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GAME SCHEDULE Pao-p 10 WOMEN’S TENNIS vs. Alabama, 2 p.m. 5.§ uoc mnc MEN’S TENNIS at Alabama, 4 p.m. Friday, March 25, 2005 BASEBALL at Florida, 6:30 p.m. KATIE KIRKLAND/THE GAMECOCK Senior forward Carlos Powell goes up for a slam against Georgetown in his final game in Columbia. * use 69, GEORGETOWN 66 START SPREADIN’ . Gammecocks defeat Georgetown in quarterfinal\ advance to NITfinal four in New York City By ALEX RILEY STAFF WRITER The city that never sleeps just got a wake up call from a lot of crowing Gamecocks, as USC makes plans for a trip to the Big Apple for the second time in four years to take part in the 68 th Annual National Invitation Tournament’s semifinal game. Senior Carlos Powell walked off the Colonial Center floor nothing short of a winner Thursday, as the words to Frank Sinatra’s legendary song “New York, New York” came loud and proud through the speakers. Fans stood in awe, cheering until their lungs could not stand it after downing the Georgetown Hoyas 69-66 in front of 10,662 loyal followers of the garnet and black. “Its been great. I just don’t want it to end,” Powell said as he smiled in post-game interviews. “We’re having a lot more fun right now. Basketball is fun again.” After an uninspired start, the Gamecocks found themselves down early and often. Carolina’s lackluster performance was apparent when Georgetown senior Darrel Owens hit one of his four 3s as the half wound down to push the Hoyas’ lead to 10, 34-24. Trailing by 8 at the half 34-26, Carolina put up a ferocious rally, as junior guard Tarence Kinsey hit back-to-back layups to pull USC within 4 with less than 40 seconds on the clock. A huge swat by Powell turned into a fast-break layup by junior Rocky Trice, pulling the game within 2 at 34-32. Georgetown made a small run to go back up by 6, when another Kinsey fast-break basket pulled the score within 4 again. That would be the closest it would get for just more than eight minutes, as Georgetown and Carolina traded baskets, keeping both teams at bay. That’s when senior Josh Gonner hit his first basket of the night, and it could not have been at a better moment. Gonner canned a 3 with just less than 12 minutes to play, pulling Carolina within 3 at 47-44. A Jonathan Wallace turnover led to a layup by sophomore Tre’ Kelley, which would make it a 1 point ball game. Kelley’s next shot would be the big one, as he nailed a 3 to put Carolina up by 2 at 49-47, a lead they would never relinquish. The lead grew again on another Gonner 3, putting Carolina up by 5 at 52-47 with less than eight minutes left to play. Georgetown lived by the 3-point shot in the game and used it to get back into the game. Back-to-back 3s would cut the Carolina lead to 2, with less than 50 seconds to play, and a foul by Kinsey on the second 3 turned into a 4-point play, ultimately cutting the lead to 1 at 64-63. Kelley was immediately fouled by the Hoya’s Jeff Green, sending him to the charity stripe for the two most important shots of the year. ' Kelley hit the first and, after a time out, the second would rattle home as well, giving USC a 66-63 lead. Tarence Kinsey hit one of his two free throws after a Georgetown foul, putting Carolina up by 4. Powell would hit both of his free throws following another Hoya foul, giving USC a 6-point margin and only 10 seconds left on the clock. However the Hoyas would not go down without a fight, as junior forward Brandon Bowman hit a 3 with three seconds remaining to give Georgetown a bit of hope. And hope is what they got, as Kelley missed both of his free throws, setting what could have been the stage for a dramatic finish. Bowman looked to throw up a prayer, but it was denied as Gonner slapped the ball with authority as hard as he could to the court, sealing the 69-66 victory for the Gamecocks. “What a three-game run,” USC ■ coach Dave Odom said. “We haven’t played a bad team yet.” And the team most likely will not. The Gamecocks will face the winner of the TCU-Maryland game on Tuesday in Madison Square Garden. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@givm.sc. edu Point guard pulls through in clutch for Carolina ■ Kelley’s second half propels men’s hoops over his hometown team I’d like to say congratulations to you Tre’ Kelley. Yeah, you man. You see me? I’m the tall, white guy sitting over here in the back of your 9:05 a.m. economics class. Before we take this quiz, I want you to know that your calm, steady influence is the reason 10,000 fans were singing “New York, New York” in the Colonial Center on Thursday night. Every time Kelley has a great game, USC loses. Before Thursday night, each time Kelley had scored in double-figures, USC came out on the losing end. Thursday night, Kelley dropped 15 points and passed out seven assists in leading USC to a 69-66 against Georgetown.. Thursday night, Kelley almost single-handedly led a second half comeback and sent the Gamecocks into the semifinals of the NIT in New York City. To his credit, Kelley has had good games where he didn’t put up points. All season long he has filled his role of being the team’s floor leader, running the offense and coming up with one well-timed assist after another. Against the Hoyas, he finally brought it all together. In the games in which Kelley has excelled STEPHEN offensively, it was FASTENAU because his mind was set to do so SECOND-YEAR from the JOURNALISM beginning of the STUDENT game, and the offense didn’t flow as it should. Last night, Kelley saw the entire floor and drove hoping to find an open man. When he didn’t he went to the basket, making layup after layup and energizing the Colonial Center crowd. With just three points and an assist at halftime, Kelley took over midway through the second half. Down 47-44 with just more than 11 minutes remaining, Kelley drove the lane and lofted a layup over Georgetown’s 7 foot-2 freshman center Roy Hibbert, drawing the foul in the process. He missed the free throw, but the psychological damage was done and Georgetown was on the ropes. Kelley’s 3-pointer just more than a minute later gave USC its first lead since the 11:25 mark of the first half, and the Gamecocks never trailed again. The 12-point second half was one Kelley called the best of his young career. The Washington, D.C. native said playing his hometown school was no big deal for him, noting that he didn’t know any of the current Hoya players. Although he said he never considered attending Georgetown, senior Carlos Powell thought otherwise. “Yes he did,” Powell said. “He wanted to play in the MCI Center (in Washington).” It was Powell’s final game in the Colonial Center, and while he has been the emotional leader all season, Kelley’s laid-back demeanor has been essential. After the final seconds had ticked off, however, Kelley let loose. Yelling with excitement, he went from player to player, exchanging hugs and hand-slaps. Odom said at the beginning of the season he wanted a leader to emerge to replace Mike Boynton. Kelley has become that player, exhibiting what Odom called a “big heart” and making big baskets. Following a heartbreaking loss to Ole Miss in the SEC Tournament, Kelley could have played the woe-is-me card. His late 3-pointer would have tied the game had his toe not been on the line. If anything, Kelley came back stronger. And a few days from now in New York City, his team will be one of only eight college teams still playing. KATIE KIRKLAND/THE GAMECOCK Sophomore point guard Tre' Kelley dribbles down the court in Thursday’s NIT win against Georgetown. Under With USC coach Steve Spurrier I recently sat down for a one-on-one interview with new USCfootball coach Steve Spurrier. We spoke about a new era of Gamecock football, his coaching career and, most importantly, who the coach behind the visor is. In part two of a three-part series, I spoke with him about his coaching career and his time in the SEC. JONATHAN HILLYARD: You’ve been involved in just about all levels of football. What is unique and appealing to you about college football in the SEC? STEVE SPURRIER: 1 did coach three years in the United States Football League with the Tampa Bay Bandits, and we had winning teams every year. We didn’t win a championship. Obviously my last two years in fhe NFL were not much fun at all. But that’s history, and I the only thing I’d do is say “I didn’t do a very good job,” and away we go. In college ball, it seems to me, you have more of an opportunity to coach the team because you have a scout team. So you get two good hours on the field about every day, you get about an hour and a half in the meeting room and that’s pretty much all you need to thoroughly coach your team. And it seems like most of the college kids listen better. They don’t have all the answers. And it’s fun to watch a young man develop and reach his potential. That’s one of the most rewarding parts of being a coach. JH: Many coaches around the SEC say that you are partly responsible for transforming the SEC from more of a power running conference to a more passing-oriented game. In your mind, how has the league changed since you first arrived at Florida? SS: We’ve all heard the saying “timing is everything.” I got to the University of Florida at, I think, exacdy the right time in 1990, when the SEC mentality was: To win the SEC Championship, you have to run the ball and play defense. Teams that threw the ball had just not won a championship. So, we were able to throw, and run, the ball successfully, and play defense. And well, we won the conference six in my first seven years there. Then the league caught up. Other coaches said, Hey, those guys are' throwing it around successfully. Let’s figure out how we can do that. So people started hiring a lot of new coaches that came from backgrounds where they did throw the bail. The first few years, throwing was very easy. The defenses weren’t geared up for it. Then later the defenses got a lot better toward stooping the pass. JH: What qualities make a good SEC quarterback? SS: They’re the same qualities that pretty much make a good one anywhere. I always say he’s got to have courage. He’s got to be able to stand in the pocket and not flinch and finish his throw. You’ve got to be tough mentally as well as physically back there. Number two, he’s got to have a lot of poise. He’s got to understand the importance of preparation as far as knowledge of the game and knowledge of the defenses. He’s just got to have total command of ♦ Please see STEVE, page 9