By The Associated press
 
   MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Nick Checco had a goal and two assists as Minnesota
returned to college hockey's final four with a 5-2 victory over Colorado
College in the second round of the NCAA West Regional Saturday.
   Dave Larson scored twice for the Gophers (25-13-5), who advanced to the
NCAA semifinals Thursday at Providence, R.I.
   Minnesota lost to Boston University in last year's semifinals.
   It was Gophers coach Doug Woog's 300th career coaching victory.
   "I told my team, 'If you don't want to win this whole thing, then
don't come back next year. ... If you don't have the courage to step
forward and win this thing, then don't come back into our program, because
that's our goal,' " said Woog, who improved to 300-123-28
   This will mark the Gophers' sixth Final Four appearance in Woog's 10
years at Minnesota, which has yet to win the title during his tenure.
   The second-seeded Tigers, making their first trip to the NCAA tournament
since 1978 and only their second since winning the 1957 national title,
lost for the second straight time after going 30-10-1.
   The Tigers, with the winningest team in school history, won the Western
Collegiate Hockey Association regular season championship before losing to
Wisconsin 4-3 in overtime in the playoff final.
   Checco's assist to Scott Bell at 17:18 of the first period tied the game
at 2, and his goal from the left circle off an assist from Bell put the
third-seeded Gophers ahead for good at 4:57 in the second period.
   Checco picked up another assist with one second left in the second period,
when his shot hit the crossbar and bounced to Larson, who stuffed the puck
in for a 4-2 lead.
   "Obviously that goal with one second left was a pivotal goal," Colorado
College coach Don Lucia said.
   "It was pretty much demoralizing," Tigers center R.J. Enga said.
   Larson had come out of the penalty box for roughing with just 13 seconds
left in the period.
   "I was in the box and I was thinking what Coach was going to say when
I got to the bench, so I just stayed out there," Larson said. "I knew he
was going to be mad because it was a dumb penalty."
   Brian Bonin's power play goal a minute into the third period made it 5-2.
   Checco, a sophomore who was eighth on his team with 20 points this season,
scored two goals Friday in a 3-0 first-round victory over Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute. He had four goals and an assist in last year's
playoffs.
   Larson, who had two assists Friday, scored from inside the right circle
on a power play three minutes into the game at the Dane County Coliseum.
   Colorado College took a 2-1 lead on senior Jon Steiner's first career goal
and Colin Schmidt's 26th goal of the season.
   Steiner, playing in his 99th collegiate game, scored off an assist from
Peter Geronazzo at 9:50 of the second period. Schmidt's goal came at 16:13.
   Scott Bell tied it at 2 a minute later when he scored past Ryan Bach after
Checco stole the puck and knocked it off the pipe.
   Minnesota, in its record 11th straight NCAA tournament after playing the
nation's toughest schedule, finished fourth in the WCHA during the regular
season and third in the playoffs.
 
At Madison, Wis.
Colorado College  2 0 0--2
Minnesota         2 2 1--5
   First Period--1, Minnesota, Larson 8 (Trebil, Bonin), 3:00. 2, Colorado
College, Steiner 1 (Geronazzo), 9:50. 3, Colorado College, Schmidt 26 (Paxtoon,
Christopherson), 16:13. 4, Minnesota, Bell 18 (Checco), 17:18.
   Second Period--5, Minnesota, Checco 12 (Bell), 4:57. 6, Minnesota Larson 9
(Checco, Kraft), 19:59.
   Third Period--7, Minnesota, Bonin 32 (Kraft, Crowley), 1:00.
   Shots on goal--Colorado College 10-12-9--31. Minnesota 9-11-12--32.
   Goalies--Colorado College, Bach (32-27), Minnesota, Callinan (31-29).
A--7,751.
   ------
 
   MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Mike Knuble scored twice, including the tie-breaker
in the third period that propelled Michigan to college hockey's final four
with a 4-3 victory over Wisconsin in the second round of the NCAA West
Regional Saturday night.
   The top-seeded Wolverines (30-7-1) will meet Maine in the semifinals
Thursday at Providence, R.I. Minnesota also advanced to the final four
with a 5-2 victory against Colorado College, the No. 2 seed in the West
Regional.
   The Gophers will face Boston University in a rematch of last year's
semifinal won by BU.
   Knuble's power play tie-breaker at 11:51 ended Wisconsin's season at
24-15-4 and handed the Badgers their first NCAA playoff loss in 10 games
at the Dane County Coliseum.
   Michigan got its big break in the hard-hitting contest when Badgers
defenseman Maco Balkovec went to the penalty box for holding at 10:35 of the
third period.
   Skating with a 4-on-3 advantage, Knuble scored on a slapshot from the high
slot off a face-off for his 37th goal of the season.
   Knuble, a senior, also scored Michigan's first goal and assisted on its
second.
   Wisconsin pulled goaltender Kirk Daubenspeck with 51 seconds left, but
Wolverines freshman goaltender Marty Turco stopped Jamie Spencer's shot, the
Badgers' last, with 20 seconds remaining.
   Mike Strobel's power-play goal for Wisconsin just 22 seconds into the
third period had tied it at 3.
   Strobel, who had two goals and an assist in a 5-3 first-round victory
against Michigan State, tied it at 2 with a shorthanded empty-net goal at
2:54 of the second period.
   When Turco came out to the high slot to clear the puck, Strobel knocked
his clearing attempt out of the air and scored into the empty net.
   Michigan's Brendan Morrison put the Wolverines ahead 3-2 with an assist
from Robb Gordon in the second period. Morrison skated around the net and
stuffed it past Daubenspeck gloveside at 9:33.
   Erik Raygor's bad-angle power-play goal off Michigan defensman Harold
Schock's skate at 11:23 of the first period tied it at a goal each.
   But Michigan's top-rated offense, which led in the nation with a 5.7
scoring average, retaliated just 20 seconds later when Knuble stole a
Wisconsin clearing pass and fed it to Gordon in the slot for the goal.
Press <CR> for more !
The Associated Press($)
Knuble put Michigan ahead 1-0 with his 36th goal off an assist from Gordon
7:39 into the game.
   Michigan, which outshot the Badgers 40-27, won the Central Collegiate
Hockey Association regular-season title before losing to eventual playoff
champion Lake Superior State 5-4 in overtime in the semifinals.
   Fourth-seeded Wisconsin finished second in the Western Collegiate Hockey
Association during the regular season and won the league's playoff title with a
4-3 overtime victory against Colorado College.
 
Wisconsin  1 1 1--3
Michigan   2 1 1--4
   First Period--1, Michigan, Knuble 36 (Gordon), 7:39. 2, Wisconsin, Raygor 18
(Carter), 11:23. 3, Michigan, Gordon 15 (Knuble), 11:43.
   Second Period--4, Wisconsin, Mike Strobel 22, 2:54. 5, Michigan, Morrison 23
(Gordon), 9:33.
   Third Period--6, Wisconsin, Williams 26 (Mark Strobel, Rafalski), 0:22. 7,
Michigan, Knuble 37 (Hilton), 11:51.
   Shots on goal--Wisconsin 9-6-12--27. Michigan 12-16-12--40.
   Goalies--Wisconsin, Daubenspeck (40-36). Michigan, Turco (27-24).
   A--7,751
 
|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|
|                   Lynn Burke    Newport News, Va.                     |
|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|--|