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Guard poised t HELVIN WATSON MICHAEL BAUR Staff Writer After successful stints at Burke High School in Charleston and Winchendon Prep School just outside of Boston, fresh man guard Melvm Watson had a variety of schools to choose from to begin his college career; however, one special person convinced him to come to USC. "My mother convinced me to come here," Watson said. "Because of her and some family problems that were going on, I felt I needed to stay closer to home." Watson has made the most of his first year with the Gamecocks thus far. After Donnie Matthews suffered a season-ending ipjuiy, Watson inherited the point guard position and is second on the team in scoring, averaging 122 points per game. His average of 4.2 assists per game leads the team and ranks him seventh in the SEC. In addition to his team-best 1.4 steals per game, Watson averages 33.9 minutes per game to rank eighth in the SEC. Watson's achievements have surprised mapy this year, including Watson himself. "I didn't really expect to be playing as much as I have," he said. "Ifs taken my body some time to adjust, and it's j usi now coming urounu. The minutes have proven to be wellspent. Watson connected on 50 percent of his field-goal attempts and shot 56 percent from beyond the three-point arc for the week of Jan. 23, which included a crucial trey against Georgia with 1:36 to play that ultimately propelled the Gamecocks to a one-point victory over the Bulldogs and their first SEC win of the season. Watson's heroics also earned him a nomination for SEC Player of the Week. Despite the praise and honors he has received, Watson's motivation seems to come from another source: senior guard and backcourt mate Carey Rich. "He motivates me to make me play hard," Wamon said. "This is liis senior year, and if he's playing hard, I owe it to him to play hard also." Despite the Gamecocks' recent success, they remained in last place in the SEC East with a 1-7 conference mark and a 5-12 overall record through this past Wednesday. However, Watson feels ISa B ms&mm > YOU DONT HAVE TO DRINK TO RIDE DRUNK. Medicine can affect your balance, coordination, and vision as much as alcohol. After drinking or taking med ication, don't ride. That's v. o ; the best safety prescription. \ff/ MOTORCYCLE SAFETY FOUNDATION^ ? * o lead team ii TkJt ;A| ^ v If *-ijr' W1 Mslvln Watson has assumed a meriting a graceful shooting tou he and his teammates have made r markable strides in the second half the season. "We knew all along we're a good tea if we kept believing in ourselves and t) coaching staff," Watson said. "The que tion we've had to ask ourselves is if we' doing enough to work harder and re? ~LO DEI M % great scores... (22 Kaplan helps you focus your GRE studies and build your confidence so you can get a higher score. * Ttf Qam?cock ft Tcie o 1 coming years \vk KM TRUETT The Gamecock key role for USC this year, com piech with daring penetration. e- ly want it. ?f "We have a legitimate chance of winning the rest of our games. Our toughm est games will probably be at Georgia and Florida, but if we keep executing re and doing what the coaches want us to .i j. ?i n1i r,,i ? ii- uu, men wen ue auixessiui. >OK iPER IPER KR Expert C Programming Deep C Secrets I A must read (or anyone who I wants to learn more about the I implementation, practical use and folklore of C. Available at: IflfflWH] Last chance for April! Classes start on February 11th ^ t ^ 256-0673 get a higher score KAPLAN 4 |j|fS W?dn?day, F?bruwy >, 1995 f Two fiivsh Big man showing RYAN STACK ROBBIE MEEK Staff Writer Although ifs beginning to win, Carolina's men's basketball hasn't seen many bright spot3 in its 6-12 season. Hnwwar nnp nf tViA fpw hricrht STYits has been the play of freshman Ryan Stack. The Chapmansboro, Tenn., native has played well this season at the center and forward spots for the Gamecocks. "I didn't know if I was going to play or not," Stack said. "I thought about K redshirting, but as the season started ill and we started practicing, I started to 111 progress and surprised myself." Although standing 6-foot-ll, Stack lUj only weighs 205 pounds. Considering that he is playing against such SEC heavyweights as Arkansas' Corliss Williamson and Georgia's Charles Claxton, you realize that Stack's biggest dis- H advantage is his strength. There have Li already been plans for Stack to go on \ a strict diet at the end of the season. "I'm not that strong," Stack said, "but when you play aggressive, that w makes up for most of it. After the sea- 1 son, I'm going to go on a pretty strict J. weight diet and see if I can pick up some J quick pounds. I would like to weigh . I about 225 or 230." Stack has shown a shot this season ij that not too many 6-foot-ll guys have. He has shown the ability to hit the trey. He has hit 13, shooting 47 percent from the three-point line. "The only reason I am able to shoot that is because I grew a lot my freshman year in high school," Stack said. "In middle school, I really didn't have a definite position. I shot all the time. X uevciupeu a buul uuusiuc ana ncpi un working at it as I was growing." Stack has shown that he has a lot bl of control and is flexible, unlike most big men. **1 "I took karate for a couple of years during high school (and) that helped a whole lot," Stack said. "I got a lot of bal- an ance and flexibility from that." However, there is a big difference jui between high school basketball and go NCAA Division I basketball. Normal- "0 ly, it takes awhile for players to get used wi to the university and college basketball, ha ^ ^ Spill m 1 It's tim< F I N 880 HARDEN SI s?S5 on any dry cleaning < J| $15.00 or mor Good only with incomin 830 Harden Street 25< X cba{u>n per visjt * expires 2 ? ^ - ?" ? ? ? ? men. signs of promu M If FJP ^ ^ i ^ m^, \im^B gpa^ Sjp* *^i .^w? ran Stack has hald Ms own as a 1 [alnst formldabls SEC compotltlon. d Stack was no different. i "The biggest thing for me was ad- g sting. And the classwork, you really i t to put a lot of work into it," he said, n the basketball court, if s the same iv. If s a whole lot more Dhvsical: vou - f ive to put a lot of time and effort into a I ore than tt last night6? e for a trip to 1 mm E CT^E^T*^N E KEET FTVEPOIN IF" :f !; $ 1 )rder of i [ on any < e I j $ g order I. . vJGood o 1-7373 JI 830 Ha M/9$ '-.i: .. 1 | 1 C0U 7 $e for future ^ ^ rn^mM ^ $?Wm n> A m*MKHm^m,. **? ^ ? ..' -n * ' p RIN GALLOWAY The Gamecock tosh man, playing compotttlvoly t. It was a big adjustment from the [rades, tne academics and the athletCS. As Stack continues to adjust, look or the Gamecocks to build off his size ind shooting ability. ie beans '55 [ripp's. j R S TS 254-7378 500 off iry cleaning order of 20.00 or moreillil niy with incoming order rden Street 254r73731:-l pon per visit * expires 7J19/95 , ? _ ? ~ -