The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, March 27, 2002, Page 10, Image 10
10 THE GAMECOCK ♦ Wednesday, March 27, 2002
t^| rri r^\ game schedule
CONTACT ITS JI I W—J I SOFTBALL vs. East Tennessee State (DH), 3 p.m. Wednesday
mui uu | ■ ■ ■ A ■ . BASEBALL vs. The Citadel, 7 p.m. Wednesday
Story ideas? Questions? Comments? I I L i MEN’S BASKETBALL vs. Memphis in NIT Final, 9 p.m. Thursday
E-mail us at gamecocksports@hotmail.com —B_ _B_ -B— —/ BASEBALL vs. Alabama, 7 p.m. Friday
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Women’s season comes to an end
0 USC 68
Duke'holds off
Lady Gamecocks
in Elite Eight
BY J. KEITH ALLEN
THE GAMECOCK
The USC women’s basketball
team took the court Monday night
to take on Duke for the right to
travel to San Antonio and this
year’s NCAA Final Four. The Lady
Gamecocks also took the court to
show the country how far they’ve
traveled'this season — from last
year’s losing season all the way to
the Elite Eight in Raleigh, N.C.
The Lady Gamecocks fell short
in their first mission when they
were nosed out 77-68, but their sec
ond mission was a resounding suc
cess. USC nullified a 13-point half
timg deficit and showed the heart
and determination that has char
acterized the team this season.
After the loss, USC head coach
Susan Walvius spoke of her
squad’s historic run through the
tournament.
“I couldn’t be prouder of our
team and what we’ve been a£le to
accomplish this season,” she said.
Carolina simply ran into a buz
zsaw by the name of Alana Beard.
The Duke guard did everything
but drive the team bus Monday
night, scoring 24 points and adding
seven rebounds. Beard also
notched five first-half steals and
played every minute of the contest.
“She’s a great player,” USC for
ward Jocelyn Penn said. “I don’t
think we had an answer for her.”
The Blue Devils’ first five pos
sessions resulted in four missed
shots and a turnover, while
Carolina came out of the gate on fire
and went on an 8-0 run to silence the
throng of Duke fans in attendance.
After a timeout, Duke put the de
fensive clamps on the Lady
Gamecocks and took control of the
game. The Blue Devils collected six
steals and a season-high eight blocks
in the first half, and their 14-0 run
gave them a 35-22 lead at halftime.
Carolina refused to roll over in
the second half. USC outscored
Duke 18-7 in the first six minutes of
the second half, and a Shaunzinski
Gortman layup with 13:27 remain
ing tied the score at 42.
Penn’s layup gave USC a 46-45
lead at the 9:57 mark. A relentless
zone defense kept Duke’s shooters
at bay and brought the Carolina
fans to their feet. Kelly Morrone
drained all three of her 3-point at
tempts in the second half, includ
ing one from NBA range to keep
the game close.
The two teams traded baskets
in the waning minutes with the
Final Four berth hanging in the
balance. The Lady Gamecocks
continued to press, but Beard
struck again. Beard fired a pass to
a wide-open Iciss Tillis, whose
easy layup put Duke ahead for
good, 72-65, with 42 seconds left.
♦ BASKETBALL, SEE PAGE 11
Vania Redd
consoles
Jocelyn
Penn after
she fouled
out during
Carolina's
hard loss to
Duke
Monday
night.
PHOTO BY
ROBERT
GRUEN/THE
GAMECOCK
0 use 66
n|u|$ Syracuse 59
Carolina defeats
Syracuse for spot
in NIT title game
BY CHRIS FOY
THE GAMECOCK
The USC men’s basketball team
played their first ever NIT semifi
nal Tuesday night against Syracuse,
and it will now get to play its first
NIT title game ever after it defeat
ed the Orangemen 66-59 at Madison
Square Garden in New York City.
The Gamecocks were designated
as the home team for the game, but
Syracuse begged to differ. The
Orangemen came onto the game
wearing their white home jerseys
and matched the white ones worn
by USC. Two and a half minutes into
the game, one of the Orangemen’s
managers brought the team’s real
uniforms, and Syracuse changed
into their orange tops on the court
to bring contrast between the teams.
Nonetheless, home or away team,
white or orange, Syracuse had no
luck down the stretch and the
Gamecocks pulled out the win.
Aaron Lucas hit the first basket
of the game to give the Gamecocks
(22-14) a short-lived lead. The
Orangemen then went on a 9-0 run
to take charge of the game, holding
the Gamecocks to one field goal in
the first eight minutes.
Down 29-23, Lucas again was the
answer for USC, as he hit a 3-pointer
to make the halftime score 29-26.
The Gamecocks, who opened the
half shooting a dismal l-for-10,
rounded it out going 8-for-13.
In second half action, Carolina
quickly tied the match when a
Jamel Bradley 3-pointer tied the
score at 31. But the Orangemen re
sponded with a 3-point shot of their
own and began to hold off the
Gamecocks.
With nine minutes left in the game,
Bradley hit two consecutive 3-point
ers to give USC control of the game.
Lucas followed with a 3-pointer as
well, and the Gamecocks held the lead
for the remainder of the game.
Lucas led Carolina with 20
points. Bradley and Tony Kitchings
each had 13 points, while Rolando
Howell tallied 11.
For the Orangemen, Preston
Shumpert led the way with 28
points. The only other Syracuse
player to score in double figures was
Kueth Duany with 15.
With the win, USC head coach
Dave Odom has now won 300 career
games.
USC will now face Memphis on
Thursday night in the NIT
Championship. Tipoff is set for 9
p.m., and the game will be televised
on ESPN.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecocksports@hotmail.com
fgjg USC vs. Memphis
9 p.m. Thursday
Madison Square Garden
TV: ESPN
PHOTO BY ROBERT GRUEN/THE GAMECOCK
Aaron Lucas, right, led the Gamecocks with 20 points In Tuesday night’s NIT semifinal win against Syracuse. The senior
guard will play his final college game Thursday night in the championship game against Memphis.
I
SOFTBALL
Carolina to play rematch
BY MATT ROTHENBERG
THE GAMECOCK
The 24th-ranked USC softball
team (21-11,3-5 SEC) looks to re
bound this afternoon from a
weekend in which it was shutout
in all three games by LSU.
The Lady Gamecocks’ oppo
nent today will be the East
Tennessee State Lady Buccaneers,
and the two will face off in a dou
bleheader at Beckham Field.
The two teams played last
month in the Gamecock
Invitational, and USC came out
on top 8-0. In that game, Stacey
and Aleca Johnson combined for
a four-hit shutout, and USC
jumped out to a 541 lead in the first
inning and never looked back.
ETSU (13-13, 3-3 Southern
Conference) is a young team in
only its second year of existence.
However, it’s having an impres
sive sophomore season so far and
showing plenty of promise. There
are only three seniors on the
team, however, which forces the
younger players to have more of
a leadership role.
Sophomore Tiffany Vandergriff
has become the team’s offensive
leader. Her .346 average, four dou
bles, four home runs, 18 RBIs and
10 stolen bases all lead the team.
Fellow sophomore Rhea Holler is
hitting .294, and freshman Mary
Beth Hazelwood is hitting .263.
The Lady Bucs’ youth carries
over to the mound, but ETSU is
anchored by senior Marsha
Giles. Giles is 5-5 with a 4.09 ERA
and 21 strikeouts, and she owns
the team’s only shutout.
Freshman Courtney Jenkins
sports a 5-4 record with a 4.36
ERA and a team-leading 48 strike
outs, while Y'andergriff (3-4,5.92)
♦ SOFTBALL. SEE PAGE 11
Football team shaping up
BY CHRIS FOY
THE GAMECOCK
Spring practice for the USC football
team is well under way, and last Saturday,
the Gamecocks had a scrimmage that
helped the coaching staff get a better clue
as to where some players might end up.
Head coach Lou Holtz commented
Monday on some of the positions.
At the quarterback position, Holtz still
feels Corey Jenkins is the front-runner.
“Someone is going to have to beat Corey
out,” Holtz said.
At wide receiver, Holtz has been im
pressed with James Adkisson, who was in
jured for a lot of last season.
“James has shown the ability to run after
the catch, and that is something we need on
offense,” Holtz said. “He has shown flashes of
brilliance.”
On defense, one of the surprises has been
the play of redshirt linebacker Lance Laury.
Holtz has been so impressed with Laury that
he will probably move linebacker George
Gause back down to defensive end.
“Lance Laury has really come on, and I
think we’re going to take a look at playing
George Gause down some,” Holtz said. “That
should help our defense.”
As far as the secondary is concerned, Holtz
feels his younger players will be able to step
in to compensate for the loss of Sheldon Brown
and Andre Goodman.
“We don’t want to put the comerbacks on
afl island, so to spea?i,” Holtz said. “We'd
♦ FOOTBALL, SEE PAGE 11
USC head
coach Lou
Holtz was
pleased
following
his team’s
scrimmage
this past
weekend.