Thursday, November 14, 1985
Daily Nebraskan
Page 13
Hoppen
eads Red souaol to win
Sports
From Staff Reports
Al'RORA The Red squad, led by
center Dave Hoppen's 25 points and 8
rebounds, thrashed the White squad
73-51 in the Nebraska basketball team's
annual intrasquad scrimmage here Wed
nesday night.
Hoppen, the Cornhuskers' all-Big
Eight center, pushed his squad to a
19-point lead with 2:30 remaining in
the first half.
The Whites never came closer than
15 points the rest of the game.
Nebraska coach Moe Iba said he was
pleased with the way his squad played,
particularly Hoppen.
"Dave's a much-improved player over
last year," Iba said. "I really hope he
makes All-American because he de
serves it."
Hoppen, a senior, agreed with his
coach. He said he's a better rebounder
and has improved his inside game. He
said teammates have improved also.
"I thought the team played pretty
well but we got a little tired in the first
half," he said.
Ibasaid he was also pleased with the
play of the Huskers' guards. Anthony
Bailous poured in 10 points and junior
Brian Carr added 12.
"The key to our basketball team is
numbers," Iba said. "We've got more
guards that can play this year and every
year that we've had good guards, we've
had good teams."
Bailous' quickness, Iba said, will be
an asset to the Huskers' backcourt.
"Anthony played really well," he
said. "He's got so much speed he tends to
cruise. He's really going to help us."
Deak Vance, a 6-8, 210-pound junior
college transfer, led the Whites with 10
points. That was encouraging, Ibasaid.
"Deak is a good athlete," Iba said,
"but he really needs to lose some
weight."
Iba said he's encouraged by his
team's depth, but isn't sure how well
they'll fare in a game situation,
playing in a regular ball game," Iba
said. "We did a number of things right
and a number of things wrong."
The depth, Iba said, helps the Hus
kers when they need to substitute.
"I think we'll be able to substitute a
lot more this year and not lose much,"
he said.
Nebraska will open it's season Mon
day against the Czechoslovakia national
team. Iba said he knows little about
the Czechs, but said they have good
shooters because all European teams
do.
Omahans follow yellow brick road to Kansas, success
By Kevin McCoy
Staff Reporter
When the Kansas Jayhawks take the court this
fall as Big Eight conference favorites and national
cont enders, many Nebraskans will find a special
reason to follow the team's fortunes.
That is because three of the top players are
from, of all places, Nebraska.
Senior Ron Kellogg from Omaha Northwest,
sophomore Cedric Hunter from Omaha South
and freshman Jerry Johnson from Omaha Benson
will be wearing Kansas blue this season. These
three were the most successful and most highly
recruited Nebraska prep stars of recent years.
"Those three kids are going to be in the top
seven or eight in our program," said Coach Larry
Brown.
Kellogg led the Jayhawks with a 17.6 scoring
average last season, earning first team all-Big
Eight honors.
Brown called Hunter "our most improved
player," and said Johnson should see a lot of
playing time this season. Brown attended nearly
all of Johnson's games last year at Benson where
Johnson averaged 24.6 points and 10.3 rebounds
a game. He was the only freshman the Jayhawks
signed.
So how was Kansas able to land so many of
Nebraska's top recruits?
Brown cited Kansas' "great tradition" and
good academic reputation as two factors. He also
said Lawrence's proximity to Omaha and recruits'
familiarity with the Big Eight conference give
Kansas an advantage over other Division I bas
ketball powers.
Although Brown said he hasn't found playing
in the Big Eight conference to be a recruiting
problem, he did say the area's small population
makes out-state recruiting vital. Nearby cities
such as Kansas City, Denver and Omaha are
important recruiting grounds, he said.
Brown said he thinks Omaha produces excel
lent basketball talent for a city of its size.
"It's been darn good to me," he said. "I've
seen a lot of kids who can play. They turn out a
lot of Division I prospects."
Kellogg said Kansas' strong tradition and the
opportunity to grow away from home contributed
to his decision to leave the state.
"It was one of the smartest decisions I ever
made," he said.
Both Hunter and Johnson said the quality of
the coaching staff influenced their decision to
play for Kansas.
"They have a better coaching staff than
almost all schools," Johnson said.
Hunter said Brown and the desire "to stay
pretty close to home" were the main reasons he
chose Kansas. He said one reason he decided to
go to Kansas instead of Nebraska was that Brown
promised him they would play more of a running
style of basketball.
"People don't look at Nebraska as a basket
ball state," Hunter said. Kellogg added that
Nebraska's football success probably hurts its
ability to land a lot of basketball recruits
because it has the reputation of being a "football
school."
All three Nebraskans live in KU's Jayhawk
Towers. Kellogg and Hunter even room together.
"We hang together a lot," Hunter said.
Johnson said having two players from his
home town has helped in adjusting to college
and to major-college basketball.
"They've played a big role," Johnson said.
"Whenever I have problems I can go down and
talk to them."
Johnson said he gets some flak from other
players because he is the only freshman on the
squad, but thinks his play has earned him the
respect of his teammates. However, he said Kan
sas' season-opening midnight practice in front of
6,000 fans was kind of intimidating for a freshman.
"I was pretty nervous," Johnson said.
Hunter started 26 of Kansas' 34 games last
year as ball-handling guard and averaged 6.7
points with 145 assists.
Brown said Hunter has been the Jayhawks'
most impressive player in full practice.
"Whenever we scrimmage, his team always
wins," Brown said.
Hunter said he worked hard in the off-season
to improve his shot and his confidence.
"Last year I wasn't that confident," Hunter
said. "I think a lot of teams thought they could
sag off on our big men."
Kellogg spent the summer with teammate
Greg Dreiling and Nebraska's Dave Hoppen
competing in the World University Games in
Japan. He said he played in five of six games and
averaged about 1 1 points per game.
"It was a great experience," Kellogg said.
Kellogg said playing under international rules
and being exposed to different styles of play
helped develop his game.
Brown said Kellogg has potential to play in the
NBA.
"He can shoot well enough, but he needs to
improve his ball-handling skills," Brown said.
"But he's a diligent worker."
Kellogg shot 57.6 percent from the field last
season.
Kellogg said the media attention surrounding
players like Wayman Tisdale and Danny Manning
has given Big Eight players a lot more recogni
tion. However, he said, the best thing he could do
to improve his stock with NBA scouts would be to
play ih whatever role helps Kansas have the best
season.
All three players said they keep close ties to
Omaha and like to visit home when they get the
chance. They also agreed that Omaha's high
school competition prepared them for major
college basketball.
Johnson said he thinks Omaha players are
even with high school players across the nation.
"I think it's based more on motivation and
determination," he said.
"I think the players in Omaha are just as good
as about anywhere," Hunter said.
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Photo Courtesy of Kansas Sports Informttlon
Photo courtesy Kansas Sports Information
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