Sports
Tough mid-season
opponent to test
skill, coach says
By Derek Samson
Staff Reporter___
Some breather.
In taking a break from Big Eight action
tonight, the Nebraska women’s basketball team
will host Southwest Missouri State, a team that
reached the NCAA Final Four last season.
Game time is 7 p.m. at the Bob Dcvaney
Sports Center.
Nebraska coach Angela Beck said the game
won’t be easy for her 14-4 Comhuskers.
“A lot of coaches will stick in an easy
opponent in the middle of the season just to gel
a‘W,’ Beck said. “Thai’s definitely not the case
here.
“They’re a team that is ranked first in its
conference, they’re a team that has four out of
its five starters returning and they’re alsoa team
that leads the nation in home attendance.”
After beating Iowa Stale 82-52 Sunday, the
No. 25 Comhuskers had only one day to get
ready for Southwest Missouri State, and the
lack of preparation concerns Beck.
“We get back late (Sunday) night and then
we have only one day to prepare,” Beck said. “I
don’t feel our intensity level was where it
should be.... I hope we can get the intensity
back and play well.”
Southwest Missouri State, 9-6 overall, is
leading the Missouri Valley Conference with a
5-1 league record.
The Bears arc led by forward Melody
Howard, who is averaging 18 points and four
rebounds per game.
But the player to watch will be Nebraska
forward Karen Jennings. The senior from Per
- it
A lot of coaches will stick in
an easy opponent in the
middle of the season just to
get a ‘W\ That's definitely
not the case here.
—Beck
NU women's coach
-ff -
sia, Iowa, has 2,123 career points and is only
seven points away from breaking the all-time
career scoring record at Nebraska held by
Maurticc Ivy.
“She’s pretty excited,” Beck said. “She wants
to win the game first, but I think it is especially
exciting for her since she has the chance to
break the record at home,” The Husk
ers have won five of their last six games,
including four straight, and look to continue the
streak and earn more national respect tonight.
“Th is is a great opportunity to move up in the
polls,” Beck said. “I didn T know if we would be
in the polls at this lime of the year.”
The Bears continually draw large crowds,
which makes Beck thankful that her team is
playing at home.
“I’m real happy we arc playing at home,”
Beck said. “Next year, we’ll be going there, so
we hope we do a good job on them now.
“It’s not going to be easy at all,” she said.
“I’m sure they’ll come in and give us all that we
can handle.”
NU gymnasts eke out victory
against sixth-ranked Auburn
Huskers show true abilities
in difficult meet, coach says
By Beau Finley
SMff Haporw
In a sport where inches make a world of
difference, the Nebraska women’s gymnastics
team took a mile-long step this weekend to
wards reaching the NCAA tournament.
The Comhuskers defeated sixth-ranked Au
burn 193-192.7 in Auburn, Ala. on Saturday
and avenged a loss last year to the Tigers.
Coach Rick Walton said that the Husker win
was what his young team needed to boost its
confidence.
“We needed something like this to happen
for us. We needed it to gain credibility,” Walton
said. “Now we know it can be done.”
Walton said the outcome of the meet wasn’t
decided until the last routines were completed.
He praised the Huskers for their competitive
ness against a veteran team.
“They (Auburn) are a very experienced
team,” Walton said. “We beat them, though.
They didn’t give us the meet.”
Sophomore Nicole Duval won her second
all-around in three meets, setting personal-best
marks in the floor exercise, uneven bars and the
vault.
Martha Jenkins and Jennifer Hawkinson fin
ished third and fourth respectively.
Walton said the all-around performances
were strong and showed the ability of the
Huskcr team.
“We performed at a 9.5 average for the
meet,” Walton said. “Our team is back.”
Walton said he was confident that Nebraska
is ready to perform to its capabilities and go
after its goals.
“I think we’re a top 10 team and I think we
should be at the national championships,”
Walton said. “We’re coming along.”
The Huskcrs will be competing at home for
the second time this season on Saturday when
they host Air Force at the Bob Devancy Sports
Center at 7:30 p.m.
Robin Trimarchi/DN
Nebraska’s Andre Woolridge shoots over Missouri’s Jevon Crudup in a
game Saturday. The Cornhuskers, 2-3 in the Big Eight, play at Iowa State
on Wednesday.
increased patience on ottense
is big step for NU, Nee says
By Jeff Griesch
Staff Reporter_
Finally, Nebraska basketball coach Danny
Nec has his team pointed in the right direc
tion.
The Comhuskers won an 88-87 overtime
game against Missouri on Saturday and im
proved to 2-3 in the Big Eight.
“We found a way to win a lough game
against an excellent team,” Nec said Mon
day during the Big Eight coaches teleconfer
ence.
Nec said that the Huskcrs arc becoming a
better team, and their improvement is begin
ning to show on the floor.
“We think we are improving a lot in all
facets of the game, and our young kids arc
gaining a better understanding of what we
arc trying to do,” Nec said. “We have better
patience, offensively we arc playing better,
and our defense and rebounding arc better.”
Increased patience on offense may be the
biggest stride Nebraska made in the game
against Missouri, Nee said.
“We think that our patience on offense is
a giant step for us,” Nee said. “We’re mov
ing the ball around the perimeter more,
we’re going inside out, and we’re getting
better shots.’’
Another key to Nebraska’s win may have
been the absence of Missouri forward Jevon
Crudup after he was charged with a techni
cal foul late in the game.
Missouri coach Norm Stewart benched
Crudup for the remainder of the Nebraska
game and also kept him out of the starting
lineup for Monday’s game against No. 3
Kansas.
Stewart said the incident at Nebraska was
at least the third incident of taunting or other
misconduct this season, and he said it was
time to do something to stop it.
“1 feel it is necessary to discipline the
individual while trying not to hurt the team,’’
Stewart said.
Lowboys Super Bowl blowout not what was expected
At least everybody else could see it
coming.
Super Bowl XXVII left brows dry,
fingernails long and heart rates slow.
I was all geared up for a tradition
breaking cliffhanger.
I didn’t sec the blowout coming.
I never thought the Cowboys had it
in them. They were too young, they
were too inexperienced and they had
a “no-name” defense.
For years, my younger brother had
been warning me that the Cowboys
were the team of the future, and I just
laughed it off.
He pointed to proven winners like
Jimmy Johnson, Emmitt Smith,
Michael Irvin and Troy Aikman.
But I still dismissed it.
The Cowboys the team of the fu
ture?
Not in a million years.
But obviously he was more of a
visionary than I was.
There I sal Sunday, wanting to feel
the urge to chew a fingernail, hoping
my heart rate would make a rapid
increase, and praying that first bead of
sweat would form on my brow.
Nobody had let me in on the secret.
Dallas is the team of the present.
Everyone involved in the coverage
and commercial planning of the game
knew the Cowboys were back.
And they provided some really
neat extras to evoke emotions in the
game’s viewers.
Amusement was the first emotion
that crept into my heart.
Those new moving pictures when
they showed the players’ height,
weight, college and position really
cracked me up.
It was cool to see Irvin playing
catch with himself and Emmill flash
ing that smile and winking at the
camera.
All the players looked like they felt
pretty stupid, but boy did that add
some fun to the otherwise drab game. v
The commercials also helped keep
the Super Bowl exciting.
Larry Bird’s shooting battle with
Michael Jordan over a Big Mac prob
ably sparked a few giggles from the
viewers.
Seeing Larry Legend matching Air
Jordan shot lor shot had to bring some
pride to some of the old-timers.
And the Aluminator’s debut in the
Bud Bowl only to suffer a heartbreak
ing loss on a fumble had to touch some
of the viewers deep down inside.
The halftime show with Michael
Jackson showing support for the chil
dren of the world gave me a warm
glowing feeling.
I was really pulling lor the Cow
boys in their attempt to mess up
Johnson’s hair, and I was discouraged
to see his hair bounce back into shape
only seconds later.
Then Irvin came through with a
funny quote.
While holding the trophy, Irvin
was warned not to drop it.
“I never drop anything,” he re
sponded. How’s that for confidence?
But the most emotional part of
Super Bowl XXVII was provided
within the actual game and by the
Buffalo Bills.
Even the best writers could not
come up with a more woeful scenario
than what happened to Jim Kelly.
In his third attempt to lead his team
to a Super Bowl victory, Kelly went
down with a knee injury.
To sec hint hobbling out on
crutches, hanging his head, but still
cheering for backup Frank Reich,
woul<4 have made even the biggest
Cowboy fan’s heart flutter.
But my favorite emotion — admi
ration— wasevoked by Buffalowidc
receiver Don Beebe.
The game was practically over,
Dallas led 52-17, but Beebe still
sprinted 65 yards to knock the ball out
of Leon Leu’s hands, denying the
Cowboys the record for the most points
scored in a Super Bowl.
Now there’s a guy who deserves
respect.
It may have lacked intensity, ex
citement and anxiety, but other emo
tions were out in full force.
And if my brother is right, football
fans better gel used to these new
emotions.
If Dallas continues to play like it
did Sunday, the fingernails will just
have to wait to be chewed.
Arth Isa senior news-editorial major and
a Dally Nebraskan senior reporter.
