Oregon Doily El 1X101*31(1
Ducks overcome 42-point performance for 71-69 win
j Hartford star for
ward Vin Baker goes
wild in a losing effort
By Steve Mims
frtm,va Sports Hepwic
The Oregon men's basketball
team overt amt* an itn redibln
perfurmaiu c hv Hartford fur
ward Vin Baker and defeated
the Hawks 71 f»‘) Monday night
,ii McArthur ( ourt in Ili»•
Due ks filial noii-t onfereiu e
gaum this season
Maker ored -Id pottr!■- and
gratified I I rebounds but lie
missed a tlirei pointer -it the fi
rial btiz/er that would have giv
en the Hawks the v ic.torv
Oregon had its i liam e to put
the game out of real h late in
the second half, but the Din ks
missed four of their lillal sis
free throws and gave Hartford
life until the end
The llmks looked like the\
would i lose the Hawks out
with II 74 remaining in the
game when forward Clyde (or
dan's lav-up gave Oregon a
.VI-4H lead, but Hartford re
fused to give up.
Baker scored seven t oiiscku
tivo points and assisted on a
Shawn Kllisnn dunk that cut
Oregon's lead to 59-fi'i with
U O.'i left to plav The Din ks
name bat k w ith four straight
points but Baker responded
with eight consecutive points
followed hv a rebound basket
hv Ku ardo Koderit k that lied
(he game at fir> t»f» with 4 Hi re
mauling in the game
After Jeff Potter hit two free
throws to give Oregon the lead
again, guard Andre Collier hit a
t2-foc»t jump shot to give Ore
gon a WM.5 lead with two min
utes left to play
Baker responded with a short
hank shot, and after each team
hit two free throws, the Dm ks
led only f>‘* with tl seconds
left and Hartford had the twill.
The I la v% k s chose to let Aver
lake the shot with HI seconds
left, lint (its shot well I off the
iron and Hartford fouled
Stnudnmire with nine sis onds
remaining
"Ayer went by their guard on
the pins Iwfnre so we let him
Irx to do it again. Hartford
head ( oai h Paul HrnZeau said
"His shot was a little oil ha!
ante hut lie got a good Io*ik at
the hoop
Stoudamire < ouhi have put
the game awns but he missed
both free throws to give [hiker a
i flam e to will (nit (us three
pointer went oil the rim
I got a good shot imt I
thought I may [lave lieen loul
ed (taker said I can't exjiet t
lo get a foul ■ ailed 2,100 miles
from home
forward [elf Potter was the
Dinks main offensive (one.
si ormg Hi points, tutting five of
HI shots from tlie field and all
six free throws
"I felt like nn teammates
were looking lor me inside.
Potter said I.ui kilv I was able
to put some shots in "
Williams ami ( oilier added
M uni 12 points, respectively,
lor the Dinks Stoudamire had
a tough night Irom the field,
hitting only two of 1.( shots and
scoring six points, hut contrib
uted eight rebounds and seven
assists lor the Dm ks
Oregon struggled from the
field all night shooting only 42
pen fill lor the game I he game
was i lose throughout the hrst
hall Ins .line Hartford shot 14
pen enl from the held to trail
onlv tti 11 at halftime
"We hit a groove a couple of
times, but there were periixls
when we seemed to go oil vai a
tion." Oreon said "After hall
Turn lo HARTFORD Parp> 13
PN.H* ’ ^yittnCHd
Oregon forward Jeff Potter rams dome two of his team-high 16 points In the Ducks victory Monday.
Colleae football 1992: Not the most memorable year
Some final random thoughts on the mentis com
pleted l'ttl2 college foot ball season
lust Win Baby: I was as happy as the next |ht
son to set? the national title stripped from Miami in
Alabama on New Year's Day. but unfortunately, the re
suit will probably only continue the unfortunate trend
of college coaches and administrators ignoring the oil
field actions of their players
Most people consider Miami to lx- the dirtiest pro
gram in the nation, but if this is the i axe, Alabama isn't
far behind In fait.
A I a b a m a n e v e r
1
From the
Sidelines
Steve Mims
would have won me
national • harnpion
ship if head i oath
Gene Stallings
would have put dis
< ipline ahead of w in
ning
noiore mis season
started. Alabama's all-purpose superstar David Palmer
wait arrested twice for drunk driving, Stallings should
have l looted the 1‘t-vear old Palmer off of the team im
mediately. hut instead slapped him on the wrist and
gave him a one-game suspension. Palmer went on to he
a valuable contributor for the Crimson Tide and plated
a hig part in its undefeated season.
Stallings, a coach known for his tough discipline,
blow the tall in this situation. There is no excuse for
letting a youngster who has twice put his own life and
the lives of innocent drivers in jeopardy because he
didn't know when to say when
Just Win Baby, Part Two: The recent firing of USC
head coach I-arrv Smith and the subsequent hiring of
|ohn Robinson is another example of programs putting
winning ahead of fair ploy.
All Smith did during his six years in l.os Angeles was
lead the team to a record of 44-25-3 against one of the
toughest schedules in the country every year, graduate
his players and run a relatively < lean program. His re
ward: a one-way tu ket to the unemployment olfi< e
John Kohinson went 07-14-2 at USC. but his teams
were ineligible for postseason play three times during
Ins tenure Ins ause of NCAA rules violations Obviously
the Trojans are not worried about graduation rates and
violations, just wins and losses
Kohinson w ill find the Pat ific-10 Conferenc e a lot dif
ferent than it was when he left in 1982. Gone are the
days when every top high sc hool player in California
dreams about suiting up for the Trojans. Instead, they
look around the rest of the conferenc e and the entire
country for a school.
Robinson will surely find a quality running hue k for
his system, but his student body left-student body right
running game will not lie the power that it once was
For proof, just look, at the rushing defenses in the Pac
10 this your Defenses are more prepared and more tal
ented than they were in the past. and if Robinson thinks
he c an just give the ball to his running back and the vie -
tories will start coming, he is sorely mistaken It will
take a balanc ed offense to win the Par-10 in the 1'1‘ios
Top Conference: During the past season Pat 10
coaches were telling anyone who would listen that their
conference was the best in the nation, but they failed to
show the rest of the nation during the past week
The Pac -10 went 2-4 during the postseason, with loss
es against teams from the Atlantic: Coast Conference.
Southwest Conference and Western Athletic Confer
ence. Stanford was the most impressive Pac-10 school
during the postseason, beating Penn State to finish with
a No. 0 ranking in the final Assoc lated Press poll, and
Washington State struggled to beat Utah of the WAC.
While Pac-10 teams were falling, the Southeastern
Conference made a major statement for feeing the liest
conference in the country. The SEC went 5-1 in bowl
games, including three wins on New Year's Day. SEC
teams pulled off victories over teams from the Big 10.
ACC and Big East
Wail Til Next Year: for those of vou still drowning
sour sorrows after Oregon's collapse m the Indepen
dence Howl, there is good news Spring drills are just a
couple of months awav This is when the 1993 Duck
squad begins play, and there is reason to In- optimistic..
The Ducks return lr> players who started most of the
games in 1992. and a nunifier of other players who
played significant roles during the season
On defense, the Dm ks will lose Jeff Cummins, Joe
Harwell and Eric Castle, three players who will he
missed for their leadership as much .is their talent. Da
vid Massey and Jeremy Asher should fill in well at line
bac ker for Harwell, and Chad Cota's ability to play fwith
safety positions should make Rich Brooks' job of replai •
ing Castle easier.
The biggest question mark is at defensive end. where
Oregon has a lot of play ers ready to replac e Cummins,
hut none have shown the ability to start in the I’ac -10
yet
On offense, tint Duc ks entire bac kfield and right side
of the offensive line w ill return. The Due ks should have
enough depth to fill out the offensive line, but the big
gest question murk will lie at wide receiver. Ronnie
Harris and Anthony Jones are gone, but while Derrick
Dendwiler returns at one receiver spot, nobody has
stepped forward at the other spot
The biggest returnee for the Ducks is kicker/punter
Tommy Thompson, who will give the Ducks a potent
weapon if he can forget the final three games of the
1992 season
If Oregon can have another relatively injury-free sea
son and a few players step up at key positions, the
Ducks should lie looking at another postseason bid in
1993.
Steve Mims is a sports reporter for the Emerald