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SPORTS Wednesday, February 7,1996 ^jjjjjj^^ 5 Gamecocks try to break road-game jinx at Auburn I t , I ROBBIE MEEK Sports Editor twice last season: 80-78 in Columbia split between freshman Bud Johnson The South Carolina Gamecocks and 81-66 in the SEC Tournament. and junior Nate Wilbourne. Johnson is f j[l] 11 j ft M J JI / j] I / J IWm rfPfl J ventured into Kentucky almost two As a team, Auburn leads the SEC in averaging 6.3 rpg and 1.6 bpg. Wilbourne weeks ago riding a three-game SEC three-pointers per game. enters tonight's game with a 53.7 field winning streak and ranked 12th in the Senior guard Lance Weems leads goal percentage. jTT jTTT country by the RPI. the Tigers in scoring withl4.4 points per Tonight's tip-offis at 8 p.m. \ CronHin uuiiiiomc The Gamecocks had beaten game. Weems leads the SEC in three- The Gamecocks will face the LSU L3ITy QdVIS rrSnKlin WlllOVTIS Vanderbilt in overtime, crushed Alabama pointers per game. Tigers 2 p.m. Saturday in a regionally \ j 6-3190 ""6 215 Sp and shut down All-American candidate Weems' back court mate junior Wes televised home game. C 21 X C 31 Erik Dampier in route to a school record Flanigan leads the conference in assists Lady Gamecocks to face UNCC Blld Johnson \ / Pat Blirke third-straight SEC win over Mississippi ^67 8881848 I*31" game and the team The Lady Gamecocks will entertain 0--| Q 230 \ / 6-11 245 State. Carolina played one good half in steals with two steals per game. the UNC Charlotte 49ers in the Frank ~i h \ / . H r ? against Kentucky before getting blown Center Pat Bjirke is second in the McGuire Arena at 7 p.m. Carolina (13- \ \ / / away by an explosive Wildcat team in conference in rebounding with 9.2 7,2-5) is coming off of a 75-57 loss to . """ Q -jq the second half. rebounds per game. Burke is also arch-rival Clemson on Monday night in Mpluin Watcnn I anr-P Ufppmc The Gamecocks haven't been the averaging 13.5 ppg and 1.2 blocks per Tiger Town. R.9 1QR R.9 1QR same since. game. Sophomore forward Franklin Senior Naismith Award Candidate |f||| pp 13a Q-o 130 Wofford, ranked 305th out of 305 Williams is averaging 5.7 rpg. Shannon Johnson once again led the 1 :% / j \ \ % Division I teams at the beginning of the Hie one bright spot for the Gamecocks Lady Gamecocks in scoring with 25, but F5 . \ / \ F 32 season, came to town Wednesday and over the last two games has been didn't get much help from her teammates Malik RuSSell / \ Ray Donald led against the Gamecocks 39-36 at freshman guard BJ McKie, who has led as she was the only starter to score. 6-7 220 / \ 6-8185 halftime. Carolina regained form in the the team in scoring the last two games Before Monday night's game Johnson / \ second half and defeated the Terriers with 19 and 24 points respectively. McKie was the fifth in the nation in scoring. S Q 3 G 22 N. . . . 82-55. is joined in the back court by junior Larry She is averaging 25.8 ppg, 4 apg and 2.8 S f McKie We" Flsnionn The Gamecocks went to Arkansas Davis and sophomore Melvin Watson, spg. Johnson is also leading the SEC in fi-2 1RR fi-1 1 Rfl Saturday to face the Razorbacks and Davis is fifth in the conference in three pointers per game with 3.1. Senior ? ~ 103 P-l loll never found their rhythm, losing 81-69. scoring with 17.4 ppg and is also guard Natalie Fundeiburk joins Johnson * Tonight, USC (12-6,54) will travel averaging 2.1 three-pointers per game, in the backcourt with 4.9 apg. to Alabama to face the Auburn Tigers Watson is leading the team is assists The Lady Gamecocks will play at (15-6,-3-5). The Tigers are on a three- with 4.1 per game. Georgia at 4:30 on Saturday. The game game losing skid. Auburn beat Carolina Time at center will once again be will be televised on SportsSouth. Southeastern Conference has bad showing in die polls ASSOCIATED PRESS and they just assume the rest of the Smith, while Mississippi State (14-5) four and six losses. school two years early. Florida had to Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Tennessee, ATLANTA They used to say the league is down," said Mississippi state has only recently started playing like Tve been in the league for 24 years, replace four-year starters Andrew Auburn and Ole Miss ? have hired new two favorite sports in the Southeastern coach Richard Williams. "Kentucky is the team that began the season in the and Tve seen it as balanced as it is with DeClercq and Dan Cross. coaches in the past four years and can Conference were football and spring just that good." Top 10.? most of the teams and so out of whack In all, the league lost five of its top still be considered in rebuilding modes. football. The way this basketball season Kentucky (18-1) has won 17 in a row Despite the dearth of ranked teams, with one team," he said. 1 think Kentucky 10 scorers and six of the top eight Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson is going, that might be the case again, since a92-821ossto top-ranked SEC coaches to a man grow testy when is the best team in the country, bar none." rebounders. contends there is something else: antiNo. 2 Kentucky is far and away the Massachusetts in N ovember. The the quality of their league is questioned. While Kentucky returned the bulk "From a marquee player standpoint, SEC bias among the poll voters. Three best team in the conference, winning its numbers for the other SEC teams are "I don't think the league is down," of its 1995 team, which won the SEC the league is probably not what it has Top 25 teams have as many losses as first eight SEC games.while hardly another matter. said LSU coach Dale Brown, whose team last season and reached the finals of the been the last couple of years," Alabama the Razorbacks; one ? Michigan, at 15breaking a sweat To make matters worse, Arkansas (14-6), which reached the is struggling at 11-9 overall, 3-5 in Southeast Regional, the other traditionally coach David Hobbs conceded. 7 ? has more, none of the other 11 teams is even ranked championship game last season, lost all conference play. "I think we have strong programs seemed to lose everyone It's always been difficult to win on "I watch games every .night and I ? a bitter blow for one of the country's five starters and got off to a slow start, destroyed each other. If you take Kentucky at once. No one was harder hit than the road, in part because of the brutal don't see teams that are so much greater largest conferences. Alabama (11-7) and Florida (9-10) also out of this league, all 11 teams, including Arkansas, which lost Corliss Williamsom travel that must be endured in a league than the (SEC) teams we have to play Compare that to the Big East, which suffered major losses from their 1995 Ole Miss, can beat each other on any (19.7 points a game), Scottie Thurman which stretches over nine states and against," he said. "We were ranked No. has three teams in the Top 10 and two NCAA tournament teams. Georgia (12- given night." (15.4) and its other three starters. includes such obscure campus locations 16, then we lost one game and we were more in the Top 25. 7), expected to be among the top teams Brown can only shake his hand when Alabama lost every starter but one, as Starkville, Miss., and Fayetteville, totally out of the rankings. Other teams "What happens is some people look in the conference, has been a major he loqks at the league standings, which the most devastating blow coming when Ark. lose games and are still in the rankings, at Kentucky and see what they're doing disappointment under new coach Tubby show nine of the 12 teams with between center Antonio McDyess decided to leave Also, six schools ? Georgia, but maybe they aren't as good as us." the University of South Carolina office of campus recreation i ^ 3 intramural sports j| m. "^b : jM I S ^ylfl^B I - ^"1 Thursday^ February 8 ai7:0Ctorill B^B ^9^ j WM ^'''' i y *, * r A. x .. _ jy;, ______ BB -. . . v , JBPF I?per person br ^2Q|per -tearrrp "I'm really enjoying my internship | with the Gamecock. Not only do I get internship credit, but I am also able I _ You may sign up in the to work with great people, work a I Qiwi? Office of Campus Recreation flexible schedule, and make some I |#?i?tk>n 202 Blatt PE Center. extra money. I Call 777-5261 for more info y ^ ^. _ LdHHW I DEPARTMENT OF STUDENT LIFE/DIVISION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS I L Cr ^^^^^^^^^^Ai^ffirmativeAction^qua^pportunit^niploye^^^^^^^^^^^