SPORTS
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Thursday, April 29, 1993
13
Cancer steals Jim Valvano from basketball at age 47
The Associated Press
RALEIGH, N.C. — Jim Valvano died yesterday, a year-long battle with bone cancer finally stilling the flash and sass of a gifted college basketball coach who led his team to a miracle championship and left it after a messy scandal. With his family by his side, the 47-year-old former North Carolina State coach died at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C.
"He had a special way of bringing a smile to everyone's face," said Dick Vitalte, his friend and fellow broadcaster at ESPN.
Valvano pulled off one of the greatest upsets in college basketball history in 1983 when the N.C. State Wolf pack, with 10 regular-season losses
beat favored Houston in the NCAA tournament final on Lorenzo Charles buzzerbeating dunk. Seven years later, Valvano was forced out of coaching after an NCAA investigation
Jim Valvano
determined that his players had violated rules by selling their sneakers and complimentary game tickets.
It wasn't long after Valvano left the Wolfpack that he returned to the college basketball scene as an analyst for ABC and ESPN. Earlier this year, he
won an award from the cable television industry for his work.
But coaching was Valvano's first love, and he expressed that affection in a 10th anniversary celebration for his 1983 championship team on Feb. 21. It was the first time he had set foot on North Carolina State's home court since he left in 1980. He told a cheerling crowd of more than 12,000 that the team had taught him a lesson that had helped him through his illness:
"Number one, hope — hope that things can get better in spite of adversity. The '83 team taught us that. That team taught me persistence — the idea of never, ever quitting. Don't ever give up. Don't ever stop fighting." Valano shouted.
Valvano succeeded Norm Sloan as
N. C. State's 15th head coach on March 27, 1980. He quickly won over fans with his wise-cracking charm. In 1983 came the magical season.
The Wolfpack finished the regular season with a 17-10 record, then went on a tear that ended with a 54-52 Wolfpack victory over the high-flying Phi Slamma.Jamma Houston team, led by Clyde Drexler and Akeem Alquwon, for the championship.
Valvano became athletic director in 1986. In 1989, allegations of wrongdoing appeared on the dust jacket of the book, "Personal Fouls," written by Peter Golenbock, setting off a controversy about how Valvano was running the school's athletic program. He resigned the position in 1989.
Then an NCAA investigation
revealed that Wolfpack basketball players had violated rules by selling their sneakers and tickets. Allegations of point-shaving followed, but still have not been proven. Valvano repeatedly denied he was involved in any wrongdoing, but still the team was placed on two years' NCAA probation and barred from the 1990 post-season.
Newspaper editorials and the school's student legislature called for Valvano's resignation as coach. On April 7, 1909, after weeks of negotiations, he agreed to a buyout worth more than $800,000.
valvano was born March 10, 1946, in New York City. He attended Rutgers and was the school's senior athlete of the year in 1967. As a guard on the bas
ketball team, he finished his career with 1,122 points — 21st on the school's all-time list.
He began coaching in 1969 with a record of 10-9 at Johns Hopkins, the school's first winning team in 24 seasons. In 1973, Valvano moved to Bucknell and managed a winning season in his third and last year there. He coached at loma from 1975 to 1980.
Kansas coach Roy Williams, who was an assistant at North Carolina while Valvano was the coach of North Carolina State, said. "College basketball has lost one of the great ambassadors of the game. During his coaching career as well as his broadcasting career, he provided a great deal of excitement, color and character to whatever he did."
Scooter Barry battled Fred McCoy of Kansas State for a rebound during the 1988 NCAA tournament. Barry, who played for Kansas from 1985 to 1989, is playing professionally in the CBA.
KANSAN FILE PHOTO
Ex-'Hawk seeks NBA shot
Scooter Barry works to hone shooting skills
By Jim Buckle Special to the Kansar
After five years of playing professional basketball in the minor leagues, a member of Kansas' 1988 national championship team is not ready to give up his dream of playing in the National Basketball Association.
Scooter Barry, who played at Kansas from 1985 to 1989, is playing in the Continental Basketball Association, still waiting for an opportunity in the NBA.
Barry, playing for the Fort Wayne Fury of the CBA, said he was trying to work on all his skills so that he would have more opportunities and be more valuable to an NBA team.
When Barry joined Fort Wayne, he was reunited with his father, Rick Barry, the coach of the Fury and a member of the professional basketball hall of fame.
"I have been playing in the 1 (point guard) and 2 (shooting guard) positions," Barry said. "So I have been able to work on my ball-handling and shooting skills."
Scooter Barry said he welcomed the chance to play for his father.
"I enjoy playing for my dad because he knows the game and knows my capabilities." Scooter Barry said. "I have never had the opportunity before, but I have been able to work with my dad on individual aspects of my game."
According to Art Saltsberg, assistant general manager of the Fury, Scooter Barry has performed well for the team. In 17 games since joining the team, Barry started 12, hitting 54
As long as I see an opportunity to play in the NBA,I will continue to
play."
Scooter Barry
Former Kansas basketball player
percent of his shots from the floor and 90 percent from the free-throw line. He averaged 12 points a game. Saltsberg said that at the end of the season, Scooter Barry had become the team's leader at free throw shooting percentage and leading shooting percentage from the floor. The team had a 10-member squad.
Since graduating from the University with a degree in psychology, Scooter Barry has played professional basketball. He was invited to the Boston Celtics rookie camp in 1989 and survived in the veteran camp until the final cuts were made.
After being cut, he began his first stint in the CBA in his hometown of San Jose. Calif. In the summer of 1900, he played in the World Basketball League with teams in East Pennsylvania and Las Vegas.
Scooter Barry's career also took him overseas to play in Germany and Spain. While in Spain, he played for Herb Brown, the brother of former Kansas coach Larry Brown.
Scooter Barry said playing overseas had been a valuable opportunity for him.
"Iwasthe 'goto' guy in Germany," he said. "There was a lot of pressure, though, because if you failed, you got released."
He said he would play basketball as long as he could.
"As long as I see an opportunity to play in the NBA, I will continue to play," he said. "As long as I have the opportunity to play basketball, I don't want to take a 9 to 5 job."
- **rowning a trend in recent years,**
  Scooter Barry said that after his playing days were over he might become an announcer. He already has taken a step in that direction. Two years ago,
  he was the color analyst for ESPN's telecast of the CBA playoffs.
Zambian soccer team members killed in crash
The Associated Press
LIREVILLE. Gabon — A military aircraft carrying most of Zambia's national soccer team to a World Cup qualifying match crashed yesterday into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of this central African country minutes after takeoff. Rescuers said none of the 30 people on board could have survived. At least five regular team members were not on the flight.
By early afternoon, Gabonese troops had retrieved six bodies from among the aircraft's debris about one and a half miles from the ocean shore. Divers and boats patrolled an estuary and other inlets off the ocean and recovered pieces of plane over a two-mile area.
The Zambian air force transport plane was carrying 25 passengers and five crew members when it crashed minutes after midnight. The plane was 20 years old and recently had been serviced in Canada, Zambian sources said.
It was flying from Port Louis, capital of the Indian Ocean island nation of Mauritius, where the
Zambians had swept an African Cup of Nations qualifying match. The Zambian team was on its way to Senegal, on the northwest coast of Africa, to play in the second quality round of the 1994 World Cup. The plane had stopped to refuel in Libreville, Gabon's capital.
"A sad tragedy has befallen the nation, and it will take years to rebuild the national football team to such a level," Zambia's presidential office said.
The International Federation of Association Football, soccer's governing body, indefinitely postponed Sunday's game.
"As a gesture of sympathy, FIFA has requested all the organizers of this week's World Cup qualifying matches to observe one minute of silence and to fly flags in the stadium at half-mast," the FIFA office in Zurich, Switzerland, said.
Zambia has never played in the World Cup finals. It is in a qualifying group with Morocco and Senegal. The winner will advance to the 1994 tournament in the United States.
Weather washes out Kansas home baseball game
Kansan staff report
Heavy rains forced the cancellation of the No. 16 Kansas baseball team's game yesterday against Kansas State.
The game will not be made up. Under Big Eight Conference rules, games that are canceled because of inclement weather are not replayed
Kansas beat the Wildcats 6-3 Tuesday. The Jayhawks rallied from a 2-1 deficit by scoring five runs in the
eagerness innings on five consecutive RBI hits. Junior right-hander Chris Corn, 8-2 earned the victory.
The Jayhawks, 33-10 overall, are second in the Big Eight Conference with a 14-6 record.
Kansas and K-State begin a three-game weekend series at 7 p.m. Friday in Manhattan. Kansas returns to Hoglund-Maupin Stadium on Monday, playing host to Benediction in a make-up game.
Concerned, Confidential & Personal Health Care For Women
DIAGNOSIS & TREATMENT OF SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASES
SAFE AND AFFORDABLE ABORTION SERVICE
GYN CARE -- FREE PREGNANCY TESTING
BIRTH CONTROL -- INCLUDING NORPLANT
IMPLANTS
COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH FOR WOMEN
4401 West 109th (I-1435 & Roe)
Overland Park, Kansas
Toll Free 1-800-227-1918
Providing quality health care in current times 1974
VISA, Mastercard and Insurance plans accept
BANNER DAY CAMP
Now Hiring Summer Staff:
June 21 - August 13
Excellent Wages
Lake Forest, IL (25 miles north of Chicago)
1-800-726-4901 or (708) 295-4900
SO MUCH STUFF.
QUALITY EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES FOR
YOUR OUTDOOR NEEDS UNDER ONE ROOF.
804 MASSACHUSETTS
843-5000
Film developing at great rates at the KU Bookstores Kansas and Burge Unions. Level Two
Thinning Hair???
Professional Hair Development (PHD) has just opened a new office in Topeka, Kansas. PHD is a nonsurgical form of hair replacement, in which your new hair becomes part of you. PHD is the educated choice when making a decision to do something about your
thinning hair. Call now for a free brochure or to schedule a free private consultation.
1-800-945-7610
*A special promotion for college students and faculty Why wait? Make a positive change this summer!
"THRIFTY THURSDAY!" SAVE BIG BUCKS!
From Your Friends at Pyramid Pizza (of course!)
Fast & Friendly Delivery (limited area)
Thrifty Thursday Special
842-3232
Only $3.49 + tax
(carry out only)
Only $0.99 value
(carry out only)
For a small pizza
(add. tops only .75)
order 2 or more
for free delivery
Good
Thursday
Only!
PYRAMID
PIZZA
clip me
14th & OHIO (UNDER THE WHEEL)