SPORTS
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Friday, March 3, 1995
3B
GAME UNDER PROTEST
UMass, Rutgers ready for round II in Philly
Resuming of suspended game set for today
The Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA — Twenty-four days after it was interrupted by a student protest, the game between Massachusetts and Rutgers will be completed: 20 minutes on a neutral court with nobody quite sure of the proper deorum for playing half of a game.
The three biggest questions today at the Spectrum in Philadelphia will be:
Should players warm up harder or longer than usual because they will only play half as long as they usually do?
Should the coaches double their intensity because of the lack of comeback time should they fall behind?
"My question is," Massachusetts coach John Calipari said, "is halftime going to be at 10 minutes? I don't know how it's going to be."
No one does because suspended games are extremely rare in college basketball.
"There was nobody to call and ask for advice," Rutgers coach Bob Wenzel said.
On Feb. 7, Rutgers held a 31-29 halftime lead over then-No. 4 Massachusetts when about 150 Rutgers students staged a protest because of a racially-inflammatory statement made by school
president Francis Lawrence in a November speech.
The students refused to leave the court, and the game was suspended for safety and security reasons. There were no problems in the Scarlet Knight's three home games since then, but the Atlantic 10 Conference decided the completion would be played in Philadelphia, where the league's post-season tournament will be played.
"We determined the game should be completed at a neutral site, and since Philadelphia is the host for our tournament, we felt it would be convenient for both schools to have it there." Atlantic 10 commissioner Linda Bruno
said.
The half will have ramifications on the tournament as a victory by Rutgers (12-13, 7-8 Atlantic 10) would put them sixth in the league, a loss seventh, and thus change the pairings for the quarterfinals.
(22-4, 12-3) have already clinched the regular-season title for the fourth consecutive season.
Things have changed since the first half was played for both teams. Calipari since suspended senior guard Mike Williams, the team's best outside shooter, for the remainder of the season for unspecified violations of team rules.
Wenzel since suspended junior forward Charles Jones, the team's leading scorer, for the rest of the season for academic reasons.
Both played in the first half — Williams was 1-for-4 from the field and had three points, while
"I'm not saving we were going to win, but the scene was set for us, a sellout crowd of 9,000, we had the lead, no marcuss Camby." Wenzel said. "Now we're playing at four in the afternoon in Philadelphia. It's a totally different situation."
"I'm not saying we were going to win,but the scene was set for us...no Marcus Camby."
Bob Wenzel
Rutgers basketball coach
The eighth-ranked Minutemen
Jones we for-5 and had one point.
Camby, Massachusetts' sophomore center, wasn't even in the Rutgers Athletic Center when the first half was played.
He missed parts of four games with a strained right hamstring; the Rutgers
game was one of them, and two of the three were losses.
"When this guy plays, they just don't lose," Wenzel said.
The Spectrum will show a tape of the first half on the scoreboard for those who want to get the feel of a full 40 minutes of basketball.
UCLA coach says Bruins must bear the burdens of being No.1
The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Fans insist on autographs and pictures. The media swoops in for interviews and photo sessions. Players are hard-pressed to produce enough game tickets for friends, family and hangers-on.
Such hoopla is the part of being No.1 that UCLA coach Jim Harrick detests.
The Bruins (22-2) showed they were vulnerable to the extra attention by playing a poor first half against Southern California on Wednesday night. They rediscovered their defense and outscored the Trojans 47-27 in the second half for an 85-66 victory in their first game since taking over the top spot.
situation."
"With all the games and all the emotions, sometimes you're going to have a bad half," Harrick said. "We've had some unbelievable distractions this week. We lost our focus, and we have to address that
If Harrick can't make the point, seniors Ed O'Bannon, Tyus Edney and George Zidek do it for him. They provided an important reminder to freshmen Toby Bailey and J.R. Henderson at halftime against Southern Cal. The Bruins trailed by five for much of the first half, then managed to cut the deficit to one at the break.
"Tysus, Ed and George told us to calm down. We had to play defense," Bailey said. "We were struggling for outside shots when we should have been pounding it inside."
Bailey sparked UCLA in the second half, and the Bruins ended up with their 10th straight victory, clinching their first Pac-10 Conference championship since 1992.
They became the first team to earn a berth in the NCAA tournament, and they could probably clinch a top
seed for the NCAA tournament Sunday by beating Louisville on the road.
"It's great to know you're tops on the West Coast and get an automatic berth, " Charles O'Bannon said.
Although UCLA has been ranked no lower than sixth this season, much of the country just now is catching up with the Bruins and seeing them on national television.
The added exposure means more distractions for a team already besieged by pressure to win another national championship.
Ed O'Bannon refuses to let his head get turned by all the attention. Last year's humiliating first-round loss to Tulsa in the NCAA tournament reminds him how quickly things change.
"College basketball is full of hype, and as long as you get over the hype and play through it all, you'll be in pretty good shape," he said.
Public still marvels Colgate's star
Player's college choice goes beyond the game
The Associated Press
HAMILTON, N.Y. — Adonal Foyle never doubted he'd have an impact in his freshman season. He just never thought it would be so immediate or extend so far from the basketball court.
"It usually takes time," he said. "To come in as a freshman and dominate is very difficult. I think I have made a lot of progress."
ranked fourth nationally in rebounding (12.7) and third in blocked shots (5.0). He averaged 17.1 points and led Colgate (14-12, 11-3) to a share of the conference championship.
Foyle has made the basketball stuff look relatively easy. Heading into tomorrow's start of the Patriot League post-season tournament, Foyle finished the regular season
Off the court, Foyle has learned to deal with the unrelenting questions of why one of the nation's most talented high school players would choose Colgate over Duke, Syracuse and other basketball powers.
Foyle said he was bewildered by the media attention.
"I thought it would be a story that most everybody would know by now," said Foyle, who admitted he enjoyed the spotlight and knew it could benefit him.
Even David Letterman wanted him to appear on his TV show, but
"It was at a very crucial time (in early February)," he said. "I had a lot of papers. I was traveling on the road. I turned them down because I didn't have any time. I told them to call me back when I had a break."
Foyle declined.
Foyle's presence has helped his university, too.
"Applications are up 25 percent from two years ago," said Colgate Athletic Director Mark Murphy. "Corporations pay millions of dollars in advertising to do what Adonal has accomplished for us."
Colgate coach Jack Bruen still marvels at his star, who only took up basketball at age 15 at home on Union Island in the Caribbean.
"He can play like a man possessed.
He can take over a game," he said.