The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, January 28, 2000, Page 8, Image 8
Inside:
Men’s tennis plays host to USC Winter Invi
tational; equestrian team does well in first
match
I
Schedule
■ Track at ETSU Invitational, today
■ Swimming at Auburn, 3 p.m.
■ Men’s tennis vs. Lander, 3 p.m.
■ Men’s basketball at Tennessee, Sat.
■ Super Bowl XXXIV, Sun., 6 p.m.
Page 8 %\\Z (53MC0Ck Friday, January 28,2000
Trammell named Athlete of the Week
by Shannon Rooke
Assistant Sports Editor
Running a blazing 7.07 in the 55m hurdles at
the Florida Four-Why, South Carolina junior All
American Terrence Trammell was named the Track
wire Athlete of the Wfeek today.
The race on Saturday was Trammell's first race
of the year.
“I wasn't really surprised with my time because
I wanted to run fast,” Trammell said. “My block
slipped a bit when I came out, but it wasn't obvious.
I want to get faster, but I am taking it week by week.”
Trammell is one of two juniors to be named this
year’s co-captain and is one of track and field’s ris
ing stars. He trains with USC volunteer coach and
1996 Olympic gold medalist Allen Johnson.
Trammell, a multiple NCAA All-American, is
one of the most decorated sprint/hurdlers in USC his
tory. His 1999 season ended with honors such as Men’s
MVP of the indoor and outdoor track events and the
SEC Commissioner’s Cup twice at the SEC Cham
pionships for the highest point total.
Alter breaking two SEC records and eight school
records last season, Track and Field News named
Trammell their Male Athlete of the Year for both
the 1997 and the 1999 seasons.
Trammell won his first SEC title indoors in his
sophomore year in the 55m hurdles at 6.94. The
time was the fastest in the world in 1999 and the
fourth fastest time ever.
With a time of 7.52, Trammell broke USC’s
standing record in the 60m hurdles at the 1999
NCAA Championships and joined Gamecock team
mates Demetria Washington, Brad Snyder, Miki Bar
ber and Michelle Fournier at the World University
Games in Spain. Trammell won his first gold in the
110m hurdles and went on to run the second leg
of the gold medal 4x100m relay.
He ended his sophomore season with nine first
place finishes in the indoor events and 10 first-place
finishes in the outdoor season.
Anative of Decatur, Ga., Trammell earned All
American status for the first time in high school for
track and football.
He chose USC because it had a family setting
with the teammates and a friendly atmosphere. Tram
mell is hoping that from here he can achieve his ca
reer goal which is to be the fastest human ever from
40m to 400m.
Another career goal is to win in the 2000
Olympics in Sydney. Trammell believes that by then,
he’ll be ready.
“I need a little more experience and that’s why
I’m taking it week by week. It’s a long season ahead,”
he said.
Trammell’s Top Marks
55-meter hurdles 6.12
60-meter hurdles 6.61
100-meter hurdles 10.08
200-meter hurdles 20.45
55m hurdles (SEC record) 6.94
60 high hurdles 7.52
110m hurdles (SEC record) 13.28
USC’s tenth victory
slips away - again
by Jeff Romig
Sports Editor
With 20 seconds left against Vanderbilt, South Car
olina’s fans were on their feet in anticipation of expe
riencing something they hadn’t experienced this season
-a win against a top-25 opponent.
When those 20 seconds had expired, so had the hopes
of the Gamecock faithful as USC fell Wednesday to the
Commodores, 61-60.
With 20 seconds left, the Gamecocks were in pos
session of the basketball and were up 60-59.
The in-bound pass went to Jamel Bradley, who had
just entered the game for the first time. Instead of tak
ing the foul, Bradley passed the ball to Chuck Eidson.
Eidson, who finished with 11 points on the night,
saw Travis Kraft open on the wing and passed it to him,
but the pass went out of founds, giving the Commodores
the ball.
Vanderbilt got the ball into their star forward, Dan
Langhi, who was blocked underneath, but when Eidson
saved the ball he was called out-of-bounds.
The ball went to the Commodores and subsequently
to Langhi, who was fouled.
Langhi, an 89 percent free-throw shooter, hit both
to ice the game for Vanderbilt.
Whs Langhi the guy Eddie Fogler wanted on the line
with two seconds left?
“We’re leading,” Fogler said. “Are you sh***ing
me. Why would you foul a 90 percent foul shooter for
a two-shot foul, up one? I don’t know a junior high coach
in America that would do that.”
As unhappy as Fogler might have seemed concern
ing Langhi’s final two points, he was happy with
where his team was at with 20 seconds left.
“We got to where we wanted to be using the fouls
that we had to use and lost the game,” Fogler said. “In
this crazy game, it isn’t necessarily the team that de
serves or plays better winning the game.”
Vanderbilt led only twice during the game.
“They led at the right time - at the end,” Fogler said.
“Give them credit for hanging in there and giving them
selves a chance to win. That’s what they did.”
Langhi was a major factor as the Commodores hung
with the Gamecocks, scoring 21 points and pulling in
11 rebounds.
“We played Langhi pretty well,” Fogler said. “For
the most part, we defended Vanderbilt as good as any
body.”
USC’s centers were key, with Marius Petravicius
scoring seven and Tony Kitchings scoring a career
high 14, but what hurt the Gamecocks was the fact that
the majority of their contributions came in the first half.
“Marius getting in foul trouble really hurts our team,”
Fogler said. “Then Tony gets tired and we. don’t have
anywhere else to go, really, in the post.”
This was the Gamecocks’ fifth close loss to top-25
teams, as well as their fifth consecutive loss overall.
“It gets frustrating,” Herbert Lee Davis said “It def
initely gets frustrating coming short, but it’s up to the
team captains to keep these guys up.”
One of the Gamecocks who seemed extremely down
and frustrated concerning the loss was Edson, who al
so had four assists and four steals.
“It’s disheartening, to be so close but so far away,”
Edson said.
Sean Rayford Gamecock Sports
Herbert Lee Davis takes flight during USC’s 61-60 loss to Vanderbilt Wednesday night
Vanderbilt 13-3, 4-2 SEC
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
No. FG FGA FG FGA FT FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO B S MIN
32 Anthony Williams, f 2 40 12 231 4260400 20
42 Dan Langhi, f 7 16 2 5 5 5 3 8 11 2 21 0 5 0 0 37
52 Greg LaPointe, c 12Q 00 000 0421201 11
05 Atiba Prater, g 6 71 10 027 91 13 4300 33
13 James Strong, g 1 20 00 011 2224401 24
04 Darius Coulibaly 0 10 00 005 5100131 13
10 Sam Howard 1 81 70 102 2033201 25
14 Rick Jones 5 62 20 001 'l 1 12 2 2 0 0 23
44 Sam Lekwauwa 1 50 00 012 3120000 14
Team 14 5
Totals » 24 51 6 16 7 8 11 31 42 14 61 1.4 23 3 4 200
South Carolina 9-10,1-5 SEC
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
No. FG FGA FG FGA FT FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO B S MIN
14 Herbert Lee Davis, f 5 12 0 32 401 12 12 2122 31
33 Damien Kinloch, ( 2 30 00 033 6241211 20
12 Marius Petravicius, c 3 40 .01 312 3570122 11
05 Aaron Lucas, g 2 10 0 30 003 3244210 37
31 Chuck Eidson, g 5 12 1 10 002 21 11 4304 37
00 David Ross ' 1 31 30 002 2031001 8
10 Jamel Bradley 0 00 00 000 0000000 1
15 Travis Kraft 1 21 20 000 0 030000 4
32 Calvin Clemmons 0 00 00 000 0000000 1
35 Antonio Grant 1 40 20 022 4122001 23
50 Tony Kitcliings 7 15 0 00 231 41 14 0114 27
Team 1 ] 2
f •
Totals 27 65 3 14 3 9 10 17 27 14 6014 10 715 200
Thomas' career
possibly over, but
memories carry on
I
I
Jeff
Romig
* Sports Editor
If you ever visit the University of Al
abama, take a moment to walk around
Denny Chimes, the large belltower that
sits at the front of the quad.
Around Denny Chimes, you will see
names that line the Alabama football record
books and names that have lined NFL ros
ters for years.
You’ll see Joe Namath, Bart Starr,
Cornelius Bennett and more. Every play
er who has been a captain for the Crim
son Tide is accounted for - as are their
handprints.
You’ll choose your favorite, and
maybe you’ll kneel down and put your
hands into the cement to see where your
hands stand in relation to theirs.
My favorite was Derrick Thomas.
I had seen Jay Barker and Antonio
Langham win their National Champi
onship in 1992.
But Thomas was the superstar.
He is the player I wanted to compare
my hands with.
He was the player I could watch each
Sunday, dominating his competition.
I never had the chance to see Derrick
Thomas play football at the University of
Alabama.
When I arrived as a freshman in the
fall of 1996, he was long removed from
the college football program that helped
make him a star.
Thomas racked up 52 career sacks and
won the Dick Butkus Award in 1988 as
the nation’s top lineman before being draft
ed with the No. 4 pick by the Kansas City
Chiefs in 1989.
Now, Thomas has a broken neck and
might never walk again, much less de
stroy any running back or quarterback he
can get his hands on.
The Chiefs’ star linebacker’s legs are
paralyzed after a car crash on an icy high
way in which his friend was killed
Thomas was on his way to the Kansas
City International Airport with two of
his friends when the wreck occurred last
Sunday.
They were going to catch a flight to
St. Louis to watch the Rams and the Tam
pa Bay Buccaneers play for the NFC
Championship.
Thomas lost control of his car on a
snowy highway, and it rolled several times.
Thomas was not wearing his seat bdlt and
was thrown from the car, police said.
Thomas’ accident proves that nO mat
ter how indestructible a future Hitll of
Famer might seem on a football field he
is still human.
Thomas is a nine-time Pro Bowl play
er who holds the NFL single-game record
of seven sacks and ranks ninth on the
career list with 126.5.
Thomas was moved out of intensive
care Thursday, about five days ahead of
schedule, medical officials said
He’s now in an inteimediate-care unit
at Jackson Memorial Hospital and is list
ed in good condition.
Thomas could be transferred to a
rehabilitation facility in about two wdeks.
He already has begun working with ther
apists.
Thomas underwent four hours of
suigery Tuesday to stabilize his spine, and
doctors said his spinal cord was not dam
aged as badly as feared
Derrick Thomas has a long road ahead
of him, but if he approaches it with as
much courage as he’s approached foot
ball over the past 15 years, he will sure
ly conquer it.
Lucas out of action with
fractured right hand
Men’s Basketball
Roundup
Gamecock Sports
USC sophomore guard Aaron Lucas
will be out of the Gamecock lineup for
the first time in his career after fractur
ing a bone in his right hand during Wfednes
day’s game against Vanderbilt.
An X-ray Thursday showed a non
displaced third metacarpal fracture in Lu
cas’ hand, placing him out of action for at
least 10 days.
The cast on his hand will be removed
after that period and re-evaluated. An an
nouncement on Lucas’ remaining avail
ability will be released at that time.
“It’s always difficult to lose someone
who is playing well, and Aaron is having
a very good year to date,” said Eddie Fogler,
USC head coach.
“Injuries are part of the game, how
ever, and our team needs to get ready to
play a very talented Tennessee team this
weekend in Knoxville.”
Lucas has started all of USC’sr 19
games this season, averaging 7.3 points
and 4.8 assists per game, ranking fourth
in the Southeastern Conference in the lat
ter category.
The Columbia native will miss his
first match after playing in 48 consecu-^
five games since his arrival at USC in 1998.
He has started 37 of USC’s past 38 games.
Without Lucas at their disposal, the
Gamecocks will have to rely on freshman
Chuck Edson to handle the point guard
duties. Edson is second on the team in
scoring and is leading the SEC in steals
with 62.
Sophomore Jamel Bradley could al
so see extended playing time during Lu
cas’ absence, as well as redshirt junior An
tonio Grant. Bradley is the team’s
second-leading free throw shooter, while
Grant has more experience against USC’s
remaining schedule.
Also receiving consideration is fresh
man Ivan Howell, who came off the bench
against Georgia to score three 3-pointers
and became USC’s second-highest scot, m
er in that game. *
The Gamecocks will have to find a
solution to their problems quickly, con
sidering their upcoming schedule con
tains games at hjo. 13 Tennessee, No. 9
Florid;) in Columbia and at No. 18 Ken
tucky.
USC is 9-10 overall, 1-5 SEC.