Inside Sports
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Kansas men's basketball recruits were busy last week collecting awards and playing for All-Star teams.
Sports
SEE PAGE 3B
Royals Baseball
The Kansas City Royals won their 11th game of this spring, defeating the Cleveland Indians 4-2 yesterday.
Tuesday
March 30,1999
Section:
B
Page 1
SEE PAGE 4B
Women's Basketball
Sunday's National Championship game capped a memorable season for women's basketball.
SEE PAGE 5B
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KU basketball assistant likely to be named men's coach for Notre Dame
The Associated Press
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Kansas assistant Matt Doherty, rarely mentioned as a candidate for the Notre Dame coaching vacancy until this past weekend, reportedly will be named to take over the Irish program on Tuesday.
Notre Dame officials scheduled a 4 p.m.
EST Tuesday news conference to name the
new coach, but declined to say Monday
who it is.
But WNDU on Monday night cited what it described as a well-connected source at the Final Four who said Doherty's hire was a done deal. ESPN also reported on its Web page that Doherty had won the job.
Doherty, 37, considered playing at Notre Dame but was recruited to play at North Carolina by then-Tar Heels assistant Roy Williams. The 6-foot-8 Doherty played for
ward on the 1982 national championship team with Michael Jordan and Sam Perkins.
After graduation, he worked as a government bond salesmen in New York City and later was a part-time analyst on the Davidson College basketball radio network.
Doherty: Has been the assistant coach for seven seasons.
The East Meadow, N.Y., native was hired as an assistant coach at Davidson before the 1989-90 season, serving
UuGuard command Justin Caldbeck hoists the NCAA championship trophy in the air first night after the Huskins beat Duke 77-74. KRT Photo
Gonzaga coach Dan Monson and Xavier coach Skip Prosser were thought to be frontrunners for the job after meeting with Notre Dame officials during the weekend
where three years before coming to Kansas. During his seven seasons as Williams's assistant coach at Kansas, he has helped the Jayhawks sign eight McDonald's All-Americans.
Gonzaga athletic director Mike Roth said Monday that Notre Dame officials met with Monson on Saturday but didn't know whether they planned to meet again. He did not return messages Monday night after Notre Dame announced plans to name a new coach.
"I would have rather not gotten the call," Roth said. "I'd rather keep him, but I can't say I'm surprised (that Notre Dame asked permission to speak with Monson). If I'm an AD out there, I want to look at Dan Monson with what he's able to do at Gonzaga."
Monson told the Spokane SpokesmanReview in a story published Sunday that he spoke with Notre Dame athletic director Mike Wadsworth in St. Petersburg, Fla., site of the Final Four. Monson has declined to comment further on his interview.
Delaware's Mike Brey, Siena's Paul Hewitt and Princeton's Bill Carmody all have interviewed with the Irish since MacLeod resigned under pressure March 9.
Prosser was expected to meet with Wadsworth on Monday, but Xavier athletic director Mike Bobinski said he didn't know whether that happened or if Notre Dame had extended an offer.
Uttah coach Rick Majerus was considered the frontrunner to take the job but dropped out last week amid reports that school administrators rejected his candidacy because he didn't fit the Notre Dame image.
UConn upsets Duke in final
The Chicago Tribune reported Monday that Prosser was interviewed by school president the Rev. Edward A. Malloy, Wadsworth and associate athletic director Bubba Cunningham on Sunday. The Rev. E. William Beauchamp, the executive vice president, was said to have taken part via telephone.
The Associated Press
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Connecticut spoiled the Duke Invitational.
The Huskies beat top-ranked Duke, the team no one thought could be beaten in this NCAA tournament, for their first national championship in their first Final Four appearance.
Last night's 77-74 thriller ended Duke's 32-game winning streak, kept the Blue Devils from an NCAA record for wins in a season, and prevented them from ending the 90s with a third national championship.
Richard Hamilton led third-ranked Connecticut (34-2) with 27 points, but it was some tremendous team defense and a big shot and free throws by Khalid El-Amin that won it all.
Trajan Langdon led Duke (37-2) with 25 points, but Duke's last two possessions ended with him making turnovers. And so the Blue Devils fell short of what everyone had expected — another title.
These were the only two teams to hold the No.1 ranking this season, and they played a final game worthy of the two best.
"We lost to a great basketball team. We were beaten tonight, we didn't lose," Duke coach Mike Krzewski said.
Connecticut was able to keep the game at a pace it liked even though most everyone thought the Huskies should try to slow the tempo. The quick pace made for what seemed like constant lead changes, the last coming with 3:50 to play when Hamilton's free throws gave the Huskies a 70-68 lead.
Hamilton hit a 2-pointer 21 seconds later for a five-point lead,and suddenly, Duke was playing a role it had very little experience at this season — the chaser.
"We're happy as heck, and we truly believed we could beat them," UConn coach Jim Calhoun said. "I said before the game that we hadn't played our best yet. If you count character, I think tonight we did."
William Avery's free throws with 54 seconds left got the Blue Devils within 75-74. El-Amin, whose driving basket had given Connecticut the 75-72 lead, missed on a drive with 24 seconds left and Duke had life.
Langdon, the fifth-year senior who made the Final Four in his last chance, tried to get by Ricky Moore, one of the game's best defenders. Langdon spun but Moore was there. Langdon took
The Blue Devils went for the final shot without calling a time-out.
"We really worked hard as a team," Moore said. "I wanted to come out and prove myself. I wanted to show I have an offensive game as well as a defensive game. I wanted to shock the world."
Al-Emin made two free throws with 5.2 seconds left to get the lead back to three, and Langdon's last chance at tying the game ended when he fell near the three-point line and lost control of the ball.
Hamilton, a first-team All-American who was 10-for-22 from
With that, Connecticut charged the court and had the title everyone thought Duke would claim.
an extra step and was called for
traveling with 5.4 seconds to go.
the field and had seven rebounds, finished as the tournament's leading scorer with 145 points in the six games, a 24.1 average. He was the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Krzyzewski is second on the NCAA tournament career victory list with 49.
One of those was in the 1990 regional final when Christian Laettner's buzzer beater on an inbounds play gave the Blue Devils a 79-78 overtime win against Connecticut.
There was no buzzer beater this time.
The Huskies finally got revenge in the last tournament of the decade.
Kansas left-handed pitcher Mark Corson lays out to send another strike toward home plate in a victory against Ottawa University March 17. The Joyhawks defeated the Oklahoma Sooners 10-5 on Sunday and hope to continue their success when they play the Missouri Tigers in a two-game series at Hogglund Ballpark today and tomorrow. Photo by Matt J. Daugherty/KANSAN
Border series adds strength to Kansas's slate
By Matt Tait
mtait@kansan.com
kansas sportwriter
Maybe the Kansas baseball team hasn't scored 50 runs in one game as Nebraska did earlier this month, but they also haven't played Chicago State, who suffered the record-breaking defeat to the Cornhuskers.
Instead of scheduling weaker teams to fill voids in the heart of its schedule, Kansas traditionally plays additional series against Big 12 Conference foes.
Big 12 baseball teams play one another for one series each season. In addition to regularly scheduled conference games against Missouri and Kansas State, the Jayhawks annually welcome their rivals to town for nonconference games because coach Bobby Randall said that those were games fans wanted to see.
That is exactly what will happen this evening as the Missouri Tigers come to Hoglund Ballpark for the first game of a two-game series.
Tenight's matchup at 7 will mark the 285th meeting between the border rivals.
"As a coach I enjoy playing quality teams, and I think that's what the players wanted as well," Randall said. "So we chose to play Big 12 schools that provide a lot of emotional excitement rather than Prairie View A&M."
The Hawks, 9-18 overall and 4-11 in Big 12, as well as Missouri, 14-12, 3-9, are pursuing the eighth spot in the conference standings with hopes of packing for the postseason. Players and coaches alike said that even though these were non-conference games, they were still important.
"We go into every game not worried about whether it's conference or not," outfielder Brett Kappelmann said. "But especially against Missouri, who is a big rival, we have the confidence to do it and really want to win these games."
Randall said that everyone knew that conference games were more important because they affect the standings, but he also said that the team approached the games with the same attitude.
"No question, conference games mean more," Randall said. "But I think competitively we're a lot stronger team and every guy is playing better than he was a couple of weeks ago."
Up and down the entire roster the Jahyhawks are breaking out of slumps or continuing streaks.
Kappelmann has soared toward the top of the conference standings in batting average. He is in third place with a 434 average and has a 12-game hitting streak.
Shortstop John Nelson has continued his terror, contributing RBI, runs and solid defense.
Catcher Shane Wedd broke out of an early March slump and hit .444 over the last week.
Missouri comes to Lawrence after dropping two of three to Texas A&M last weekend.
The Tigers are led by the offensive power of senior Aaron Wilson, who is hitting 366, and freshman Ryan Stegall, who has nine home runs on the year.
Junior Rusty Philbrick is scheduled to start game one for the 'Hawks and on the hill for the Tigers will be Chris George.
Edited by Chris Fickett
Swimmer upset with NCAA tourney performance
By Emily Hughey sports@kansan.com
Kansas sportwriter
What's been known as the fastest meet in the world was not so for junior swimmers Brandon Chestnut and Tyler Painter.
"I feel like I let myself down,
and I let other people down,
despite what they're telling me," Painter said about his friends,
Painter was disappointed with his times at the NCAA National Championships last weekend in Indianapolis.
family and coach, Gary Kempf.
"I didn't have the meet I thought I would," Painter said. "Tenth place is not a good swim."
Painter said he did not feel relaxed and approached his races more tentatively than usual.
Painter, who placed third at last year's NCAA Championships and is ranked 16th in the world in the 1,650-yard freestyle, placed tenth at this year's NCAA Championships in the 1,650 and 26th in both the 500-yard freestyle and the 400-vard individual medley.
yard breaststroke and 28th in the 200-yard breaststroke.
Chestnut placed 19th in the 100-
much pressure and responsibility on himself.
While Painter said he wanted to swim faster, he received an All-America honor for his performance in the 1,650-yard freestyle. He said he was pleased with the award but that his disappointing races shadowed the honor.
Kempf said he was still proud of Painter's and Chestnut's performances.
"Tyler's biggest problem is that he carries a tremendous amount of pressure on himself and he puts most of it on himself," Kempf said.
"I thought both Brandon and Tyler put in a great effort. They gave it the best shot they could." Kempf said. "I'm disappointed for them not in them. They didn't let anybody down."
Kempf, on the other hand, said he thought that Painter put too
Although Painter's disappointment with the meet stands out, he said he already was thinking of ways in which he could improve.
.
"Next year, I'll prepare a little more mentally," he said. "I'll realize that I had a bad meet and that it can happen, and I'll be more relaxed."
Painter also said he thought that his two-meet suspension earlier in the season had no affect on his performance at the national championships. Chestnut was not available for comment.
Edited by Jodi Smith