4B Wednesday, January 31, 1996 UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN --- BIG EIGHT BASKETBALL Colorado short-handed in basketball department Buffaloes will play with fewer coaches for the rest of'96 The Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Ricardo Patton knew immediately that his Colorado players were not as fired up for Iowa State on Saturday as they had been four days earlier for Kansas. Against Kansas, Patton's first game as interim coach, the Buffaloes lost by two points. They lost at home to the Cyclones by 12. "I noticed it after the team came in after warm-ups for the Iowa State game," said Patton, whose Buffalobeat miss Missouri 106-94 Monday night in their first Big Eight win. "Before the Kansas game, they were all drenched with sweat. Then for the Iowa State game, they had a lot of dry heads and dry faces. I knew they didn't warmed up with the same intensity." The Buffalooes apparently will work short-handed the rest of the year in the coaching department. Scott Sanderson, who was Joe Harrington's closest assistant, has been reassigned in the athletic department. He won't be replaced this year, leaving Patton without a full staff. "We're a staff of three versus a staff of four," said Patton, who was elevated from the assistant ranks and was named interim coach when Harrington resigned. "Right now, I don't see any reason we can't do the job. We may have to stay a little later, get up a little earlier. If I'm given the job on a permanent basis, we'll fill that position." Although he admits he wants the job full time, Patton insists he doesn't feel any pressure. "The only thing I want to do is build some character in some young men who need some guidance and make sure we come out and look and act as a team and we give maximum effort," he said. "Those are the goals I've set for myself. These are the things the administration wants to see." Patton said the Sanderson move wasn't personal. The Iowa State team that beat Patton's Buffaloes has turned out to be one of two major surprises in the Big Eight season. The Cyclones were picked eighth in the preseason poll, right behind Kansas State. But going into this week, the Cyclones are 15-4 and 4-1. They are second place in the league, one length ahead of K-State (13-5, 4-2). Since 1980-81, only twice have teams that were picked last or next-to-last in the preseason poll wound up in the upper division. Iowa State's success seems most surprising since the Cyclones, under second-year coach Tim Floyd, are adjusting to the graduation of three of their finest players ever. Loren Meyer, Julius Michalik and Fred Hoiberg. Is it possible the 1995-96 Cyclones could be better than the Meyer-Michalik-Ioiberg team? "I don't sure that we can because we don't score as well as last year's team," Floyd said. "We have nights when we struggle getting the ball in the basket. We are doing some things a little better than last year's team. But we're not going to dominate anybody. And there were times last year when we could beat people by 20, 25 points." K-State, prior to Saturday's 86-80 loss to Missouri, had won five straight away from home. "You gain poise with experience," said K-State assistant coach David Campbell. "We've got some guys who were here last year, Tyrone Davis and Mark Young and Elliott Hatcher. Then we upgraded talent with new faces." Moore makes the rounds from one court to another The Associated Press WESTMINSTER, Colo. — Martice Moore of Colorado pleaded guilty to shoplifting and was fined $150 in Westminster Municipal Court. in westminster Municipal Court Hours later he played a key role in his team's upset of Missouri Moore entered the plea on Monday, and on Monday night the 6-foot-8 junior from Atlanta scored 25 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in Colorado's 106-94 Big Eight victory over Missouri. His mother, who came to Colorado over the week end, paid his fine. Former coach Joe Harrington said any player who broke the law would be suspended. Harrington resigned on Jan. 16, however, apparently giving all players a clean slate from that date forward. Interim coach Ricardo Patton said Moore would not be disciplined further. He said the incident "occurred before my tenure began, and Martice knows that he's got to walk the straight-and-narrow now." Moore was arrested Dec. 14 and charged with shoplifting a jersey and sweatshirt from a department store in the Westminster Mall. Earlier, Moore and his roommate, Mack Tuck, agreed to permanent restraining orders after an 18-year-old woman accused them of raping her in their apartment in September Conference boasts hot shooters Big Eight ranks high above other leagues in some percentages Through Sunday, Big Eight Conference men's basketball teams have combined for the nation's best shooting percentage — 46.7 percent. The conference also ranks second nationally in field-goal percentage defense at .411 percent, trailing only the Southeastern Conference's .402 percent. In terms of scoring, the Big Eight is third at 78.38 points a game. Only the Southwest Conference, 78.55 points, and the Big East Conference, 78.53 points, rank higher. Colorado assistant coach Scott Sanderson has resigned from his position but remains in the Colorado athletic department. The change comes after Joe Harrington resigned as head coach. Norm Stewart "I informed him that if I was hired, I would make a staff change at that time," Colorado interim coach Ricardo Patton said. Missouri coach Norm Stewart will coach his 1,000th career game when the Tigers play Oklahoma on Saturday. He will become only the 10th coach in NCAA history to do so. ■ Colorado 6-foot-7 sophomore center Ted Kritza on the departure of 10 players 6-10 or taller from the Big Eight: "I feel like I won the lottery. You get rid of those guys, it's like parting the Red Sea for a 6-7 guy." No. 3 Kansas is currently the only Big Eight team ranked in either the Associated Press or USA Today-CNN Top 25 Polls. Johnson's comeback sparks renewed interest in Lakers, NBA Compiled by Kansan sportswriter Jenni Carlson The Associated Press For instance, one of the players he faces Tuesday night is Golden State Warriors rookie Joe Smith, who was just four years old when Johnson led the Lakers to the INGLEWOOD, Calif. — There hasn't been this kind of a buzz in the Forum since the days when Pat Riley was stalking the sidelines, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was hoisting sky hooks and Magic Johnson was threading passes. Now Johnson is back after two forced retirements and a frustrating coaching stint. But a lot has changed since Magic Johnson last played in the NBA. first of five NBA titles. If Smith wasn't old enough to remember it, Lakers forward Eddie Jones was. Jones recalls watching Game Six of the NBA Finals when Johnson scored 42 points and played all five positions. There's a whole new crop of NBA superstars Johnson has never played against, including Orlando's Shaquille O'Neal and Anfernee Hardaway, Detroit's Grant Hill and Dallas' Jason Kidd. "I was about 12 or something like that," said Jones, who was actually nine then. "At that time, I just thought he was the best ever." Only two Los Angeles players, Vlade Divac and Elden Campbell, were on the team during his last 1990-91 season, and many of Johnson's contemporaries have retired or moved into the broadcast booth. Michael Cooper, a guard with Johnson on five of the Lakers' championship teams, is now an assistant to Lakers coach Del Harris and a bit unsure how to coach his former teammate. "I was thinking about that the other day," Cooper said. "How do you tell a great player to get up off his butt and get it going? I'll just give him a look here and there. I have to differentiate between the thing we had before as player-player and kind of separate the two." Most of all, Johnson has changed, and along with him his role on the Lakers. Age, 27 extra pounds and fighting the virus that causes AIDS have altered his body, making him better suited for the low post than running the floor the way he used to. "It's different. He's not going to be a point guard," Harris said. "You have Earvin Johnson and Earvin Johnson 2. File away what you used to see. That was that. Now this is this. It's almost like his twin brother coming in now who happens to be an inside type of player. He had a twin brother who was a ballhandling guy." chise as well. One of the toughest tickets in pro sports when Johnson was playing. Lakers home games ranked 25th of 29 NBA teams this season, a trend that is unlikely to persist now that Johnson has returned. Much has changed with the Lakers fran- About 2,300 tickets for Tuesday night's game were available when he made his comeback official. In about five hours, they were gone, giving the Lakers just their second sellout in 22 home games this season. Brokers were asking as much as $300 a ticket, and for Friday night's game with Chicago, which had been sold out even before Johnson returned, the price is up to $1,000. The Associated Press Nuggets' coach humble about keeping job Bickerstaff said he also might resign if he believes he is not getting the job done. DENVER — Denver Nuggets coach Bernie Bickerstaff is ready to do whatever the team's owners want him to even if that means giving up his job as coach. The Nuggets, 17-25, are 10th in the Western Conference in the race for the top eight playoff spots. "I'm an organization guy," said Bicker-staff, who is also president and general manager. "I always have been. Whatever they want me to do, I'll do." They are one-half game ahead of the Los Angeles Clippers and one game behind Golden State and Phoenix, which are eighth and ninth respectively. Bickerstaff took over as coach last year when Dan Issel quit in the middle of the season. Ascent Entertainment Group, owner of the Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche, has said no changes are planned in the basketball operations. Bickerstaff said Lyons had asked him take over as coach and could ask him to give it up. Ascent president Charlie Lyons has praised Bickerstaff for holding the team together during tough times. could watch my son play," he said of J.B. Bckerstaff, who plays for Denver's East Side High. "So it's no big thing to me. If they want me to go back upstairs, that's what I'll do." In the absence of such a request, Bickerstaff said he would review his performance and decide whether to step aside. "I'd be all right if I wasn't doing this. I "It's my job to get this basketball team in position to become consistent winners," he said. Bickerstaff acknowledged the Nuggets must improve. The team ended the first second half of the season at 16-25, on a pace to finish 18 games under 500. The club opened the second half of the season with a win Saturday. Submissions can be dropped off at the Kansan newsroom, 111 Stauffer-Flint Hall, or faxed to 864-5261. The sports editors reserve the right to accept or reject letters, as well as edit them for style, length and content. Questions? Please call Tom Erickson or Bill Petulla at 864-4810. To send us letters for "Sports Rap," the sports page's weekly forum for any topic in the sporting world. Letters should be typed, double-spaced, and 200-300 words in length. They should include the author's name, year in school, hometown and a daytime phone number. 841-6966 914 Mass. Mon-Sat 29th & Mass. St 12-8pm Topeka Tues. till 6pm 233-8288 Fine Line Tattoo Inc. •Fraternity & Sorority Letters •Body Piercing •Bring your own design or choose from our extensive selection •Reasonably priced •Hospital sterilization We're looking for a few good readers... LAW OFFICE JD& Nathaniel K. Hsieh LLM 谢晓康 律师寄聘所 - Employment-based 1st & 2nd Preference - National Interest Waiver - Political Asylum/Deportation - Visa Applications & Extensions Immigration: (319) 339-4200 335 S. Clinton Street, Suite 200 Iowa City, Iowa 52240 ATTN:STUDENTS Board of Class Officers(BOCO) will be taking nominations for the C.L.A.S.S. Award Citation for Leadership and Achievement in Student Services Nominations will be taken Jan. 31 and Feb.1 at a table in the Kansas Union from 10-2:00 p.m. Md holes