The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, February 23, 2005, Page 13, Image 13
t
GAME SCHEDULE
Pao-f* 11 MEN’S BASKETBALL vs. Tennessee, 7:30 p.m.
wrj j rL lftnc * WOMEN’S TENNIS vs. Winthrop, 2 p.m.
Wednesday, February 23, 2005 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL vs. Kentucky, 7 p.m. Thursday
By JONATHAN HILLYARD
SPORTS EDITOR
nickname better. Now standing at 6-feet
2-inches>,Trice is the lightest player on the
USC/baskerball team at a mere 160
-founds. Don’t tell him that though.
Like most young basketball players of
his generation, Trice grew up idolizing
Michael Jordan and Dominique Wilkins
and said he modeled his game after therm.
Trice said he admires Dwayne WSrfe in
the NBA now, who plays po-irtr guard for
his favorite team, the Miami Heat.
Born in Atlanta, /Trice moved to
Swainsboro and attended Swainsboro
High School. He WAS the basketball
team at Swaipsboro, being named
conference player of the year twice, ,all
conference three times and all-state twice
Not only was Trice a big-time player, but
he was a winner in high school, leading
his team to the elite eight of the state
tournament as a junior and the sweet
sixteen as a senior.
—‘Bur despite^, averaging 25 points, 10
rebounds and eight assists as a senior in
2002, Trice was not recruited by the big
time SEC and ACC schoolsN,
“I was recruited by mostly^Southern
Conference schools like 'Georgia
♦ Please see ROCKY, page 14
CHARLIE DAVENPORT/THE GAMECOCK
Redshirt freshman forward Melanie Johnson wraps around an
Alabama defender in the Gamecocks’ first 2005 SEC win.
Carolina seeks
consecutive veins
By MICHAEL FINNEGAN
THE GAMECOCK
The Carolina women’s
basketball team plays host to
Kentucky on Thursday in the
Colonial Center as these two
teams battle for the 11th seed in
the SEC Tournament. Kentucky
is 3-9 in conference play and
Carolina is 1-11. Both Kentucky
and Carolina look to finish
conference play strong, as they
are both young, talented teams.
The Gamecocks are looking to
start a winning streak, as they won
their first SEC game of the year
Sunday against the Crimson Tide.
This win snapped the Gamecocks’
17-game SEC losing streak and
10-game overall losing streak.
Kentucky, on the other hand,
looks to stop its five-game skid.
This will be a tough task for the
Cats, as they have yet to win an
SEC road game. This is coach
Mickie Demoss’s second year
with Kentucky and sixth year
coaching overall. She was an
assistant for national powerhouse
♦ Please see SECOND, page 14
All-Star weekend relieves
Daytona 500 domination
■ NBA festivities bring
entertaining alternative
to NASCAR fans’ mecca
I’m not usually a huge NBA
fan, but the All-Star weekend
gave me a welcome escape from
the Daytona 500 television
coverage. Even though it wasn’t
all that great, at least it wasn’t
NASCAR.
It all started with the “Got
Milk? Rookie Challenge.” Yes,
the “Got Milk? Rookie
Challenge.” Apparently making
money off shoe-company
contracts, television contracts,
advertising revenue and
merchandise sales isn’t quite
enough for the NBA, so they
sold out the naming rights to a
game. This year the game was
actually entertaining. I was
pleasantly surprised.
The Saturday events were
pretty decent, as well. The
Shooting Stars competition was
pretty cool because we got to see
Dan Majerle waltz out on the
court rockin’ the throwback
Phoenix Suns uniform, looking
about 40 pounds overweight,
and draining a half-court shot
like it’s nothing. He even walked
off holding one finger high like
he owned the place. Thank
goodness it wasn’t a bench-press
competition or Diana Taurasi
would have been the one walking
off with one
finger high. I
know baseball
is the sport
with steroid
problems, but
somebody
needs to keep
an eye on
JAKE shoulders are
BROOM broad they
could have
instV,led
SCIENCE overflow
STUDENT seating on
them.
The skills challenge and the .
3-point shootout were all right.
They weren’t anything
spectacular, but the NBA will
never EVER top the year that
♦ Please see ALL-STAR, page 14
Different paths bring USC, UT together again
CHARLIE DAVENPORT/THE GAMECOCI
USC point guard Tre' Kelley dribbles the ball up the court in
Carolina’s first meeting with Tennessee, a Gamecock victory.
By AJ BEMBRY
THE GAMECOCK
The last time USC played the
Tennessee Volunteers, the
Gamecocks dispatched the Vols in
a 66-63 nailbiter. Both teams were
looking to have solid seasons in the
SEC, and hopefully receive
invitations to the “Big Dance” that
is the NCAA Tournament. As the
teams’ paths cross again, it has
been a tale of two seasons, seeing
the Vols going a dismal 2-7, while
the Gamecocks have gone a steady
4-4.
Just last week the Gamecock
basketball team was flying high
with a memorable 73-61 win
against the mighty Kentucky
Wildcats. Carolina finally had that
signature victory that the NCAA
Tournament selection board looks
for, and the prospects of Dave
Odom’s team making the
tournament for a second straight
year were pretty good.
A lot can change in a week.
Now that the Gamecocks have
been brought back down to earth
in the form of a 19- point road
drubbing at the hands of the
Alabama Crimson Tide, the reality
of the situation is that the final
stretch of the season enters the
pressure-filled “must win” territory.
Luckily for them, the Gamecocks
have gone 8-0 this season on the
rebound game after a loss.
Carolina will get the chance to
improve to 9-0 when the familiar
Volunteers play host to the
Gamecocks on Wednesday night.
The Vols are coming off a loss of
their own last Saturday, a 60-58
heartbreaker against the
underwhelming Ole Miss Rebels
in Oxford, Miss. Tennessee was
without leading scorer Scooter
McFadgon for that game. The 6
foot-5 guard from Memphis
averages 14.1 points per game, but
is listed as day-to-day with a leg
injury. If McFadgon is able to play,
USC would be wise to avoid
committing fouls against him, as
he is shooting 91.4 percent from
the line.
Tennessee has also found an
additional dependable presence
down low in the form of Florence
native Major Wingate. Wingate, a
6-foot-10 center, has averaged
26.3 minutes per game in the eight
games in which he has been a
starter. Tennessee coach Buzz
Peterson placed Wingate in the
starting lineup after the Jan. 19
Florida game, and the sophomore
responded with a 13-point effort
against Louisville on Jan. 22 and a
14-point night against Kentucky
on Jan. 25.
The Vols are 11-14 on the
season, but are only 4-8 in SEC
play, and 2-4 at home in the SEC.
Historically, however, the
Volunteers have made Thompson
Boling Arena a very formidable
place to play. Since the 1998-1999
season, the Vols have gone 99-25
in the friendly confines of the 17
year-old arena.
If the Gamecocks win against
Tennessee, they will knot the all
time series at 22 and will improve
to 7-6 in SEC play. They will also
sweep the season series for the first
time since the 2001-2002 season.
The last time the two teams met,
forward Carlos Powell led the way
for Carolina with a 20-point effort.
The Gamecocks will need similar
production from him if they
expect to leave Knoxville with a
win.
Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. !
Comments on this story? E-mail
gamecockspo7ts@gtrm.sc. edu