Sports
Husker hopes high
Men’s basketball team two wins from title
By John Adkisson
Staff Reporter
The Nebraska men’s basketball
team is two wins away from the jew
elry store.
“It’s like the rings are right there,”
said junior forward Carl Hayes. “If
we beat Oklahoma State and Kansas,
they’ll be on our fingers.”
The rings will be for a share of the
Big Eight regular-season champion
ship. Hayes and his Comhusker team
mates can accomplish half of their
mission tonight when they play No.
12 Oklahoma State at 7:35 p.m in
Stillwater, Okla.
Nebraska, ranked 15th, enters the
game one game behind the league
leading Cowboys and Kansas. Ne
braska will return home to play the
Jayhawks Sunday in the regular-sea
son finale.
The Huskers, picked last in the
conference in many preseason polls,
can clinch a share of their first league
title in 40 years with wins in both
games.
Comhusker coach Danny Nee said
his team is looking forward to the
challenge.
“It’s like Babe Ruth,” Nee said.
“When you step up to bat, you take a
swing. If you hit it out of the park,
great. If you don’t, that’s OK, too.”
If Huskers are to win tonight, they
will have to do it in a place that hasn’t
been kind to others.
Oklahoma State has a 12-0 record
this season in games played in 6,831 -
seat Gallagher-Iba Arena. Nebraska
has lost three straight games in Still
water and has lost six of its last seven
to the Cowboys.
Husker senior Clifford Scales said
Gallagher-Iba arena is the loudest gym
in the conference.
“The fans are enthusiastic for their
team, and they’re right down on top
of you,” Scales said. “And that doesn’t
help when you’re playing a team as
good as Oklahoma State.”
The fans will not be as formidable
an opponent for Nebraska as Okla
homa State forward Byron Houston,
who is averaging 23 points per game.
Houston burned Nebraska for 22 in a
See RINGS on 8
William Lauar/DaUy Nebraskan
Nebraska’s Rich King goes up over Jeff Wires of Kansas
State.
OSU Cowboys taunt Big 8
A friend and I watched Nebraska’s
first match-up with Oklahoma State
from a heavenly height.
Up in row 21 of section C-24, we
sat in a utopia of uncles and aunts,
fathers and sons, and other faithful
boosters. I sat in this celestial section
of steadfast supporters before with
my dad. And I acted as respec table as
the others. I clapped for opponents. I
hooped and hollered for the Huskers.
I even acted like I knew the words to
the school song.
In short, I was full of Husker holi
ness.
But that Saturday was far from
paradise in section C-24. Oklahoma
Stale brought out the demons in each
of those angels during the Cowboys’
81-68 victory. What started with a
few feeble shouts at referees turned
into hollers from hell.
Approximately one minute before
halfume, center Rich King was tag
teamed by Oklahoma State’s John
Potter, an underweight, ungraceful
forward, and Dennis Burbank an
overweight, out-of-placc, back-up
center.
After the cheap shot, King kicked
Potter and was held back by referees,
Tony Farmer and Cowboy forward
Byron Houston met chest to chest,
and Jose Ramos was kicked out for
coming off the bench.
Tempers flew among the angels,
as well. My friend and I ended up in
row 20 (ice cocked and aimed), two
Todd
Cooper
middle-aged guys in front of us were
pointing and cursing, and the rest of
my section was ready to take their
Husker hankies and choke the dick
ens out of them Cowpokes.
They brought out the worst in us.
The Cowboys had not only caused
Husker players to lose their compo
sure, they had not only caused that
haven of heinous hounds (you know,
Dead Dog Alley) to go crazy, they
had caused the most considerate,
complimentary Comhusker fans to
lose their composure all the way up in
heaven.
Good teams will do that. And the
Cowboys know they’re good.
That Saturday confrontation was
caused by the Cowboys’ cocky atti
tude and uncomplimentary talking,
King said after the game.
Nor were their actions complimen
tary during and after a victory against
Kansas State two weeks ago on ESPN.
The Cowboys had a seven-point
lead and the game wrapped up against
the last place Wildcats when they
scored two layups in the last 10 sec
onds of the game — one at the buzzer.
Oklahoma State players then were
bombarded by ice as they taunted the
crowd on their way to the locker
room.
Unfortunately, that ice didn’t and
won’t cool the Cowboys.
Oklahoma State’s cockiness has
been almost as overbearing as its
defense. First-year coach Eddie Sut
ton has put together one of the Fiercest
man to-man defenses in the nation.
And forward Byron Houston has
been one of the fiercest players in the
nation as well.
The 6-foot-7, 235-pound forward
has proven he’s the best player in the
Big Eight, bar none. Averaging 23
points and 10 rebounds per game,
Houston would be a top 10 draft choice
this year if he came out.
But Houston will stay. With four
starters returning next year, Houston
and company will win their second
straight Big Eight championship.
Their first comes this week after
they beat Nebraska tonight and Iowa
Stale Saturday. Then when Nebraska
beats Kansas on Sunday, the Cow
boys will have the outright claim to
this year’s championship rings — for
the first time since 1965.
They’ll make the finals of the Big
Eight tournament and will be the second
seed in the Midwest regional of the
NCAA.loumamcnt.
And they’ll show everyone their
success on the way.
Cooper is a freshman news-editorial
major and a Dally Nebraskan sports staff
reporter.
Robin Tri marc hi/Daily Nebraskan
Clifford Scales of Nebraska avoids Kansas State’s Maurice
Brittian for the shot.
Husker baseball team
focuses on versatility
By Nick Hytrek
Staff Reporter
Only five games into the sea
son, Nebraska baseball coach John
Sanders is thinking about his 1991
team’s increased versatility and how
it will help the Comhuskers through
the bad spots.
“It appears we have flexibility,
both offensively and defensively
and with the pitching staff,” Sand
ers said. “We can overcome injury
and down cycles.
“Good teams need to be able to
do this.”
Nebraska is supposed to be a
good team. Baseball America, a
magazine that concentrates on
collegiate and minor league base
ball, picked the Huskers to make
the NCAA playoffs this spring.
But Sanders wouidn ’ t talk about
postseason goals.
“Our goal is to play the best we
can possibly play at all times,” he
said. “If we do that, winning and
losing will take care of itself.”
Last spring, the 42-26 Huskers
finished third in the Big Eight.
The Huskers have used their
versatility in starting .3-2. In the
Phoenix Thunderbird Invitational
last weekend in Phoenix, Ariz., the
lineups were shuffled and several
players saw action at different
positions. Nebraska finished third
with a 2-2 record, the losses com
ing to nationally ranked Ohio State
and Notre Dame.
“All of the new people have the
ability to come in and play, and the
returners seem stronger than they
were last season,” Sanders said.
The pitching staff will be led by
All-Big Eight reliever Dave Ma
tranga. Last year, the senior lefty
tied the school record for wins with
10, had four saves and led the Big
Eight with a 2.16 ERA. Junior Aaron
Bilyeu and sophomore Todd Mos
scr will join Matranga in the bull
pen. -
Junior righthander Mike Zaj
eski was 4-0 last season before
being injured. Sophomore lefthan
der Josh Bullock was 5-4 with three
complete-game victories. Jerry
Madison, a lefthanded sophomore,
returns after missing last season
with an arm injury. Freshman Trey
Rutledge did well in his first start,
defeating Dartmouth in Phoenix
and making the all-toumameni team.
The outfield has a lot of the
experience.
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