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In the Meti Gamecock ( Rw llonnic Cuuitvor mm J WWIISII0 VVWIII.OI The magic number is 20. That's the number of wins USC head basketball coach Bill Foster sets as his goal every year. "We're always looking for a 20-win season," he said. Last season, Foster reached both major goals of a 20-win season and a bid to a natinnnl ~ T*U_ ' iivimi iuui naiiicni. iiic vjainccocKs rinisnea the regular season at 20-8 and made it to the quarterfinals of the National Invitational Tournament, losing to Wake Forest. This season, with the Gameeocks in the Metropolitan Collegiate Athletic conference, 20 wins might not be as easy. FOSTER SAID this schedule will be his toughest since coming to Carolina four years Hon Rllt a t Aiinli cn^o/4iila lo ~ "Ui u 1UU511 ov.uv.uuit 13 lIUIlllll^ new HJ Foster, who said his schedules at Duke were always among the hardest in the country. : "Four out of the six years at Duke, our 1 schedule was rated the toughest or second ; toughest in the nation." 1 Foster sees three areas where the teams needs to improve to be successful this season. First, he said the team needs to play better on | the road. Last season, the Gamecocks were 1 17-3 in Carolina Coliseum, but 3-6 on the < road. The team won two 011 neutral courts. ; lit tKic caorrtri ljul uiij 11, mv vjaiiicv.?jv?iv3 Ulliy 13 games at home and play 14 on the road, s not including at least one game in the Metro i tournament to be held in Memphis, Tenn. s Second, Foster said the team needs to play better defense. < t "OUR DEFENSE has to improve. We i allowed our opponents to shoot too well." Gamecock opponents shot 48 percent from t the floor last season, while USC shot almost s 52 percent. USC averaged 72.3 points per game, while opponents averaged 67.7. Third, Foster said the team has to improve from the free-throw line, a persistant pro- c blem for the Gamecocks. i l he (Jamecocks shot 66 percent from the ] free-throw line, compared to 69 percent for ; Carolina opponents. i USC RETURNS eight lettermen and four i USC women's ' " ,'">v : . '. ' N"^ ;: >. y<v\-y .' ' ; USC forward Marti McAKstar dritttu downcou McAfetar'f satar Amy joins tha wqmi tim aaason. / 0 :oach hopes fc regular starters. Missing from the starting lineup is Gerald Peacock, who led the team in assists with 182 and averaged 8.2 points per game. Headlining the list of returnees is 6-8 senior Jimmy Foster, who led the team in scoring the past two seasons and rebounding for three seasons. Foster averaged 17.3 points and 8.9 rebounds per game last season. Other returning lettermen are Brad Jergenson, a 6-8 senior forward; Scott Sanderson, a 5-3 senior guard; Mike Brittain, a 7-0 junior :neter; Jimmy Hawthorne, a 6-3 junior guard; Duane Kendall, a 6-10 junior center; Chris Troutman, a 6-0 sophomore guard and Harold Martin, a 6-3 junior guard-forward. Top newcomers to the team are Michael roster, a 6-2 point guard from Greensboro, 4.C.; Matt Mayes, a 6-3 guard from Irevard, N.C.; Gerald Perry, a 6-6 forward rom Dreher High School in Columbia; Tom it ierle, a 6-0 sophomore guard who ransfered from Emporia State in Kansas; nd Bob Sylvester, a 6-8 forward who made he team as a walk-on. FOSTER STARTED at the point guard osition Saturday night in the exhibition ame against the Canadian National team, coring six points and dishing out nine 3010 13 . Mayes underwent knee surgery during the jmmer, but coach Foster expects him to be ;ady to play by the second game of the jason Nov. 29 against Missouri-St. Louis. Many magazines and polls have picked the iamecocks to finish either third or fourth in le Metro conference, but Foster said his aim to shoot for No. 1. "You always shoot for No. 1, and then let le chips fall where they may. You can't loot for No. 4. " AVERAGE ATTENDANCE has increasi every year since Foster has taken over the aaching job, and Foster said 750 to 800 lore season tickets have sold than last year, tut Foster would still like to see more tudents at the game. "At Duke that was the least of my wories," he said. "You'd think the coliseum 'as out in Irmo or somewhere." team national By Tracy A new c . ..sk.Wgi a team co - \ v\ women's SP^ these, sect r::/-;"4 ? #-"V ? confident K \% X "This y ^'-" " ' t?*J? V? >an"g th ? -BKr *wlm- ",., . finish. ^ ImK* J% r but* fi^st i ference ct rpfurn on, center fro guard fro t in a contest last uason. who start season," ir another 20-w 8B?. ^ a |. Wm^ J *U Jimmy Foster goes up during Clemson's Murray Jarm open their season Nov. 26 against UNC-Asheville. ly ranked in pri Mixson Kel|y :onference, a long home-game stretch and season, mposed of veterans and strong freshmen jng jn z 'ill determine the success of the USC's citing F 1983-84 basketball year, and because of Monica >nd-year head coach Terry Kelly said he's "The about the coming season. far this ear should be a lot better," he said, com- an that c coming season with last year's 16-12 group I a is ranked 20th in the nation by the TO 1 Press pre-season poll, and as the newest Carolii >f the Metropolitan Collegiate Athletic "I tl e, has been chosen as the pre-season sively,' > win the conference title. well fe 'VE GOT us picked to win it this year," USC "That'll be good if we do. Traditionally wju p ro the toughest teams are Memphis State Colisei la State. "Hci umber-one goal is to win the Metro Con . 4<ir lllc 1111 lampiuiisiup, ne continued. If we win, % . )matically qualify for the NCAA (Nalegiate Athletic Association) tournament. s we'd like to be ranked during the year, 44BU and foremost we'd like to win the con- stretch lampionship." of the ^ That's' i about individual players, Kelly said, that's >spects look very good this season. We finish i e of our top players who was injured last US)" h< ntley Southers. She's back with us now, ery strong." Kelly against IERS WAS red-shirted last season due to with CI lury and a blood disorder. the Lac ? got three returning starters back besides se are Sharon Gillmore, a sophomore because m Graniteville; Marsi McAlister, a junior schedu m here in Columbia; and Mindy Ballou, ferencc ed for us before the end of the year last And he said. Metro ^ i /in season - . ?HHn| '^B^MwiS A * Y' *, *&? V *j^ * ?s#UE&^ nSlfi^ i * IftlllfAkY^ ^ f a m a m t * $? t ian during a game last season. The Gamecocks eseason poll said incoming freshman will be a factor this "We have an excellent recruiting class comis far as freshmen are concerned," he said, lene Najarian from Wakefield, Mass., and . Williams from Kershaw. # t >se two have been the leading candidates so season. But I don't think our youth will be much of a problem. The sophomores as a i n/4 n 1 % t r> ( r? m /? #? ?? a 1 nanr ' ' Via c O I iau a isji ui piaying nine iddi ycai, 11^ aoiu. IMPROVE over last season, Kelly said la will have to work on its overall defense. link we're going to have to play well defen" he said. "If we can do that, everything else ed off of that." ' has a 10-game home stand this season, and lay 16 of its 28 games at home in the _ urn. ivine 16 hnmp tramps is tn our advantage." iaid. "Nine of those are double-headers with ?n, which is a plus because that's a better for us." T WHEN we have that 10 home-game , I think that will be the make-or-break time /ear for us as far as our season is concerned, about mid-January to mid-February, and when you pretty well size up how you'll this year. That's an important stretch for ' said the season opener Nov.1 29 ^ gg South Carolina State and then a contest * ^ emson Dec. 3 will be tough competition for ly Gamecocks early in the season. ose are not good opponents to open against e they are strong," he said. "But the type of le we have will help us in our Metro Coni games." vanything that will help Carolina in the is good enough for him, Kelly said. H