Sports
10_________
WedNEsdAy, J anuary 50, 2002
The ClAckAMAS P r ¡
ïi-
Cougars look to declaw Panthers tonight
NICK BARRON
Business Manager
As another week passes by, Clacka
mas’ men’s basketball team remained
in first place in the Southern Division
and dropped to second in the
NWAACC Coaches’ Poll, after defeat
ing both of their opponents.
On Jan. 23, the Chemeketa Storm
rolled into Randall Gym to play in front
of a packed house in their attempt to
try to knock the division-leading Cou
gars from their perch. Chemeketa
grabbed the lead early on, scoring on
their first four trips down the court As
the first half wore on, Clackamas was
unable to contain the Chemeketa scor
ers, leaving the Cougars trailing by six
at the half.
In the second half, Clackamas slowly
chipped away at Chemeketa’s lead,
tying the game at56-56 with 8:30 left to
play. Just over a minute later, the Cou
gars were able to go in front by two
points. But with every score Clacka
mas made, the Storm kept pace, knot
ting the score up at 64-64 with 4:20
remaining in the match.
As the final three minutes of play
evaporated, both teams traded the lead
back and forth.
Cougar fans have been treated to
great basketball games this season,
with the home team winning numer-
ous matches in the final seconds. This
was to be no different, as the air of
expectancy in the gymnasium rose with
every second. The clock stood at 47
seconds left and the score was tied at
71. Chemeketa took a four-point lead
with just 22 seconds remaining in the
game, but .then Mat Tondreau of
Clackamas stepped up and hit a 3-
pointer to bring his team within one.
The next venture down the court
for the Storm brought a foul call against
the Cougars, giving the visitors two
free throw opportunities, with
Chemeketa making only one of two.
With just seconds left in the duel,
Clackamas’ Marvin Noble brought the
ball down the court, looking for a shot
When Noble felt he had one, he of
fered it up, missing the jumper. The
Cougars’ Michael Kuebler, no stranger
to late-game heroics, grabbed the re
bound and put it in, tying the game at
76 to send it into overtime.
In theextraperiod, Clackamas domi
nated Chemeketa, as the home team
seemed confident in their ability to se
cure the victory. The Cougars
outscored Chemeketa 15-7 inovertime,
en route to a hard-earned 91-83 vic
tory.
Kuebler, Cougar hero for the night,
dropped in 30 points, which led the
team. Nobleadded 17 to the Clackamas
effort, followed by Matt Tabisz with
16. Tondreau snatched
12 rebounds for Clacka
mas, with nine coming
on the defensive end of
the court. Chemeketa
won the turn over battle,
forcing the Cougars to
cough the ball up 22
times. But it was the re
bounding that handed
Clackamas the victory,
as the Cougars out-re
bounded the Storm 47-
36
After their emotional
home game against
Chemeketa, the Cougars
welcomed Linn-Benton
to town. Clackamas con
trolled the entire match,
with the Roadrunners
lacking the speed to run
with the Cougars, losing
by a score of95-88.
Again it was Kuebler
who led Clackamas in
scoring, with 27 points,
trailed by Evan Kieling
and Lawson Struve with 16. Noble was
the leader in the assist category, with
four. The Cougars out-rebounded their
opponent yet again, 36-29, helping
Clackamas to score 18 second chance
points.
Despite another perfect week for the
Keepin* it real for the STL
By Nick Barron
Recently a friend of mine
stormed into. The Print and
voiced obvious displeasure with
one of my favorite athletes, St.
Louis Rams quarterback Kurt
Warner. Her beef was triggered
by a Fox Sports special on the
Arena Football League-turned-
two-time NFL Most Valuable
Player, in which Mr. Warner ap
parently “preached” about his
religious beliefs.
Of course I took umbrage with
her anger, which I felt was an
other attempt at an “open-
minded” Oregonian to undermine
a classic Midwesterner’s views.
I explained to her that very sel
dom does a superb athlete come
from the area that I call home. I
continued to tell her that those
in th? Midwest tire of East or
West Coast sports personalities
grabbing the highlights and win
ning the awards, blabbering in
cessantly about themselves and
the injustices wrought upon
them by other multi-million dol
lar athletes.
In Kurt Warner’s case, he was
a virtual nobody until that fate
ful 1999-2000 season in which he
was king, leading a consistent
loser to a Super Bowl victory.
What he did on the field was
aipazing enough, but it was in
front of the microphones in which
Warner won the hearts of many
fans in the Midwest. Kurt
shrugged off questions that at
tempted to belittle his teammates
or coaches, instead praising all
those who aided him in his quest
to become the prolific passer he
is today, including God.
Perhaps Warner doesn’t re
semble the faceless athlete that
many people hope for, the kind
of man or woman who does the
job and goes home. But when
one is shoved in front of report
ers and television cameras, it is
because they are expected to
speak. In an occupation in which
numerous athletes are “mis
quoted” or utter phrases of de
meaning and conceited thought,
at least Kurt Warner has chosen
Kurt
Warner...will not
be arrested for
treating his wife
like a tackling
dummy."
a cause that does not include the
phrase “I want” or “I didn’t get.”
The city of St. Louis realized
that they had something truly
special. In this man who always
wears a five o’ clock shadow on
his face, Rams fans found a per
son who represents them, on the
largest stage. Not all Midwest
erners agree with Warner’s views,
even many faithful Ram fans
don’t believe in what Kurt be
lieves in. But they still admire
him, for they know that their
quarterback is a man of values
that most athletes forget about
once their name is mentioned on
SportsCenter.
In Kurt Warner, St. Louis has
gained an athlete who will not be
arrested for treating his wife like
a tackling dummy. Rams fans
watch their team perform with the
knowledge that their leader is not
addicted to cocaine, steroids or
painkillers. In short, the people
of St. Louis believe in Warner not
just for his athletic abilities, but
because they know he will not
disgrace the name of one of the
best sports cities in the nation.
So, even if they don’t concur
with all that flows from Kurt
Warner’s mouth, they love him
because he can do things that
most cannot. I’m not talking
about placing a 50-yard pass into
the hands of a wide receiver, but
about being a real person, even
when most people believe you
are so much more. For the most
part, if any one of us were thrust
into the life that Kurt Warner
lives, we would not be able to
turn down a salary like the one
in which Warner did. Our wives
might become women who watch
the children while we play “doc
tor” in a hotel room with a hooker.
Perhaps Midwesterners are
backward. Maybe the city of St.
Louis should muzzle Warner, in
order to keep him from “pushing”
his views onto other people. But
most people back home don’t
care if people on the coasts of
the United States have a prob
lem with our athletes’ beliefs. We
have been putting up with yours
for long enough.
I
Mat
Tondrea
of
Clackam
drives
toward
the bask
against tC!
Chemek He
on Jan. lb
23.
Tondre&a
■k
scored |m
n/ne IL
points I s
against |le
the StoM.
and
si
grabbed vi
12
rebounci fi
in the
Cougars
91-83 wi
p'
le
Cougars, they lost their number-one
ranking in the Coaches’Poll to Tacoma.
Southwestern and Lane, members of
the Southern Division with Clackamas,
are ranked fifth and eight in the poll,
respectively. Both teams have fallen
to the Cougars this season.
The next stop for Clackamas is K |f
Jan. 30, a team which has strugg"
this year, holding a 4-15 season recJ
r
On Feb. 2, the Cougars make their
down 1-5 to meet the Lane TitaJ
whose4-2 league record is third in J
Southern Division.
Cougar Athletics
Men's Basketball
@ PCC (Jan. 30) 5:30 pm
@ Lane (Feb. 2) 4:00 pm
Women's Basketball
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