Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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9 GAME SCHEDULE MEN'S DIVING at Kentucky, Friday-Sunday CONTACT US WOMEN’S BASKETBALL vs. Wofford, 2 p.m. Saturday MEN'S BASKETBALL at Clemson, 7 p.m. Saturday Story ideas? Questions? Comments? WOMEN’S BASKETBALL vs. C. Carolina, 5:30 p.m. Dec. 18 Write us at gamecocksports@hotmail.com MEN’S BASKETBALL vs. S.C. State, 8 p.m. Dec. 18 •» SEC has country on edge of seats PRESTON BAINES PBAINES@GAMECOCKS.COM We’re at the end of another football season controlled by the Bowl Championship Series, and all hell has broken loose again. First of all, if Tennessee doesn’t win this weekend against LSU in the SEC Championship in Atlanta, it could get crazy. Besides the fact that an LSU win would most likely knock Carolina out of the Citrus Bowl, an LSU win would change the bowl scenario for every SEC team. No SEC teams have accepted bowl bids because everyone’s bowl depends on the outcome of the SEC championship. If Tennessee wins: -Tennessee goes to the Rose Bowl for the national championship -Florida goes to the Orange Bowl -USC goes to the Citrus Bowl -Georgia goes to the Outback Bowl -LSU goes to the Cotton Bowl -Auburn most likely goes to the Peach Bowl -Alabama and Arkansas fight over the Independence and Music City Bowls So it seems simple? Well, this is how the bowls will shape up if LSU wins: -A team that didn’t win its division in its conference, Nebraska, goes to the Rose Bowl -LSU would go to either the Sugar or Fiesta Bowl -Florida probably still goes to the Orange Bowl -Tennessee goes to the Citrus Bowl because USC wouldn’t be eligible with two less wins than the Volunteers -USC and Georgia would fight over the Outback Bowl -Auburn or Arkansas would go to the Cotton Bowl -USC, Georgia and maybe even Alabama would fight over the Peach Bowl -Alabama, Arkansas and Auburn would fight over the Independence and Music City Bowls For the students who were here last season, do you remember when it was announced that the Gamecocks were going to the Outback Bowl? There were tickets for sale that lironlr TL thrUmVl Knnnimn of the tragic incidents on Sept. 11, the SEC Championship game was moved back a week so all the conference teams could get in 11 games. So this year, we are filling out ticket applications instead. But the rescheduling of the SEC Championship game has also put the entire country on a hiatus. Instead of finishing the season by Dec. 1 like every other conference, the SEC has left most of the country, bowl committees and the teams' fans waiting. Majty bowls cannot allot the number of tickets they want to give to teams that would have big followings, such as Oklahoma, which will be playing in the Cotton Bowl. Although 1 know many of you have already planned your trips to Orlando, we could have it set in stone and we would have a bid. All this would have happened a week ago. Instead, the major bowls are getting closer and closer to happening without packed hotels because many of the best teams will be going to a bowl based on what happens in the SEC Championship. Well, anyway, in case The Gamecock hasn’t told you enough times, root for Tennessee this weekend so the whole country won’t be driven to insanity. Chuck Eidson moves past a Georgetown defender on his way to two of his eight points during the first half, photo by travis lynn USC loses close game to Hoyas BY MATT ROTHENBERG THE GAMECOCK Last night’s game was one the ghosts at the Carolina Coliseum would be proud of. Unfortunately for the Carolina fans, the •Gamecocks couldn’t pull them selves to victory over Georgetown as the game went down to the wire. Georgetown’s Kevin Braswell hit a jumper just inside the arc with 2.2 seconds remaining to lift the 19th-ranked Hoyas to a 70-68 win. Gamecock coach Dave Odom said, “I guess you could say that’s a great basketball game. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but the Carolina Coliseum with our play ers, our fans, against Georgetown.” Both schools played evenly ear ly on, exchanging runs, while the Hoyas (6-1) got into early foul trou ble. South Carolina (5-3) didn’t back down from the Georgetown attack. A balanced threat of Chuck Eidson, Rolando Howell and Jamel Bradley gave the Hoyas all they could handle in the first half. Down five after an 8-2 Georgetown run, Bradley hit a three-pointer and Marius Petravicius put in a layup to tie the game at 30. Yet the Hoyas wouldn’t let up, scoring five straight points, in cluding a three-pointer by Gerald Riley to end the first half up 35-30. Carolina knew they had to make a run at Georgetown in order to keep it close during the second half. Bradley said, “We felt like we could win this ball game, and we wanted to come out strong in the second half. ” USC began the half with a 7-0 run started by a three-pointer from Bradley and followed by layups from Aaron Lucas and Bradley. But Georgetown managed to stay in the game. Forward Mike Sweetney and center Wesley Wilson provided the majority of the offense for the Hoyas, ending with 20 and 19 points, respectively. Sweetney grabbed ten rebounds for a double-double. Both squads had answers for one another, and the big men got into a lot of the action. Tony Kitchings had a strong second half, scoring 10 of his 12 points and keeping his team in the game. The Hoyas had four players score in double figures. Bradley also got many open looks * from behind the arc, finishing the night with 16 points. It was Kitchings, though, who carried the Gamecocks on his back for most of the second half. Through an assortment of shots, the 6-foot-10 junior was able to hold the Hoyas at bay, even just for a little while. “You’ve got a ranked team com ing into your yard. You want to protect your yard,” Kitchings said. “We gave them all we had.” Both Carolina arfd Georgetown managed to keep each other to small leads. It wasn’t until the Hoyas’ Drew Hall banged in a ♦ GAME, SEE PAGE 10 USC to have first road test at Clemson Carolina will try to beat the Tigers two years in a row BY JASON NOLL THE GAMECOCK The men’s basketball team (5-3) will face the Clemson Tigers (6-2) Saturday in a game that is crucial if the Gamecocks hope to regain the momentum they had attained before Thursday night’s 70-68 loss against Georgetown. The team had won four straight games before losing to the Bulldogs in the closing sec onds. Despite the near upset, USC coach Dave Odom knows his team must bounce back against the Tigers. “You have to get up because it’s Clemson, and you have to get up because good teams do that,” Odom said. “Clemson is a team that traded in a star for a good team.” This star is Will Solomon, who the Tigers lost to the NBA after last season. Solomon, a standout guard and an on-tar get shooter, was one of the most feared offensive weapons in the ACC before being draft ed by the Memphis Grizzlies. The Tigers also feature a much younger team than they have in years past, with the only senior on the squad being forward Jamar McKnight. However, the age of the Tigers’ isn’t necessarily a sign of a weakened squad. Clemson is returning ACC all-freshman selections Tony Stockman, an accurate shooter and a notori ous clutch performer, and Chris Hobbs, who leads the team with 14.6 points per game. Stockman is perhaps best kn,own for making the three-point basket to solidify the Tigers’ upset against the then-No. 1 ranked North Carolina Tar Heels last sea son. The Tigers also have what is considered to be one of the best freshman classes in the country, with five rookies con USC at Clemson^ 8 p.m. Saturday at Littlejohn Coliseum TV: Fox Sports Net Radio: 560 WVOC-AM tributing quality play at every po sition. The teams most outstand ing freshmen are guard/forward Chey Christie and forward Sharrod Ford. “They were a star-dominated team last year ... they’re now a good team; they can attack you at five positions," Odom said. Forward Tony Kitchings, who contributed 23 points, seven re bounds and four assists in last year’s 76-64 win against Clemson, knows that anytime USC and Clemson face off, there is more than just a win on the line. “If Carolina and Clemson don’t mean much [to you,] you don’t care about sports,” Kitchings said. Gamecock players Rolando and Ivan Howell will be competing against a familiar face on the Tigers’ team, junior guard Ed Scott, who was a teammate of the i--v v-Tzm— Rolando Howell takes out a Georgetown defender while he tries to reach a loose ball. PHOTO BY ROBERT GUEN Howells at Lower Richland High School. Scott is one of leaders of the young Tigers team along with junior forward Ray Henderson, who is putting up great defensive numbers for the team, leading the Tigers with 11 total blocks and 8.8 rebounds per game. “We’re gonna have to play ... our best game to come out of there with a win,” Odom said. If the Gamecocks’ play against the Bulldogs is any indication, the team should provide a great con test for the Tigers, despite the set back of the loss against Georgetown. “We just have to put it behind us, just like the other losses,” Kitchings said. 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