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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 22, 1994)
Missouri shoots for success after last year’s letdown By Trevor Parks Staff Reporter The Missouri Tigers’ success this season might be attributed to last year’s disappointment, Coach Norm Stewart said Monday during the Big Eight coaches’ weekly teleconference. The Tigers, who moved up to No. 6 in the Associated Press Top 25, are 20-2 overall and 11-0 in the Big Eight after struggling last year to a 19-14 overall mark and a 5-9 conference record. Oklahoma coach Billy Tubbs said Missouri, which is trying to become the first Big Eight team since Kansas in 1970-71 to go undefeated in confer ence play, will have a tough time remaining unbeaten in conference play. “You have to be good and very fortunate,” Tubbs said. “You also have to make the right plays at the right times down the stretch. It’s really a difficult thing to do.” But it certainly won’t be impossi ble for Missouri. Afterbeating Kansas — which fell ta 1 Oth in AP’s Top 25 — Sunday, Missouri has three games left, with two at home. Missouri plays Oklahoma in Co lumbia, Mo., Saturday, at Kansas State March 2 and at home against Nebras ka March 5. The Tigers have pulled off some difficult wins already. They won in overtime at Iowa State, won after trail ing by 15 at Oklahoma State and won Sunday at Kansas after trailing by 11 in the second half. - Stewart said his team learned the difference last year between winning and losing. “There’s no doubt last year helped our ball club,” Stewart said. “Most of the bad things from last year will balance out after awhile.” M issouri had a good team last year, Nebraska coach Danny Nee said, but couldn’t get any breaks late in games. “Last year we were lucky against them,” Nee said. “Both games were close, and they could have gone either way.” Nebraska beat the Tigers 88-87 in an overtime game in Lincoln and won at Columbia on a free throw in the final seconds by Jamar Johnson 76 75. Missouri turned the tables on the Huskers this year winning 89-73 in Lincoln. A kev part of Missouri’s success this season has been senior guard Melvin Booker. Booker—the Big Eight player of the week for the second straight week —- is considered by many of the Big Eight coaches to be the favorite for the league’s Most Valuable Player with three games to go. Booker is averaging 18.7 points per game, 4.5 assists per game and is shooting 40.9 percent from beyond the three-point line. Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton said that Booker deserved the honor. “There’s no doubt,” Sutton said. “He’s had a sensational season, and they won the league.” Actually, Missouri has only clinched a tie for the league title. But if the Tigers win one game or if the NU gymnast springs to new heights High confidence helps Joy Taylor collect two titles By Tony West Staff Reporter_ Sophomore gymnast Joy Taylor said she dec ided to attend Nebraska because it would be the perfect place for her to improve her performanc es. After one complete season, it appears that Taylor has done just that. Last year, T aylor was just anoth er member on the women’s gym nastics team, Nebraska women’s gymnastics coach Dan Kendig said. But this season, she has given the Comhuskers more than just depth. “Coming in as a freshman, you really don’t have a defined role,” Kendig said. “But she’s a definite contributor now, and that makes a big difference.” The 5-foot-2-inch sophomore from New Palestine, Ind., has cap tured all-around competitions twice this season and has helped lead the Comhuskers to a 7-1 start. Taylor scored a personal best of 38.475 in the all-around against Southeast M issouri State on Jan. 22 in Lincoln. She also had a career best performance on the uneven bars — 9.825 — at Oklahoma on Feb. 6. l ay lor said coni ioe nee was one key ingredient to her success this season. “Pm confident about what I’m doing, so I’m performing better,” Taylor said. However, that may not be the only factor in Taylor’s success. She spent eight weeks during June and July at Woodward, Pa., helping coach the Woodward Gymnastics camp. The camp is the “premiere gym nastics camp in the world,” Kendig said. Taylor said she learned invalu able lessons by teaching at the camp. And those experiences have paid dividends this season, she said. “I’m putting in better routines,” Taylor said. “I’m doing better, but there’s still room to improve.” Taylor said she was concerned with her performances of late. Only two weeks after achieving her per sonal best in the all-around (38.475), she was down to 37.575 in the all-around. On Saturday in Salt Lake City, she finished 11th with a 36.675. “I need to improve consistency,” she said. Taylor said her goal was to be come consistent enough to qualify for the NCAA tournament. Last year, no one qualified from the women’s gymnastics team. Damon Lee/DN Nebraska gymnast Joy Taylor performs on the balance beam. Round-up Conference Games All Gamas W L H A W L PCT. Oklahoma State Kansas Oklahoma Nebraska Kansas State.. ■ Colorado I Mi 0 5-0 6-1 8 3 5-1 3-2 6 4 3-2 3-2 5 5 3-2 2-3 4 6 2-2 Pi 4 7 3-3 1-4 2 <1 1-4 1*4 2 9 2-4 0-5 zo 2 am mm 19 7 .731 tu 5 mm 14 8 .636 114 mmm m 16 8 .667 112 16 Hi 10 13 .435 Results Iowa State 81, Colorado 78 Kansas State 89, Oklahoma 76 Oklahoma State 98, Nebraska 80 Missouri 81, Kansas 74 Cowboys lose one game, Stewart, who ceived tne attention it aeserves. has won seven Big Eight champion ships, will lay claim to his first Big “I don’t understand why there’s Eight title since 1990. such a lack of respect,” Nee said. Despite Missouri’s success. Nee “Missouri’s not ranked where they said, the Big Eight still hasn’t re- deserve to be.” Florida State offers job to NU coach From Staff Reports Nebraska receivers coach Ron Brown has been offered a similar coaching job at Florida State Univer sity. Chris Anderson, Nebraska’s sports information director, said Monday that Brown hoped to decide by the end of the week whether or not to take the job. The Florida State job became avail able when John Eaton left the Semi noles to become an assistant coach at South Carolina. Brown came to Nebraska in 1987 after being an assistant at Brown Uni versity for four years. Brown said he was praying about what direction to go in the matter, Anderson said. Invitation Continued from Page 7 The remaining four teams in the 79-year-old SWC — Southern Meth odist, Texas Christian, Rice and Hous ton — have been told they were not invited to join the Big Eight, the news papers said. “All I can say is we have had an informal invitation,” Texas President Robert Berdahl told the Chronicle. “No decision has been reached. That would have to be made by the board.” A&M Regent Bill Clayton said: “There was an...invitation. 1 don’t know if it was oral or written. And it has been discussed.” Houston President James Pickering confirmed that four SWC schools have been asked to leave theSWC.and said he was “shocked” that Houston was not invited to become a member of the Big Eight. “I think it is a very shortsighted notion to move unilaterally without considering what the consequences will be for the four remaining pro grams and for Texas as a whole,” Pickering said. “Clearly, the Univer sity ofHouston wants to be included in any realignment or merger, or what ever they're talking about.” The Chronicle reported that the presidents of Tech, Baylor and Texas were contacted last week following a Thursday conference call of Big Eight presidents and chancellors. A&M was contacted Monday. A conference call was made Mon day morning to the four schools not extended invitations, the Morning News reported. Big Eight officials withheld com ment Monday night, but Kansas State President Jon Wefald said no deal had been finalized. It s premature tor anybody at tne Big Eight to speculate about it now,” he said. “We just have to wait and sec. The political situation down there is always intriguing. Nobody in the Big Eight should say anything that would create any problems for anybody in the Southwest Conference.” SWC Commissioner Stew Hatchell said the league office has no knowl edge of the deal and wouldn’t have to know because it would be handled by the individual schools. Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds said Monday that “a decision may be coming soon.” The Morning News said an an nouncement could be made within days by Colorado Chancellor James Corbridge, president of the Associa tion of Big Eight Universities. The Texas A&M Board of Regents is scheduled to meet in a conference call Thursday, the Chronicle report ed. Berdahl said he had heard Texas would work to schedule a regents meeting on the issue. Rice athletic director Bobby May said late Monday he could not confirm the report. Baylor athletic director Dick Ellis said he’s also heard about the possible movement,but that any official word also would have to come from his school’s president’s office. The S WC and Big Eight are search ing for television contracts beginning after the 1995-96 season, when the current College Football Association deal expires. One report says the two leagues have been offered a football television contract with ABC worth a reported $60 million over five years, starting in 1996. There was no immediate word about what kind of television deal the new 12-team league could receive. Crunch Time Continued from Page 7 do something at home,” Nee said. “If we are going to get it done this year, it is going to be in the next three games.” If tne Huskers are going to put together a run for apostseason tourna ment bid, they will have to be ready for the first test, which will come in the form of No. 10 Kansas on Wednesday night. “We are very focused, very moti vated, and we want to play them,” Nee said. “We had a good practice (Sun day) night, and we arc focused and ready to go. We know what we have to do; it is just getting on the floor and doing it.” After battling Kansas, the Huskers play host to Kansas State on Saturday. The Wildcats, who are coming off an 89-76 win over Oklahoma, are 16 8 and 4-7 and have won two straight games, temporarily salvaging their hopes for a berth in the NCAA Tour nament. After the Wildcats, No. 24 Oklaho ma State will come to Lincoln. The Huskcrs will be seeking revenge after Saturday’s 98-80 loss to the Cowboys. The Huskers then close out the season at No. 6 Missouri. Nee said Kansas would give Ne braska its toughest test. “I think we arc going to have the biggest challenge of the year, as far as being ready to play and playing against a team that is going to very focused and very determined,” Nee said. “And I expect it to be a very hard battle.”