The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, March 03, 1997, Page 9, Image 9

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GAMECOCK ATHLETICS A Baseball vs. VMI M Tuesday & Wednesday, 3:00 p.m. Sarge Frye Field ^ Men's Tennis @ Georgia Tech A 1 -flfl n m B Hcuucauaj, i.w p.in. ^ BRYAN JOHNSTON Sports Editor Wanting no part ofa co-SEC Championship, the No. 6 South Carolina 1 Gamecocks went into Kentucky's Rupp Arena and left outright champions, with a * 72-66 victory over the No. 3 Wildcats. 1 "Congratulations to our players for an incredible effort," USC coach Eddie Fogler 1 said. "I'm real pleased to win [the title] ] outright, but to win [the title] outright in Rupp Arena is special." I The Gamecocks had just about everything 1 going against them heading into the game: Kentucky hadn't lost their final home game 1 in 33 years, were undefeated at home this 1 year, wanted revenge for the 84-79 loss in Columbia earlier this year and could take I the No. 1 seed away from Carolina with a i win. USC was also 0-10, while Fogler was 1 0-7, previously in Rupp Arena. i None of this seemed to matter. The Gamecocks turned the negatives into ] positives and turned the positives into an 1 SEC Championship. ti t I Women's Basketball averi The tenure of Lady Gamecocks rebou head coach Nancy Wilson ended Th with a 75-48 loss to Tennessee averaf Friday in the first round of the SEC the re; Women's Basketball Tournament, freshi o 1 J XT"1_1?' II! wiknir oopnomore guara inlkju lviiars xcwu. was named to the All-SEC Second La Team after averaging 15.3 points freshi a game in the regular season. SEC 1 Miars started in all 26 games and ranked in the Top 15 in scoring M8Il' in the SEC most of the year. Ke She has scored in double figures of the 20 times this season and finished playei second in the SEC in free throw recor* percentage (.816). tenni) Freshman forward Annie Lester Wake was one of five players named to Br 1 the SEC All-Freshman Team after 10th ( SomeRi The Faster' I - * _ T"<1 .. 1 ) join me bix riags team to gain reiev; environment that pays well! We ofF< seasonal management positions for Recruiters wi Wednesday, I Sign up for a SIX FLAGS and all related indicia arc trademarks of Si: SPORTS or SP "This feels great," sophomore guard BJ VlcKie said. "We came in here not wanting ? share the regular season title and went ill out against a great basketball team." USC jumped on the Wildcats early, airing an early 7-0 lead, as Kentucky missed heir first seven shots. The Gamecocks went on another 7-0 run, highlighted by a thunderous follownp jam by Bud Johnson off a McKie miss. USC went up 11 points, their largest of the game, when Arthur Carlisle hit a 3-pointer with 11:54 left in the first half. The Gamecocks would hit only one more field goal the rest of the half, and went into the locker room at the half leading 32-30. The only reason Kentucky was in the game at the half was Ron Mercer. The 3ophomore, who announced he will enter the NBA after this season, had 18 points at the break for Kentucky. The Wildcats came out in the second half and took their first lead of the game when Allen Edwards completed a 3-point play to take the lead, 33-32, with 19:21 left iging 9.2 points and 6.7 Track and nds a game. South C le Norcross, Ga., native Ellerbe add jed 23 minutes a game during already Ion gular season and is one of two the 20-lb. w< nen ranked in the Top 15 in and Fielc nding in the SEC. Champions! 3ter is the first South Carolina of 70' was a nan to be named to the All- Ellerbe p freshman team. title (hamm 1996,1997) S Tennis Ellerbe m ii Tk *11 i riF?ii J i i i ltn ?5rm won nis zotn matcn stand Dyjun 5 season and No. 1 singles Brownlee, v, r, Jerome Jourdon raised his The wo i to 15-1 as the USC men's (Tonique W 3 team shut out the visiting LaRae Gra; Forest Demon Deacons, 7-0. also medale ill and Jourdon also won their The rela loubles match of the season, shattering esumesMal i Rounds rhan Other mt work experience in a casual ?r serious summer internships and all types of majors. 11 be on campus Vlarch 5. n interview time. x Flags Theme Parks Inc. & ? 1997. F H WEDNESDAY A preview of the SE UI1 % in the game. Kentucky got the home crowd ? all 24,326 of them ? into the game when they went on a 12-3 run over a 5:11 span to take their largest lead of the game, four points, at 49-45. But champions dont go down that easily, and the Gamecocks have proven that they are champs. The two teams played nip-and-tuck for the next 3:25 as neither could pull away. Senior Nate Wilbourne gave Carolina the lead for good with 6:28 left when he sank two free throws after getting folded on a fast break. The charity stripe was the key to the game. USC was 33-44 (75 percent) from the line. In the final 1:53, the Gamecocks were 10-12 from the line, putting the game away. Kentucky tried to make it interesting as Mercer hit a shot with 1.8 seconds left to bring the Wildcats within two points. On the ensuing inbounds play, McKie was fouled and Kentucky coach Rick Pitino PWJFPrw Field foursome set last wc Carolina senior Daen seconds, ed another title to her ft1 ft16 men's weig g resume, as she won Kevin Mannon w sight at the USA Track sophomore Ryan I I Indoor National eighth, dps today. Ellerbe's toss In the women i USATF meet record. Brownlee was fifth ai osted her fourth USATF sixth. The two w ter 1995,1996; weight, collegiates. In the men's shot ras joined on the awards placed seventh at 62 for All-American Crystal the top collegiate pla rho was fourth at 61' 2". among the world's be men's 4x400 relay as two of the three Olj illiams, Deanna Smith, were in the competil y, Charmaine Howell) Senior All-Amt d, finishing fourth. Bridges made the se y ran a time of3:38.04, 60 meters, runnin the school record the finishing sixth in hii ke I (MT Theme HH A Ttm# Warner Enlerta.nmeni Company !C Tournament ?T? V JIL km received a technical foul for arguing the [I call. Pitino was ejected after storming the court, and as the free throws were hit, the . Wildcats' chances, along with Pitino, were | gone. we came m here saying II they don t : respect us now, by the end of the game, I they'll be respecting us,w Davis said. "We struggled early [in the season], but got it together and we're doing pretty good for ourselves now." McKie led the Gamecocks (23-6,15-1 * SEC) with 22 points. He also pulled down six rebounds and dished out three assists. ' Davis had 20 points and five rebounds. Mercer was the high-scorer of the game with 25 points. South Carolina out-rebounded Kentucky 43-37 for the game. Next up for the Gamecocks is the SEC Tournament, where they will be seeded No. 1 in the East, which gives them a firstround bye. USC will play Friday at 3:15 < CHAMPIONS page 10 ! Carolina 1 MARK PIRAS Staff Writer sekendbytwo The Gamecock baset ht, sophomore recovered from a rain-oi as fifth and Friday to win decisively f larrison was 8-3, and put on a collegia clinic Sunday against Wes 's shot put, with a 25-0 win and a rec id Ellerbe was day by first baseman Eric ere the top Head coach Ray Tar Friday's loss was disappcrin ; put, Mannon South Carolina jumped 01 Mannon was *ea(* ^th a six-run secon cer competing West Virginia center fie st shot putters Taylor hit a pair of three ri mpic medalists to tie the game at six. don. Rain fell throughout t irican Corey drizzling softly and stea mifinals of the the ninth inning, when tg a 6.67 and clouds began to roll in. Cha i heat. came in to pitch the top of J for USC, with West Virgin BASKETBALL ^4 SCOREBOARD #7 Duke 85 ^ #8 North Carolina 91 * #16 Maryland 74 Virginia 81 #24 Michigan 51 W #21 Illinois 70 d* * .*gtr',HmSl?.x ?? NIKKI THORPE File Photo ' Senior guard Larry Davis, shown here gainst Vanderbilt, scored 20 points against Kentucky Sunday. takes two of three 11-8. Hoshour got out of the inning with no further damage, but the >a earn raindrop rhythm increased in tempo I ??j!on and volume throughout the inning. 'a, . a^' Jay Carlos led off the top of the , jr. .mg ninth with a double over the right nrrl^Hng fielder's head, and Stanton walked ?Q, on a 3-2 pitch. After Rob Streicher iner said struc^ ou^? freshman Mac Baroody ting After on ^our pitches to load the it to a 6-0 bases for leadoff hitter Etienne d inning Hightower, with only one out Before Ider Kirk Hightower could enter the batter's m homers box, however, the game was delayed due to heavy and steady rains, he game, Under NCAA baseball rules, both dily until coaches must agree to a suspension the dark of the game until the following day. i Hoshour West Virginia head coach Greg Van the ninth ; ia leading BASEBALL page 10 R A V E L SME^I C E <v^<?>Bookstore rppwrsiSM^S t-a, V* .