THE GAMECOCK ♦ Wednesday, February 27, 2002
“| v -p. iyi GAME SCHEDULE
(VTATHH A C'trr TTC1 I Mm I I 9 I I 1 ’ MEN’S BASKETBALL at No. 18 Georgia, 7 p.m. Wednesday
UUJN 1 Avj 1 U >3 I-^ I I I.I WOMEN'S BASKETBALL at SEC Tournament, Friday
. „ I I V I 1 Ik ^ SOFTBALL at Plant City Tournament, Friday-Saturday
Story ideas? Questions? Comments? I \ / I I I k J MEN’S TENNIS vs. Mississippi State, 2 p m. Friday
E-mailusatgamecocksports@hotmail.com -M- V/ ^-■- BASEBALL vs. No. 4 Clemson, 4 p.m. Saturday
An early
review of
MLB 2002
r-~_
J. KEITH ALLEN
GAMECOCKSPORTS@HOTMAIL.COM
I realized that my schedule
wouldn’t permit me to watch much
of the upcoming baseball season.
But I couldn't get by without
knowing how it ends, so I consulted
a fortuneteller. A combination of
her crystal ball and my $5 gave me
all the details of what promises to
be another excellent season of
Major League Baseball. Below are
some key dates to look out for in
the year ahead.
TUESDAY, APRIL 2: FLORIDA AT
MONTREAL
The game between the
Marlins and Les Expos is
scheduled to begin at 7:05 p.m.,
but the clock nears 9 p.m. and
pas de personne has shown up
for le joux. The teams elect to
decide the victor with an
elaborate game of rock-paper
scissors and hit the town for
French cuisine.
FRIDAY, JUNE 7: ATLANTA AT
TEXAS
Ex-Braves closer John Rocker
is summoned from the Rangers
bullpen to protect a one run lead
in the ninth inning. Apparently,
the pressure of facing his old
team is too much for Rocker, and
he suddenly begins to weep
uncontrollably. After about five
minutes, Rangers manager Jerry
l>dl 1 Ull CVJliiCO LU gCLIVUtIVCl, W11U
later says, "I just wanna hug."
TUESDAY, JULY 9: MLB ALL-STAR
GAME, MILWAUKEE
Yankees pitcher David Wells
has resurrected his career and
has a 13-1 record at the All-Star
break, prompting manager Joe
Tor’-e to give the hefty lefty the
start. Wells lines up for the pre
game meal when he is cut in
front of by rotund Boston pitcher
Rich "El Guapo" Garces.
Apparently, the Yankee
domination over the Red Sox
extends to buffets, as Wells
pummels Garces and receives a
five-game suspension.
SATURDAY, JULY 20: BOSTON AT
NEW YORK
Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez
pitches a two-hit shutout to
extend Boston's AL East lead to
12 games. Red Sox general
manager Dan Duquette promptly
gives manager Joe Kerrigan a
contract extension and calls the
Kerrigan hiring "the best
decision I ever made.”
FRIDAY, SEPT. 27: ATLANTA AT
NEW YORK
Braves slugger Gary Sheffield
caps a four-hit performance
against the Mets with a 12th
inning grand slam. The home
run gives the Braves a one-game
lead over the Mets with two
games to play. After the game,
Sheffield is overcome with
emotion and says he is the
happiest he has ever been and
wants to be a Brave for life.
SATURDAY, SEPT. 28: TAMPA
BAY AT BOSTON
The Red Sox lose their 12th
straight game and are
mathematically eliminated from
the wild-card chase. After the
game, Kerrigan is fired;
Duquette later calls the hiring
the "worst mistake of my career."
SUNDAY, SEPT. 29: ATLANTA AT
ntu ium\
Sheffield drops a ball in the
12th inning against the Mets on
the final day of the season. The
error plates the game-winning
runs for New York, propells the
Mets into the playoffs, and sends
the Braves home for the winter.
After the game, Sheffield rips the
team and demands a trade,
saying he never felt respected
and can't wait to be dealt.
You'll have to apologize if I've
spoiled everything for you, but I
just had to know. Nobody breaks
any home run records this year,
Ichiro bats a paltry .289, and the
Yankees win the World Series in
six games over the Mets. I'm off
to the fortuneteller to see about
next year’s Super Bowl.
Allen is a first year Electronic
journalism student.
Season winding
down for USC
“We have to play with a
lot more intensity than
we did against Auburn.”
DAVE ODOM
use MEN'S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH
field in the game but struggled
from behind the arc, managing
only 20 percent. Jarvis Hayes led
the way with 14 points. Ezra
Williams dropped in 13 points and
seven rebounds. Georgia, the sec
ond-highest scoring team in the
SEC, was held to its second-lowest
point total of the season.
Georgia needs a big win over
the Gamecocks to grab major po
sition in the upcoming SEC
Tournament. It is currently tied
for first place in the East along
with Kentucky and Florida, and it
will need a win to keep up. The
Bulldogs' explosive offensive duo
of Hayes and Williams continue to
put big numbers in conference
play. Hayes' 17.9 and Williams' 17.1
points per game are second and
third in the SF,G.
Carolina (16-11, 6-8) hurt its
NCAA hopes with the Auburn loss,
but another win over Georgia
would ease some pains and pro
vide hope. Regardless, USC head
coach Dave Odom knows how
much the Auburn loss hurt.
"We obviously went down to
Auburn Saturday and had a dis
appointing game and did not do the
things a good basketball team
should be doing at this time of the
year," Odom said.
Odom also knows it will be hard
to pull off another upset against a
Top 25 team. "Georgia is a very dif
ficult opponent for anybody," he
said. "They have a lot to play for
right now and they are going to be
ready. They are well-coached, and
they come out and play solid bas
ketball each and every night.
"If we play well, it shquld be a
competitive game. But we have to
play with a lot more intensity than
we did against Auburn."
Georgia head coach Jim
Harrick said the game is just as im
portant for the Gamecocks as it is
for his team.
"I think each team has a lot at
stake in this game," Harrick said.
"South Carolina barely lost its last
two games, so they could just as
easy be 8-6 instead of 6-8. They
have beaten us four times in a row,
and there is a lot at stake this week
in the East. You never know how
your team will develop as a unit or
whether their chemistry is good.
All those things came true with
our team this year."
USC dominated Georgia 80-67 on
Jan. 30. The Bulldogs are attempt
ing to snap a four-game losing
streak versus the Gamecocks.
Wednesday night’s tipoff is sched
uled for 7:30p.m.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecocksports@hotmail.com
PHOTO BY ROBERT GRUEN
Marius Petravicius calls for the bail as Chuck Eidson controls
the ball and calls a play. Despite Saturday’s loss to Auburn, the
Gamecocks remain on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament as
the possible seventh team from the SEC. USC can certainly help
Itself out by winning its last two games of the regular season.
use at No. 18
Georgia
7 p.m. Wednesday
Stegeman Coliseum
Carolina looks to
sweep Bulldogs
for second
straight year
BY BRAD SENKIW
THE GAMECOCK
The USC men's basketball team
takes a trip to Georgia on
Wednesday evening looking to nab
an upset and a possible NCAA
Tournament berth. Carolina is
coming off a troubling 50-46 loss to
Auburn on Saturday, while
Georgia is fighting to stay in first
in the SEC East after a close 55-54
victory at LSU.
The No. 18 Bulldogs (20-7, 9-5
SEC) pulled out a nail-biter
Saturday when guard Rashad
Wright drained a jump shot with
22 seconds left in the game.
Georgia shot 41 percent from the
BRIEFLY
Women's golf finishes
strong in Florida
The USC women’s golf team shot
a tournament-low 297 on Sunday
and surged to a second-place finish
at the SunTrust Lady Gator
Invitational.
The Lady Gamecocks posted
their top finish of the year in their <
first spring tournament and had
four of five of their players finish
in the top 20. 1
USC’s Kacy Thompson put to- ;
gether her best tournament finish ;
in her collegiate career. The junior :
shot a 76 on Sunday and finished
tied for seventh at 13-over (223).
Classmate and defending SEC
hampion Kristy McPherson had a
7 on Sunday and finished tied for
4th place (229). Sophomores
darci Robinson (232, T-18th place)
md Adrienne Gautreaux (233, T
:0th place) rounded out USC's top
0 finishes.
MEN’S BASKETBALL CHALLENGE
THE CHALLENGE: Every week, Chris
The Gamecock's readers and Foy
staff test their sports knowledge Sports
with game predictions. Editor
(21-11)
No. 13 Oregon at No.20 So Cal So Cal
No. 16 Illinois at Indiana Illinois
USC at No.15 Georgia USC
No, 19 Stanford at No. 14 Arizona Arizona
N.C. State at No.22 Wake Forest Waket
Miss. State at USC USC
No,6 Alabama at Ole Miss. Alabama
No. 1 Kansas at Missouri Kansas
SE Louisiana at Nicholls St. Nicholls
£Jo.lO Florida at No. 11 Kentucky Florida
J. Keith Robert
Alien Gnren
Asst. Sports Sports
Editor staff
(23-9) (19-13)
Oregon Oregon_
IllinoisIndiana
use » use
Stanford Stanford
Wake Wake
use use
Alabama Alabama
Kansas Kansas
Nicholls Nicholls
Kentucky Kentucky
Kyle Jason
Almond Harmon
Defending Copy
champion editor
(23-9) (22-10)
So Cal _ Oregon
Indiana Illinois
Georgia_Georgia
Stanford Arizona
Wake_Wake_
use use
Alabama Alabama
Kansas Kansas_
Nicholls SE La.
Florida Florida
Caroline
Masauding
Reader of
the week
(22-10)
So Cal
Indiana
~usc~~
Stanford
Wake
use
Alabama
Kansas
SE La.
Kentucky
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V
WOMEN'S SEC TOURNAMENT
. PHOTO BY ROBERT GRUEN
Against Ole Miss, each of the Lady Gamecocks wore a
wristband (or in Kelly Morrone's case, a cast) with one of
their strengths written on it. Morrone’s read
“commitment.”
Lady Gamecocks
begin title chase
Carolina gets
first-round bye
with No. 2 seed
BY JAMES STARNES
THE GAMECOCK •
The SEC Women's Basketball
Tournament begins this
Thursday at the Gaylord
Entertainment Center in
Nashville, Tenn.
Tipoff for the first game be
tween eighth-seeded Alabama
(16-11,7-7 SEC) and ninth-seed
ed Georgia (18-9, 6-8) is set for
noon. Georgia comes into the
game ranked 23rd in the nation
and boasts a 4-1 record against
the Crimson Tide in tourna
ment play.
Arkansas (17-10,7-7), the 7th
seed, takes on lOth-seeded Ole
Miss (11-16, 3-11) at 2:15 p.m.
Thursday. The Lady
Razorbacks won six of their last
eight conference games and
grabbed three wins against
teams ranked in the AP Top 25.
The Lady Rebels are one of only
two SEC teams with a losing
record.
The first game Thursday
evening features the fifth seed,
Mississippi State (18-10, 8-6),
against the 12th seed, Kentucky
(8-19,1-13). The Lady Bulldogs
definitely have momentum go
ing into this year’s tournament,
as they come off a 20-point
thrashing of nationally ranked
Florida. The Lady Wildcats lost
their only meeting with
Mississippi State this year, 59
54.
In the nightcap, sixth-seeded
Florida (18-9,8-6) will play 11th
seeded Auburn (15-12, 3-11).
Tipoff is set for 8:15 p.m.
Florida, despite its seed, fin
ished the regular season in a
three-way tie for fourth place.
The Lady Tigers, who recently
upset No. 10 South Carolina, are
5-1 against the Lady Gators in
SEC Tournament play.
The Lady Gamecocks (22-5,
10-4) clinched a No. 2 seed by de
feating Ole Miss last Sunday,
and will have to play the wait
ing game on day one of the tour
nament. Carolina villi face the
winner of the Arkansas/Ole
Miss game at 2:15 p.m. Friday.
The Lady Gamecocks thor
oughly handled Ole Miss in
their only meeting this year
and soundly beat Arkansas in
Columbia on January 13.
However, USC .was reamed 71
46 in Fayetteville by the Lady
Razorbacks.
In a game against Arkansas,
the difference this time around
will be a healthy USC squad.
The Lady Gamecocks will play
at full strength for the first time
since Jan. 21. Teresa Geter was
not in the lineup for the last
meeting with Arkansas, and
USC could have revenge in
mind in the event of a possible
rematch with the Lady
Razorbacks.
Also on Friday, the other top
seeds will be in action. At noon,
the No. 1 seed, Tennessee (24-3,
13-1), will face the winner of the
Alabama/Georgia game.
Tennessee will be heavily fa
vored no matter what the out
come of Thursday's game is, but
it would probably like a shot at
Georgia, who won the tourna
ment last year.
After the USC game, fourth
seeded LSU (15-9,8-6) plays the
winner of Mississippi
State/Kentucky in what has the
potential of being one of the best
games of the tournament.
Mississippi State is perhaps the
hottest team in the league, but
the Lady Tigers have won 10
straight meetings, including
last Thursday's meeting in
Baton Rouge.
The No. 3 seed, Vanderbilt
(24-6,10-4) will wrap up day two
at 8:15 p.m. with a matchup
against either Florida or
Auburn. The Commodores,
ranked sixth in the nation, set
a record for conference wins
this year, but aren't looking for
ward to a possible rematch with
Florida, which trounced them
in Nashville only a month ago.
The winner of this game will
play the winner of the USC
game in the semifinals on
Saturday at 8:15 p.m. The cham
pionship gaihe will be at 7 p.m.
Sunday and televised on
ESPN2.
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