The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, January 31, 1992, Page 7, Image 7
Gamecocl
Saturday's c
SEC against
By AARON KNOWLTON
Staff Writer
The South Carolina men's basketball
team takes its show on the
road Saturday night when it visits
Littlejohn Coliseum Arena to face
the Clemson Tigers.
The Gamecocks, led by senior
guard Jo Jo English (17.6 ppg),
Jjope to turn things around after a
rcartbreaking loss against Mississippi
State on a half-court buzzer
beater and a 83-81 overtime loss to
Alabama Tuesday night.
Saturday's game is the first of
four consecutive road games for
the Gamecocks, who travel to Ole
Miss, Mercer and Arkansas before
their next home game Feb. 19
against LSU.
In addition to playing away
from home the Gamecocks must
W)pe with the loss of 6-foot-8 forward
Joe Rhett, who collapsed last
Saturday night during the game
against Mississippi State.
Rhett, who has been playing
with a heart pacemaker since the
device's installation in February
1990, is the team's leadi; rounder
and second leading scorer.
s:b#fte|
I 1239
I AP National ACC Overall
| Ranking W L W L
I Duke 7 0 15 0
N.Carolina 4 2 14 3
Georgia Tech 3 3 15 5
Florida State 5 2 13 4
1 WJffi1
12/6 Alabama vs.
I 12/18 Georgia vs. <
12/21 Kentucky vs.
i 12/27 Tennessee v
1/27 Florida vs. F
Trainers supp<
*5n times of tro
By ERIC GLENN
Staff Writer
A loose ball flies. Bodies fall.
An ankle twists, causing the crowd
to gasp and a star athlete to writhe
in pain. Time to call the trainer.
Behind every USC sports team
there is a group of support people
in the shadow of the stars. Easily
overlooked and sometimes taken
^?>r granted, trainers provide the
ervices athletes need to stay
healthy and compete at their maximum
potential.
"Being a trainer is the next best
thing to competing," said junior
Brett Osean, trainer for the men's
basketball team in Fall 1991. "That
is why I went into it ? because I
love sports. I could not be an athlete
because of my size, but by being
a trainer, you are still right
^ere next to the action."
But just as it takes a big time
commitment to be an athlete, it
takes a lot of time to be a trainer.
In addition to classes, a trainer
must pass a six-hour certification
exam.
They also must log 1500 hours
of hands-on training under the guidance
of another certified trainer.
"No doubt it takes a lot of time,"
Osean said. "You have to be there
before and during practice to tape
ankles, ice injuries, whatever is
needed. But it really has its
advantages."
%For Osean, one of the advances
of the job was becoming an
important part of an exciting men's
basketball team. "I got to know the
Says," he said, "I'd go in before
toe games and wish them luck and
c"t up. It is not a great friendship,
but it is a good acquaintance. I enjoyed
being part of it."
Despite all the time and hard
work involved, certain commitments
are essential to being a good
gainer, said Jennifer Olivo, trainer
' the women's basketball team
and second year graduate student
studying physical education.
is to meet a
ontest pits
ACC
In contrast to Carolina, Clemson
is returning home after a long
week on the road in which the Tigers
played three games in five
days, including a 112-73 loss to
Duke.
The Tigers feature a balanced
attack with four players averaging
in double figures. Junior guard
Chris Whitley leads the attack with
13.1 points per game. Six-foot-10
freshman center Sharone Wright
has made an immediate impact,
averaging 12.7 points per game
and a team-leading 7.4 rebounds
per game.
Clemson's 81-71 victory over
Western Carolina Wednesday night
improved the team's overall record
to 10-6, but the Tigers have
struggled to a 1-5 mark in the f?
ACC.
The Tiger's ACC woes revolve m
around the loss of senior guard jl
David Young who was suspended
five games into the season for
academic reasons. Experience also
has been a problem for Clemson
this season. With the suspension of n
Young, the Tigers do not have a Jj
eincrlf* CPTlinr r\n fhpir rr\cti*r
liSlilSfSlCl 1
I ? H
g AP National SEC Overall ? r
| Ranking W L W L | jI
Arkansas 6 1 17 3 I
Kentucky. 5 2 15 4 j
Alabama 4 3 16 4 c
vs. I $
eeisemas s
N.C. State 77-66 I c
Georgia Tech 66-65 s
Georgia Tech 80-81 .
s. N.C. State 92-78 I 1
lorida State 67-68 |
Ryan Sims/The Gamecock
ort USC teams
uble and pain
Like Osean, Olivo finds her job
to be very enjoyable, but admits
that it is not without its problems.
"Being on the road can be hard,"
she said. "It's hard to find time for
yourself. You need to take a break
sometimes, even for just 15
minutes.
"Also, sometimes athletes feel
that a trainer's presence is a right,
not a privilege," she said. "Although,
the women's basketball
team is a great group of girls.
They really treat me with a lot of
respect."
That respect is comes from women's
head coach Nancy Wilson.
"Trainers are a tremendous part of
our program," she said. "This year
we have several serious and nagging
injuries. If we didn't have
trainers, we would be in real *
trouble." \
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Senior guard Jo Jo English makes
lior guard Latrell Sprewell in the G
>ama Tuesday.
Gamecocks 1
iy AARON COUNCIL
Staff Writer
The Gamecocks, playing withlut
their top scorer and rebounder,
;ave No. 22 Alabama a big suprise
^uesday night in the Tide's 83-81
ivertime victory.
Jo Jo English led the Game:ocks
with 30 points, and helped
tage a second half comeback with
tis brilliant shooting.
USC got to within three points
vith 14 seconds left and fouled
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Second-year physical education g
telps freshman forward Jenny Ran(
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LIINA
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:ed merchandise
iuced merchandise
Aerobic Wear
>t. 799-8841
e from campus
Clemson
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Eric Glenn/The Gamecock
a 3-pointer over Alabama's juamecock's
overtime loss to Alaose
in OT
Alabama's Latrell Sprewell on the
in-bounds pass.
Sprewell missed both freethrows,
and Carolina rebounded
and headed up court. English then
hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to
send the game into overtime tied at
72.
"Coach Newton told me to be
.L ~ *- 'i ^ rr .i
uic Lraiier coming on tne screen
and just shoot," English said.
In the overtime period, however,
USC was unable to pull off the
win.
O
o
o
E
iraduate student Jennifer Olivo
dall stretch her knee.
H ]Shov
Enjoy the Excitem
ORG.
Thursda)
ai
(Enter /V
Come to Either Meeting
Track tear
to compet
By TIM THORSEN
Staff Writer
The USC track team travels to
Gainesville, Fla. tomorrow to
compete in the Barnett Bank
Invitational.
They will be competing
against Southeastern Conference
foes Auburn, Florida, Georgia,
Kentucky and Tennessee. Also
competing will be Clemson,
Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina
and North Carolina State.
Head USC track coach Greg
Kraft called the SEC the toughest
conference in the country. SECmember
Georgia saw its outdoor
team finish 10th in the nation in
1991, yet the team was only
ranked seventh in the SEC.
, And the nation's reigning indoor
and outdoor champions are
SEC teams ? Arkansas won the
indoor title, while Tennessee
claimed the outdoor
championship.
"While it takes time for our
athletes to adjust to the increased
competition in the SEC, they are
handling it well," Kraft said.
V VIA avnA/%to tEa fantvt
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to continue improving over the
next two to three years. The
Gamecocks will lose only four of
28 athletes to graduation at the
end of this season.
Although Kraft said the GameWomen's
t
Arkansas \
in SEC sho
By SEAN RYAN
Staff Writer
Last place was not what the
Lady Gamecocks and the Lady Razorbacks
of Arkansas had in mind
when they began their inaugural
season in the SEC.
Both teams were coming off
conference titles in the 1990-1991
season, USC in the Metro, and
Arkansas in the Southwest. USC
visits Arkansas in the first meeting
between the two teams in a battle
to stay out of the SEC basement,
Saturday at 2 p.m.
The Lady 'Backs enter the SEC
matchup sporting a three-game losing
streak, including an 81-6C
blasting by West Virginia. Arkansas'
record now stands at 8-9, 1-4
in the SEC. USC, pending the outcome
of the Old Dominion game,
is 8-10, and 1-6 in the conference,
in last place.
Arkansas is playing its ninth
game without leading scorer and
rebounder Sha Hopson, who reportedly
failed to enroll in classes foi
the spring semester. Hopson was
averaging 18 points and six rebounds
per game before hei
departure.
However, all was not lost for the
team from Fayetteville, Ark. Senior
point guard Amber Nicholas
is averaging nine points, five rebounds
and three steals each contest.
She is the first UA player tc
score 1,000 points and dish oul
500 assists in a career. Nicholas
also is shooting a cool 97 percenl
from the free-throw line.
Be Pai
I Caroline
USC's Recruitin
Be Part of Gam<
Football's No
i . _
I Ranked Re
v Your School Pride
ent of the Southea
ANIZATIONAL MEE1
/, February 6th at 3pr\
' Williams-Brice Stadii
lain Gate, Directly Left of
g - Meetings Will Last Api
q adjusting
itive SEC
cocks are "young and in transition,"
there are several athletes
who have turned in outstanding
performances.
Senior David Arnold is an
NCAA All-American performer
in the 400-meter hurdles. He also
is running the 55-meter-high hurdles,
which he recently ran in a
lifetime best 7.40 seconds.
Red-shirt freshman Adrian
Bonner has had success in the
800- meter as well as other distances
between the 400-meter
and the mile.
Freshman Tom Cronin has
turned in the team's best time in
the following three events: the
800-meter, the 1,500-meter and
the 3,000-meter.
Other standouts include senior
Darrfn riiiuic tha 1QQA N/fdtrn
v*i i^u t iiiv i y ?/ v/ xTivuv/
Conference champion in the pole
vault, and sophomore Ron Willis,
the conference leader in the
35-pound weight throw. Willis is
coming off a championship in
the U.S. Air Invitational in which
he defeated the defending
champion.
After the Barnett Bank Invitational,
the Gamecocks have two
more meets to tune up for the
SEC Championships Feb. 22 to
23 in Gainesville, Fla.
earn to meet
rnmnn oiijoit
y uiiicii a yy aj
>wdown
Junior forward Blair Savage enters
as UA's new leading scorer
and rebounder with 11 points and
six rebounds. The Lady 'Backs
I also get help from freshman Stephanie
Bloomer, who blocks just
over one shot a game, while scoring
seven points a game.
[ Turnovers could once again be
I the key statistic of the game. Arkr
ansas has turned the ball over an
! unbelievable 66 times in its past
two games. The teams quicktempo
playing style has contri;
buted to the turnovers.
Turnovers have been down on
Carolina's side, as Christi Timmons
and Nikki Bass have made
fewer mistakes. Wendy Moss and
Brit Canty also have performed
well at the guard spots.
The key for Arkansas will be to
i slow down junior center Marsha
[ Williams. In SEC play, Williams is
averaging 25 points and 11 rebounds.
On the season, the All;
American candidate is shooting 49
percent and has a total of 417
points for the year. Her current
23.2 average sets a Lady Game;
cock record for highest scoring average,
which stood at 22.7.
; Coach Nancy Wilson also could
have a big weekend with a win
against Arkansas. At press time,
i Wilson is two wins away from vict
tory number 350. A win in Fayeti
teville added to a win against
t ODU could give the Gamecock
coach this milestone.
rt of the
] Classics
g Hostess Group
5COCk
itionally
icruiting Efforts!
i and
stern Conference!
riNGS
n or 7pm
im
r Gate 5)
proximately 45 Minutes