the horn went off. In fact, replays showed that it's not even clear that the Indiana guy got the ball off before the clock ran out. Now THAT is a bad loss. Not some meaningless non-conference loss that no one even remembers.
This isn't football where 1 loss can define a season. Basketball teams lose games. Michigan didn't show up for some meaningless game against a meaningless opponent in a meaningless holiday tournament that had no on in the stands. Sure it was momentarily embarassing. But anyone who was actually around back then will tell you it just wasn't that big of deal. If it had sent the team into some sort of tailspin maybe it would have some relevance, but they won all of their other non-conference games.
January 15th, 2014 at 3:12 PM ^
My response was in reply to Bando. That's why the post is under his and not yours.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:38 PM ^
that Demetrius Calip bailed us out early in during the Championship run. Never forgot the success of Glen Rice or the clutch play of Sean Higgens, but Calip---without him in game 1, none of the rest coulda happened.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:45 PM ^
Beating Illinois was so sweet.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:47 PM ^
The best was that Illinois Asst Coach yelling and stomping after the Higgins put back, when the camera was focusing on Lou Henson
January 14th, 2014 at 10:46 PM ^
after the championship, my dad took me down to the old Waterstreet Pavillion in downtown Flint to meet Glen and Demetrius. They both autographed a "Michigan 1989-90 NCAA Champions" pennant that I still proudly have displayed in my man cave 25 years later. I still have arguments that this team would have beaten the Fab 5 teams.
January 14th, 2014 at 11:02 PM ^
I assume you mean 1988-89? If not, that could be more of a collector's item than you know...
January 15th, 2014 at 12:00 AM ^
The overlap in years always throws me off for whatever reason. The 89-90 team got put out by a Loyola Marymount team that played out of their minds in honor of Hank Gathers.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:50 PM ^
Lol, no way was that a foul ... I'll take it though.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:54 PM ^
I wish i would have been alive during Bo's day. Love the way he said Michigan.
January 14th, 2014 at 11:08 PM ^
So does the scandal happen if Bo's ego doesn't run Frieder out of town?
January 14th, 2014 at 11:18 PM ^
Frieder wasn't exactly known for running a tight ship himself.
January 15th, 2014 at 1:56 AM ^
Guys walking around campus in fur-trimmed coats, driving fancy cars... Sure, absolutely normal, completely above-board.
Ed Martin didn't just appear out of nowhere once Fisher was at the helm. Bo had his reasons for being wary of Frieder.
January 15th, 2014 at 9:27 AM ^
is that he basically despised him as somebody who was bending the rules for a long time. I used to go to a well-known local Greek food/pizza joint (long since closed) and the owner and manager used to brag about how much free food they provided the b-ball players.
January 15th, 2014 at 9:40 AM ^
I witnessed that on a several occasions. About one of the worse-kept secrets in town.
It was about a block off State Street on Liberty as I recall.
January 15th, 2014 at 10:06 AM ^
for a while, and used to go down for a gyros as soon as I got my paycheck. (My other go-to was a trout sandwich at De Long's Barbecue Pit--is that still there?) You'd often see players around a big table in the back, IIRC.
January 15th, 2014 at 10:32 AM ^
Yeah, the players were always in the back. Gyros were good there, the "Italian" type food, not so much. I'm not familiar with De Longs, though.
January 15th, 2014 at 11:22 AM ^
DeLong's closed about fifteen years ago and was replaced with a vegetarian Indian joint. Yes, I'm serious. It's now a pretty decent teriyaki place.
January 15th, 2014 at 11:24 AM ^
The Lamplighter. I had a few friends who were obsessed with that place. The night it was supposed to close for good, they went in and ordered every damn thing on the menu for posterity.
January 15th, 2014 at 10:38 AM ^
It wasn't Bo's ego that ran Frieder out of town. Frieder's shady recruiting practices and blindly allowing the players' excess during those years is what did it. How do I know this? I've known him since he was a high school coach in Flint...even then his 'palm-greasing' was legendary.
January 14th, 2014 at 10:55 PM ^
Glen Rice had such an incredible tournament, shooting the lights out. And Rumeal Robinson was clutch in the end.
January 14th, 2014 at 11:00 PM ^
Rumeal & Fisher ... highlights and lowlights in Michigan history.
January 14th, 2014 at 11:03 PM ^
has been tough for years.
January 14th, 2014 at 11:03 PM ^
Haha I really liked that Higgins guy.
January 14th, 2014 at 11:07 PM ^
Damn, the ref robbed Mark Hughes of his SI cover. "I had the ball in my hands and an open lane to the basket."
January 14th, 2014 at 11:20 PM ^
That was a funny end-take. Hughes is a classy guy--he lived across the street from my grandparents when he coached the Grand Rapids CBA team and graciously attended my grandmother's wake.
Which was attended by a bunch of short white people, one 6'5 grandson (me), and a 6'9 African American national champion.
January 14th, 2014 at 11:09 PM ^
You guys are so freaking lucky to have lived through and experienced 1988-89 - 1998-99 as fans.
Broke the whole thing down before, but for short-
- Football- 1 National Championship, 7 Big Ten Championships, 3 Rose Bowl Championships, 7-2-1 vs ohio, 8-3 vs state
- Basketball- 1 NCAA Championship, 3 NCAA Regional Championships, 1 Big Ten Tournament Championship, The Fab Five
- Hockey- 2 NCAA Championships, 6 NCAA Regional Championships, 5 Conference Regular Season Championships, 4 Conference Tournament Championships, 9 GLI Championships
Oh, and if you're a Detroit sports fan you got these as well-
- 2 straight NBA Championships
- 2 straight Stanley Cup Championships
- NFC Division title and one and only Lions playoff win
I am truly jealous of all of you as a 95er.
January 14th, 2014 at 11:23 PM ^
Never truly appreciated what a great time it was for Michigan sports. I was at UM from 04-07 football season so I saw a solid team. Granted I had to witness The Horror :(. Ok I'll go be sad again...
January 14th, 2014 at 11:24 PM ^
It's really amazing I didn't become a basketball fan for life. My friends and I watched all the time, shot hoops in our driveway all the time, and lived and died with the Pistons and Wolverines. Snow day at school? Watch Hoosiers to pass the time. And it paid off. For a 9-10 year old it was amazing.
Good reminder that I really was a lucky sports fan as a kid.
January 15th, 2014 at 6:17 AM ^
It has a triangle banner with one point in Seattle, one in Pasadena, and one in Ann Arbor. Michigan across the country!
January 15th, 2014 at 8:10 AM ^
Don't forget a couple of Heisman's in there too.
What was really fun was living through all of this in the heart of buckeye country. To add insult to injury, we even beat them to go to the Final Four in '92.
We owned their sorry asses. And I got to walk around Ohio grinning like the Cheshire Cat.
January 15th, 2014 at 8:57 AM ^
Also, in the only Frozen Four appearance in their program's history, Michigan won the NCAA Championship.