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MCKIE'S MARCH Senior BJ McKie remains only 93 points behind Alex English as Carolina's all-time scoring leader. Stay tuned for McKie's march into the record books. Friday, January 15, 1999 Gatoi by Charlie Wallace *"0' -o al, glittering examples of why. After sti tors for the game's first 10 minutes, USC to find themselves out-muscled, out-hus a team that came into Frank McGuire record (11-2) but little national respect When it was over, Carolina was or fourth straight conference loss in as man curring nightmare" theme is surely beco Gamecock fans who waited for this seas higher) expectations as the last two, bot the NCAA Tournament, but who for n 5-10 mark on the year. To get back to the postseason, then, re of something the Gamecocks don't have i When a team has it, its players aren't i other ? to make the extra pass, to defl< count on and give defensive help when teams can work together as a unit, with a specific role and knowing what that is Watching USC in action, then, gi> they're missing some essential part th Singleton ( . 1 "Tl once again time for the only USC stuHj^ dent on the ^f CIA's (and soon to be the FCC's) B|P Most Wanted List. The FBI still Shawn Singleton wants me, Singleton 3:16 but they can't catch me. During the Civil War, James Louis Petigru once stated, "South Carolina is too small to be an independent country, yet too large to be an insane asylum." However, under normal circumstances, the Carolina Coliseum becomes a manic depressive's paradise because of the excitement of Gamecock basketball. This season has been less than productive for our team. ' an alley-oop pass from BJ McKie and turning it into a layup to take a 5-2 lead for USC. Game fu] by Todd Money Money in the Bank LeRon Williams spoke afterwards, a look of a man trapped in a deep cavern to stay focused on any glimmer of light f McKie told about his and his teammate ing unaccustomed to playing for a progr; regularly. Their coach explained the sil es basketball fans shudder at: unforcei confidence, miscommunication. Anywa; result's the same. South Carolina's men's basketball i And as if that fact needed to be pro dav nicrbt's nnnfpst against, t.hp Florida A&biMaru opons nuuur i On a night where anything could happen, it did. Where else but at a South Carolina basketball game can someone see two feuding coaches, two ugly performing teams, and one former student win $1,000 on one free throw? That all happened in Wednesday night's 68-51 loss to the Florida Gators. Ever since verbal barbs were exchanged between Carolina Head Coach Eddie Fogler and Florida's Billy Donovan during the SEC preseason press cuinereiice, pmyers miu ituia iiuu ueeu pointing to this game as something that could get ugly. They were right. Both coaches refused to address the subject of their dispute during the week, seemingly wanting to let their players do the talking on the court. However, Fogler seemed lost for words trying to explain what is wrong with his basketball team after the game. "The players are not playing well, and I am part of that problem as well," Fogler admitted. "We are not very good, and they are very good and that's why the score was what the score was." The game started out in Florida's favor, as senior guard Eddie Shannon found a wide-open Kenyan Weeks under the basket for a slam dunk and a quick 2-0 lead. The Gamecocks' next possession ended up in a Bud Johnson airball. Those two plays seemed to foreshadow the rest of the game. However, on the Gamecocks' next trip down the floor, freshman Aaron Lucas drained a 3-pointer. That was fnllnwpH hv William Gallman catchiner I TENNIS USC's men's tennis team is ranked No. 9 in the nation and No. 1 in the South Region. The women's team ranks No. 21 in the country and No. 4 in the South. All rankings are according to the ITA. s cho The game then slowed down and the tension between the two teams finally showed itself when Weeks was whistled for an intentional foul on McKie, which brought the crowd to its feet. McKie proceeded to make both free throws. The game went back and forth until Florida went on a small run late 4i,? u?ir i~j u.r ill tut; nan, icu uy u caiuiiau iui waiu Mike Miller, who went into the lockerroom with seven points. Eddie Shannon added eight, and the Gators held a 36-26 advantage at halftime, after another UF freshman, Eddie Dupay, nailed a 3-pointer at the top of the key. Perhaps the most exciting moment of the night occurred during halftime when recent Carolina graduate Dave Baysden, 22, swished a free throw for a $1,000 prize. The biology major stepped to the line and simply did what he was asked to do: make a shot. "I was so nervous and then I was like, "Forget that.'" What went through his mind when the shot went in? "I just went crazy," Baysden said. "I couldn't believe it. I was shocked that I made it." Maybe the amount of the prize added some extra incentive. Like most college graduates, Baysden is job searching. need a job, and I need money, and God provided for me." The Gamecocks could have used some divine intervention of their own to open the second half. It started out promising for USC, as McKie hit a 3-pointer to cut the Florida lead to nine. Florida scored twice more, but McKie was there to answer again with another trey to bring the n i j. *ii in a 10 on uamecocKS 10 witnm iu, at The Gamecocks then went more than five minutes without scoring and 11 of USC from being a compf SEC team (the Gair in the conference)1 nd his eyes had the what Carolina did somewhere, trying seemed hurried an rom the outside. BJ slippery defense an s' frustration at be- hesion just isn't th am that doesn't win By halftime, the Luation with phras- were shooting just i turnovei-s, lack of one steal. And thej Y you add it up, the only by 10. "We made seve team is struggling, thought we could c /en again, Wednes- They didn't cha Gators gave sever- defense, however.r eking with the visi- the second stanza, 's Gamecocks began a five-minute stre itled, and outrun by careless mistakes Arena with a nice ments, the Gamecc thus far. ball in the second 1 i the short end of a at Tennessee last! trfmoo Ar-irJ +IIQ fVio cfnmr .j u lto. ruiu ui& it" ttu uxv uwi j . ming all too real for It could very we son with as high (or quarterbacking gt h of which ended in an obstacle too big ow must stare at a center Ryan Stack tablishing itself as quires a fair amount the players have t right now: cohesion, make it back to tin afraid to trust each Simply put, thi act the loose ball, to they're to find thei it's needed ? good Eastern Division. ] each player having renewed confideno 3. was a players-only res you the feeling they get it, it's not lat separates them fans. )n Carolina Tori Amos once attempted to sing, "It's 6:58. Are you sure where my spark is?" Down here at the liquor store, it's 3:16 and with an 0-4 record in the SEC and no relief in sight, it could be midnight for our basketball team. What happened to them? How could this team have fallen so hard so fast? There are many reasons as to why exciting wins over Kentucky and Cincinnati over the last two years have turned into demoralizing losses to East Carolina (yes, that Conference USA powerhouse) and Florida. First of all, there's the lack of a true inside presence in the middle. Bud Johnson isn't getting the job done on offense this season and he's made up for that by not playing any defense either. Tony Kitchings needs to get away from the dinner table, into a weight room, and on the court. I don't even know what David Ross' purpose is on this team, except balancing the racial 4uuui. v ; Even the play at forward has been nightmarish. LeRon Williams has shown (5an spi The Gai imp G when they finally did, they found themselves down 18, 52-34. LeRon Williams finally ended the drought, scoring twice consecutively. Williams would finish with eight points. But Florida's Greg Stolt answered with a 3-pointer to keep the Gamecocks at bay, as Carolina's play got just plain sick, with several passes going out of bounds. "I do think we need to minimize our turnovers. That was true especially tonight because that (turnovers) was a big factor," McKie said. "We just need to continue to play hard and let the chips fall where they may." McKie was the only Carolina player to finish in double figures for the Gamecocks, as he ended up with 16 points. For the rest of the game, both teams cleared their respective benches, as the outcome was not in doubt. Freshman Jamel Bradley came off the bench for USC and immediately drained a three and a transition layup, but it wasn't enough, as Florida held on for the win. "It takes me a while to get a feel for the game," Bradley said, "but when I got that open look and the ball left my hand it felt pretty good." On the fact that the Gamecocks are still winless in conference play, Fogler expressed his disappointment. "Surety I thought we would've won by now, but we've had a veiy difficult schedule. We have just got to get better." Carolina will have to get better in a hurry, as they embark on a threegame road trip to Alabama, Vanderbilt, and Big East power Syracuse. Those three games will be very important to the outcome of the rest of the season. The pressure will be on. blunders ete unit. Playing tentatively against any lecocks have the only overall losing record will get you nowhere, and that's exactly against Florida. USC's shot selection d unsure for the entire game, and their id wandering passes didn't help. The coere, and it showed in the performance. Gamecocks had committed 17 turnovers, 38 percent from the field, and had only r weren't even out of it yet ? Florida led ral changes at halftime," McKie said. "I ome back." nge enough to counter Florida's pressing rhe Gators went on a 22-12 run to start at one point holding USC scoreless over tch, and continually turned Carolina's into easy baskets. Except for brief modes were out of step on both sides of the lalf, bringing to mind the 86-57 disaster Saturday. The final score, 68-51, didn't i 11 be that the loss of Melvin Watson, their tard, to graduation after last season is to overcome so soon. With Watson and :, Carolina's program seemed to be esa perrenial postseason contender. Now o talk about how far they have to go to it point. s USC team is in need of something, if r way out of the bottom half of the SEC itis not clear whether that something is e, a playmaker, or just a spark ? there meeting earlier this week ? but until going to be easy, for the players or the basketball a senior jinx after a stellar junior season offensively, and his defense has reminded me of a matador avoiding the bulls when they run at Pamplona. William Gallman was supposed to contend for the rebounding title in the SEC this year, but his production has fallen off a bit. At least he still gives his all out there on the court. Nevertheless, he is still not someone you would expect to average 15 points per game. Herbert Lee Davis has been in a ma jor shooting slump this year and is a far cry from the freshman phenomenon he was two years ago. Even Antonio Grant has been unable to duplicate the big plays that won important games for USC last year. The play at guard this year has been the only bright spot for the Gamecocks. BJ McKie is having another superb season but can't do it all by himself. A young team and the aforementioned lack of inside help have made him a marked man in the SEC this year. Aaron Lucas might be this team's future at point guard but, in fair rock A )rts necock _ j^cf . / [ ? * ?* -v,< Ifl^H ~0 mm Freshman Damien Kinloch jostles fo rebounds and no points. Track anc by Brock Vergakis Assistant Sports Editor The 1999 versions of the men's ant field teams at USC look to improve on from last year, beginning this season v Hill, N.C., and Clemson. The womer the SEC and seventh in the nation li With the loss of several importa team, including national champion L Curtis Frye looks to the future with which was ranked third-best in the r Field News. Frye hopes they will st pact by mid-season. "We've got 23 new freshman girls, get some days of absolute sensation, forget their uniforms," Frye said. LSU is the only SEC team to ha class than Carolina, with a national fact that sets up an interesting side: ally intense meet between the two sc "I'd really like to see the girls wi second last year, so we're really kn< said senior Erin Narzinski. Narzinski, who competes in the 1 bitious goals for herself. "I want to be SEC champ again, ? ond at NCAA's," she said. 1 IICOC ?11 lo w Ull U UC UlLlllllU.Cl.1^11. tention of going after a national title "Our depth is good, so this could b is to always win an SEC championsh ness to him, he's only a freshman and has made some critical freshman errors. Jamel Bradley has shown promise in his first year, and Recus Nix has provided sound defense at guard. Hagen Rouse has provided sound play off the bench. To me, the biggest problem for this team might be something to haunt the Gamecocks for years to come. There seems to be a lack of leadership and concentration when McKie is not on the court. No one else is stepping up; they seem lost without BJ. Eddie Fogler needs to solve this problem quickly if he wants to keep this sinking ship afloat. Speaking of the Dean Smith prodigy, he also needs to get over this Billy Donovan is&ue. I don't disagree that what Donovan did was unethical, but SCHEDULE Men's & women's sw ming and diving, Jan. " Clemson. Women's basketball \ 18 Florida, 2 p.m., Jan. Frank McGuire Arena. ? ocks yL. V E* * L ml Br jiM ^ilfr' 4^' '""Mam . jp r position in Wednesday's 68i field b< On thi with one < grams. 1 women's track and Fellow respective successes en NCAA i nth meets in Chapel inate the i 1 finished second in the most ] ist season. task of a S nt members of that cocks are i ,isa Misipeka, coach "We w his freshman class, dence," Tc lation by Track and realisticall ;art making an im- Last y door, and With freshmen, you "We w and some days they want to b< Retur ve a higher-ranked champion ranking of No. 2, a "We've show tu a tradition- [Sorin] ar i i _ _ r * i. :noois. a iairy-ia n the SEC. We got works rea Dcking at the door," Sorin the hamn leptathlon, has am- Also I American ind take first or sec- "My p said. and have every in- Frye ? Trammel e the year. Our goal "Last ip," coach Frye said. 25," Frye what do you expect from s( who went to the Rick Pitino s ethical recruiting? This whole n puerile and ridiculous, and I ally think Fogler is above all thi be told, this team as a whole jor problems from top to botto Now, if you think this is a " r ogier s neaa column, you a mistaken and I suggest you Clemson and talk to Brad Scott you're both about that stupid. What I'm saying is this tea ing through some growing pi cause of their youth and inexp We, as fans, still need to suppo though, if we want them to salv season. For all those people out th remember me calling the footb NATE SAYS... im- Nate says that of all the 16, at varsity sports at USC, the men's tennis team has the ,s highest average GPA, 3-494, j-7 ' while the men's basketball team has the lowest, 1.907. Page 5 K*# V*i|sI| | ' ^6l686i8iS^^^. uHfcku Sean Rayford Photo Editor 51 loss to Florida. Kinloch finished with two sgin season e other side, the USC men look to compete if the nation's most prestigious running proSEC-member Arkansas has won the past sevoutdoor track championships and looks to domrest of the country once again. Being in one of powerful conferences in the nation makes the EC championship hard to attain, but the Gameconfident they can do so. ant to improve each week and get higher confidence Trammel said. "We want to be able to y win NCAA indoor and outdoor championships." ear Carolina finished fourth in the SEC for inseventh in the nation. ant to always be a top 10 team. We don't ever i llth,"Frye said. ning for the Gamecocks is Brad Snyder, national in tVio cVinf nnf ; got great throwers," Frye said. "Brad and Bert e going to lead us. Bert is a perfect example of le story. He is a walk-on with a 3.6 GPA who 1 hard." finished secord in the SEC championships in ler throw last year. eading the Gamecocks will be Trammel, an Alland SEC Champion. ersonal goal is to win the NCAA's," Trammel ilso shares high expectations for his team, as does for himself. year we had 24 Ail-Americans, this year we want said. "We always want to improve." imeone "heartless" and "gutless" and think I'm ichool of a hypocrite for making these comments less was about the basketball team, put on a person- dunce cap and sit in the corner. This is. Truth might be the South, but you can't be has ma- that dumb. m- The major difference between the basketball team and the football team re sa -v is that the football team had more talmo\ e t o ent; they just decided to party with the ause cheerleaders and the Classics instead m is go- sbowing ^ on the field, lins be- * come the games, as erience should everyone else, because I think rt them *bis team still cares about winning. At age this tnis point, l tninK tney re trustratea over their play. The saddest part is that ere who McKie will have to finish his career this all team way.