The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, February 08, 1995, Page 7, Image 7
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
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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?
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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
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|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
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[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
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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.
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