University Daily Kansan Thursday, March 2, 1978 Gibson watches from bench, accepts role on team Staff Photo by ELI REICHMAN Despite not logging much playing time, KU senior guard Milt Gibson has been a valuable asset to the KU basketball team. According to coach Ted Owens, Gibson has accepted his role on the team and has helped his teammates improve. Women qualify for tourney Lining the season with a 20-7 record, the KU women's basketball team is preparing for the start of another season. It's called postseason; as in postseason playoffs. Pride The Lady Jayhawks, 17th in the nation, received an at-large berth to the AIAW Region VI postseason Basketball Tour- ment, 9-11 at 1ahear Fieldhouse in Manhattan. The tournament will feature eight teams representing five states. The winner of the tournament will qualify for the AIAW tournament later in December. The tournament later this month in Denton, Texas. KANSAS IS seeded No. 3 in the single-elimination tournament. Kansas State University, the host team, is the No. 1 seed and University of Missouri is seeded No. 2. All three teams are in the same bracket with Iowa State University. Coming off a victory over Wichita State University Friday night, 95-41, the Lady Jayhawks will open the tournament against Northwest Missouri State University, the No. 6 seed MSU finished the season 20-7 to Missouri in the Missouri Conference. The Lady Jayhawks have defeated six of the eight teams in the tournament. KU has not played NMSU this season. Last year, the Lady Jayhawks beat NMSU twice. KU finished the season runner-up to the Kansas Conference champion, K-State. Bv BILL NEWSOME KU women's basketball coach Marian Washington said the K-State Wildcats were the pre-tournament favorite, but the Lady Tigers would have potential to win the regional tournament. Washington cited the team's success in tournament play this season as a possible benefit of their offense. “WE ARE one of the best teams in the regional, if not the best,” Washington said. “As I see it, the only thing that is going to stop us, is our own play.” Sports Writer the success of KU's fifth-ranked basketball team won 'em playin' tightly depend on Milton. Whether the Jayhawks are eliminated from the NCAA tournament early or advance all the way to the national championship, Gibson will more than likely be watching the action from the same spot—the bench. But the quality that Milt Gibson displays, possibly more than any other aspect of the game, is what college basketball is all about. Gibson is a senior. But don't mistake him for the typical bench-chirping who has wished to play in the game. AFTER A spectacular high school career in Roswell, N.M., Gibson was heavily recruited by nearly every Big Eight and Western Athletic Conference* center. He led the KU junior varsity team in scoring his freshman year, started every game at his sophomore year and was a part-time player and played a great deal last season. But this season, when he finally had a chance to play an important role on a nationally powerful team, Gibson has been somewhat lost in the shuffle. It's not that Milt is hard to spot during the course of a game, always always occupying the last seat on the bench. But although he has appeared in 19 of KU's 27 games this season, he is averaging less than six minutes a game when he does play. And except for a couple of times, the outcome of the game has been decided long before Gibson enters. What makes Milt Gibson special, though, is his attitude. In this day of egotistical players quitting teams and transferring to the team that is someone KU can be much proud of. “IT'S KIND of like being happy and disappointed at the same time,” he said. “I’m happy over our team's fine season, but I'm disappointed that I'm not more a part of it. But we all win together, no matter how much each guy plays.” Gibson has given up his playing time under what for most people would be the most difficult of circumstances. He lost his job to someone three years younger than him—freshman sensation Darnell Valentine. But when Gibson speaks of Valentine there isn't even a hint of bittiness in his voice. "I have no reservations at all about playing behind Darnell Valentine," he said. "He's a good ballplayer and he's playing behind Darnell in practice and make him better, because the better he is, the better our team is. If I give him good competition in practice, it'll be better." KU head coach Ted Owens is quick to recognize Gibson's importance to the team. "MILT GUBSON IS one of the major reasons we have become a good basketball team." "Jayhawk Celebration Sale" - Little Breaker Burger - Grilled Cheeze - 25c each/4 for $1 - Corn Dog - Reg. Order French Fries Offer good through March 31 - Med. Soft Drink WHEEL MEALS DRIVE IN 2554 Iowa Cassem's Clearance Sale Ends Saturday Everything Must Go By Saturday March 4 cepted a lesser role on this team than he has in the past, and he has done it in a class. BUY ONE AT REGULAR PRICE GET THE SECOND ONE FOR $1.00 (of equal value) But Gibson's statistics have plummeted the last three seasons. He averaged 5.5 points his sophomore year, 2.5 last season and is averaging just 1.0 this year. During the period he has never shot over 40 percent in struggling with a 29.9 percent average. Gibson, though, will probably always wonder what happened to his shooting touch and scoring average during the past three seasons. As a high school senior—he was named the top preplayer in the Southwest by two publications—he shot over 50 percent of his shots against opponents and plays a game. On KU's junior varsity team, he averaged 17.5 and shot 48 percent. Everything in the store must go to make room for Spring merchandise Because of this, his confidence has wavered. ALL SALES FINAL, ALL SALES CASH "RIGHT NOW, I can't say that I'm any better than when I came out of high school," he said. "I've been hesitating on and off for the last three years with my shot. When you're not shooting well and not shooting well, it can't help lose some of your confidence." Gibson is still at every practice, preparing himself for the day that the Jayhawks may need him to step in during a crucial situation. "I harder to motivate yourself for practice every day when you're not playing," he said. "I've got to be prepared. I'm needn't be prepared, I'm letting the team down." UNLIKE A lot of college players, Gibson will have other things to fall back on after he plays his last college games. He may try out for KU's baseball team this spring. He was All-District as an outfielder in high school and was a try-out camp by the Cincinnati Reds. And, despite all the time that basketball takes, Gibson will be graduating on time this spring with a degree in personnel administration. moment steps off the court for the last time as a Jayhawk later this month, he began his college career. "My parents couldn't pay my way through college, so basketball was a way for me to go college," he said. "I had realized you can't you can't put all your eges in one basket." "I CAN'T SAY that I'm totally satisfied because I didn't have the type of career that I had hoped for and was期望的," he said. "I thought I was right, but same way had I gone someplace else. Plus there are many things that I'm very thankful for -participating in such a fine basketball program for four years and getting my degree on time." And despite his college career not being what he had hoped, Gilson's love for the music never wavered. love it, he said. "I wouldn't mind trying out for a pro team. I know my chances of making it are one in a million, but I'd like to do it last to satisfy myself." "I'm still crazy about the game-I still Milt Gibson doesn't have to satisfy the people that know him. Even if he doesn't leave his seat on the bench for the rest of his career, they know that he's a winner. UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS. UNIVERSITY THEATRE PRESENTS ECCENTRICITIES OF A NIGHTINGALE FEB 24, 25 MAR 2.34 8:00 PM UNIVERSITY THEATRE TICKETS AVAILABLE AT MURPHY HALL BOX OFFICE THE FILMS OF LES BLANK Les Blank in Person March 2-5,1978 Woodruff Auditorium Kansas Union Admission $1.00 American Folk Music Documentaries Thursday, March 2 DRY WOOD Black creole life in the bayou country (1973) HOT PEPPER Cajun Clinton and his red hot accordion (1973) THE SUN'S GONNA SHINE'S JOHN oppins the northea FONTERA—The northea music of south Texas (1976) Thurs. 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 3 CHICKEN REEL -A documentary on the second largest packager of poultry products in the country. Bluegrass (196B) A WELL SPENT LIFE — Mance Lipscomb-colbies artist (1971) A FRONTERAS—nortena music of South Texas (1976) Fr. 3. 10 DIZZY GILLESPIE—Famous "Bop" trumpet player (1964) THE BLUES ACCORDIN' TO LIGHTNIN' HOPKINS His art, truth, beauty and muscianship (1968) SPEND IT ALL The Cajuns of S.W. Louisiana (1971) CHRISTOPHER PREE Bluegrass and poultry products A WELL SPENT LIFE Bluesman Mace Lipscomb, 75 year old guitarist, philosopher-songster (1971) Fr. 7:30 CHULAS FRONTERAS LIGHTNIN' HOPKINS Saturday, March 4 ROCK STAR FEATURE — Blank will show an unreleased feature presenting the life and performance of Rock Star (1975, 90 m) at 3:30 & 7:30 GOD RESPECTS US WHEN WE WORK BUT LOVES US WHEN WE DANCE—L.A. Easter Sunday Living U.(1987) The Lawrence Arts Center 9th & Vermont Admission $1.00 Sunday, March 5 1:30 DRY WOOD DIZZY GILLESPIE A WELL SPENT LIFE CHRISTOPHER TREE THE BLUES ACCORDIN 'TO LIGHTNIN' HOPKINS Presented by SUA and The Lawrence Arts Center This program is presented in part by the Kansas Arts Commission, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.