Wednesday, December 10, 1986
Daily Nebraskan
Page 9
5
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By Rob White
Staff Reporter
In Nebraska's 85-50 victory over
Southern Illinois last year, shooting
was the key as the Cornhuskers outshot
the Salukis 62.1 percent to 3S.1 per
cent. In tonight's rematch in Carbon
dale, Southern Illinois coach Rich Her
ri n feels that will hold true once again.
"I think good shooting will be the
key to the basketball game," Herrin
said. "When we shoot well, we're a
pretty good basketball team, when we
don't we're not."
Nebraska's Dave Hoppen made nine
of nine shots from the field in last
year's game and guard Harvey Marshall
hit six of eight shots, but both are gone
this year. Still, the Huskers return
Anthony Bailous (17.3 points per game
this year) and three other double
figure scorers for the Salukis to con
tend with.
"They've got a lot of scorers, a lot of
good ballplayers," Herrin said. "(Ber
nard) Day is a great athlete and Bailous
is a great athlete and (Brian) Carr is a
good, smart guard. They're a good bas
ketball team."
The Salukis are off to a 3-2 start after
two consecutive losses in the Virginia
Invitational. Southern Illinois fell to
the host Cavaliers, 94-82, and to New
Orleans, 93-77.
"We're making progress," Herrin said.
"Our two losses came to good ball
clubs."
The Salukis' offense will once again
hinge on guard Steve Middleton and
forward Doug Novsek. Both are averag
ing bettor than 15 points per game.
"We rely on Novsek and Middleton
on offense," Herrin said. "We're an out
side basketball team, we've got a new
center, but we'll never be a great inside
team this year. We need to play well
from the perimeter.
Junior college transfer Tim Richard
son has stepped into the pivot for the
Salukis and has posted averages of 10
points and 7.6 rebounds per game thus
far. Herrin doesn't feel Richardson, 6-9,
will have an advantage inside against
Nebraska's Bill Jackman, a converted
forward, and forwards Day (6-4) and
Bailous (6-2).
"He's a strong player, but he needs
to refine his game some," Herrin said of
Richardson. "I think it's a toss-up
inside."
The Salukis will need to control the
Huskers' fast break, Herrin said.
"We know they run an up-tempo
game and we've got to get back and
stop their fast break," Herrin said.
"They can score, and against Cal-Irvine
they scored a bundle (101 points). They
play good defense, too."
Herin said that while Nebraska did
race to a 35-point victory last season,
his club does have a chance this time
around.
"They annihilated us last year," Her
rin said. "They really played a great
ball game and took us out of it early.
But we are a better team than we were
last year."
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Dave BentzDaily Nebraskan
Nebraska's Derrick Vick attempts a jumper over Creighton's Kenny Evans last Saturday in the
Cornhuskers' 78-66 loss to the Bluejays. Vick and the Huskers will try to bounce back against
Southern Illinois tonight in Carbondale.
Sportswriters have ups and downs
enite oeenF allm the Tbylme off dnnty
"It must be great to be a sports writer!"
I hear it all the time from my friends. Some
times I really can't argue.
After all, it's nice to watch Nebraska sporting
events at home and away from the comfortable
confines of the press box and media sections.
Since I began working at the Daily Nebraskan in
Chuck
Green
September 1985, I've traveled to such places as
Tempe, Ariz., Columbia, S.C., Kansas City, Min
neapolis, Dallas and Manhattan, Kan. (Manhat
tan, Kan.?) just to name a few, to cover Nebraska
sporting events all at the DN's cost. And what
sports fan would pass up the opportunity to meet
and interview such well-known and respected
sports personalities as Barry Switzer, Bo Schem
bechler, Lou Holtz, Larry Brown, Phil Niekro, Art
Schilichter, Brian Bosworth and any member of
Nebraska's sports teams? It's all a lot of fun.
Unfortunately, the fun isn't always present.
There lurks a dark side of sports writing.
Press-box food isn't always the tastiest. And
driving to places like Boulder, Colo., and Stil
lwater nwi a fi q m to vpr men's and
women's basketball games and then write
separate stories for the DN and other Nebraska
newspapers on a half-hour deadline isn't always
an example of a great weekend. Especially after
a long week of classes.
Often, opposing coaches and athletes and
occasionally Nebraska coaches and athletes
aren't the most cooperative people to talk to.
Meeting deadlines isn't very much fun, either,
particularly when you have to study for three
tests in one week. To top it all off, staying in the
office until midnight or 1 a.m. and then going to
a 7:30 class the next morning has taught me a
new meaning of the word "exhaustion."
All this makes for a hectic and exciting sche
dule and I wouldn't trade it. I've often heard
people say that hard work won't kill anybody, but
I nearly found out otherwise Monday, Dec. 1,
while I was on my way to cover the Nebraska
Oregon basketball game at the Bob Devaney
Sports Center.
Most students at UNL remember that night as
the first edition of the annual Greek-residence
hall snowball riot. It had snowed all day in
Lincoln and wasn't letting up a bit when I left my
place at 6 p.m. for the Sports Center. Driving
conditions were miserable, and cars were sliding
ing off roads left and right.
I made the mistake of forgetting my media
credentials at the DN offices in the Nebraska
Union, so I returned there to pick them up. When
I left, I took the route of the 15th Street to 16th,
where I would join Vine Street, and then 17th
Street to get to the Sports Center. Half a block
from the intersection of 16th Street on Vine, a
girl in a blue Honda Civic had run off and road
and was stuck in the snow halfway up on the
curb. Being the sweet guy that I am, I stopped
and offered to help.
After rocking and pushing the car for a
moment, the Civic was back on the semi-dry part
of the street and able to drive away under its own
power. As the girl started to drive away, I noticed
another car, a Monte Carlo, making its way down
Vine Street toward the intersection. It was going
a little faster than it should have in that kind of
weather. I looked back to the Civic to make sure
it was making its way out. The girl waved a
"thank you" and kept going. As I watched the car
drive away, I heard the unmistakable sound of
tires sliding on the icy pavement. Apparently the
driver of the Monte Carlo had not seen the Civic
pull back onto the street and had hit the brakes
to avoid a collision. I turned back to the Civic to
make sure that it wasn't close enough for an
accident. It wasn't. Standing on the curb, I
noticed the lights of the Monte Carlo were
engulfing me. I turned around, just in time to see
the car slide up on the curb, hit me in the left leg
and knock me into a three-foot snow drift. I
wasn't hurt, but it scared me quite a bit. The
incident wouldn't have been funny but for the
look on the driver's face the instant before he hit
me. It was one of the funniest, terror-stricken
expressions I've ever seen.
As I crawled from the snow drift, the driver
jumped from his car and immediately fell in a
slush puddle. He scrambled to his feet and
rushed to the spot where I was kneeling in the
snow. He thought he had killed me.
"Oh my God!" the panic-stricken freshman
exclaimed. "Are you alright? Do you want ma to
call an ambulance. No, no! Don't move! Don't get
up!"
I was laughing by this time and tried to assure
him that I was not dead or paralyzed. I helped
him back to his car and told him that there was
no probelm, but that he should drive slower in
that kind of weather. Finally, I got back into the
car and tried to leave for the Sports Center.
Of course, now I was stuck. After spinning my
tires for a few seconds, someone came and
helped me out. I never got a chance to thank
him, so consider this column as that.
After all of this, I arrived at the Sports Center,
bruised, scared and covered with snow.
I had to explain why I was so wet to at least six
other media people when they asked me what
had happened. Every time, a hearty chorus of
laughter follwed the explanation. As you might
have guessed, I was no longer the one laughing.
If Nebraska coaches only knew what we some
times go through for them ....
Green is a junior news-editorial and criminal
justice major from Lincoln and is the Daily
Nebraskan's sports editor.