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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 16, 1995)
Sports Thursday, March 16, 1995 Page 9 NTT tournament begins tonight for Huskers ' ' \ . ' Game against Georgia opens | men’s post-season basketball By Todd Walkenhorst Staff Reporter The Nebraska men’s basketball team starts its post-season tonight. And Nebraska coach Danny Nee hopes it ends up being more than a one-night affair. The Comhuskers will make their first appearance in the National Invi tation Tournament since 1989 tonight as they take on Georgia in a 7:05 game at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. The Bulldogs, 18-9, could present the 17-13 Huskers with a formidable challenge, Nee said. “They’re the most athletic team we’ve seen this season,” Nee said. “A very impressive, solid team.” Nee said that after watching films of Georgia, he was puzzled why the Bulldogs were in the NIT. “I wonder why they are not in the NCAA (Tournament),” Nee said. “That would be my question. They look good enough to be in. It will be a heck of a basketball game.” One key for the Huskers will be trying to control the boards against Georgia. The Bulldogs are led by 7 foot, 270-pound senior center Charles Claxton. Claxton is leading Georgia in rebounds, averaging eight a game. See NIT on 10 205 230 180 ,6-1, 175 DN graphic Georgia’s top scorer says team making the best of NIT By Derek Samson Senior Reporter When Georgia ended its regular season by winning four of its last five games, earning the No. 2 seed in the Southeastern Conference’s Eastern Division, it thought it would probably return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1991. But after a second-round loss to Alabama in the SEC Tournament, the 18-9 Bulldogs are headed to Lincoln for a National Invitation Tournament matchup with Nebraska tonight. Georgia’s leading scorer, Carlos Strong, said it was difficult for the Bulldogs to accept that they weren’t playing in the NCAA Tournament. “We’re very disappointed we weren’t invited to the NCAA Tourna ment,” Strong said. “We had our minds set on that, and we ended the season strong to be able to make it. But now we’re in the NIT, and we just have to make the best of it.” Georgia finished 9-7 in the SEC, despite losing three conference games by a combined total of four points. After missing the NCAA tourney, Strong said it was hard not to look back at some of those games. “I would think we had to be pretty See STRONG on 10 Tennis captain sets pace By Vince D’Adamo Staff Reporter It is not easy being in the top seeded position before every tennis match. But Andy Davis thrives on it. Davis, a senior from Scottsdale, Ariz., on the men’s tennis team, said challenges were just partofthe game. “It can be tough being the No. 1 guy,” said Davis, the Huskers’ team captain. “I know that I can’t relax because the other team will always have their No. 1 guy.” Besides focusing on the indi vidual challenges that Davis en counters in the singles and doubles matches, he also focuses on how his contributions benefit the team. “I just look at it as another point for the team,” Davis said. “Each point counts the same.” The Huskers are struggling as a team, with a record of 1-5, as they take on Texas this Sunday in Ar lington, Texas. But Davis is confident that Ne braska will rebound. “We’ve played a lot of teams in the top 30,” Davis said. “Each match See DAVIS on 10 • ^ Scott Bruhn/DN Andy Davis, a senior from Scottsdale, Ariz., played the No. 1 singles and doubles last weekend against Drake. Davis, a team captain, is top-seeded and says the Huskers are on the rebound. Wrestlers to grapple NU history By Tony West Staff Reporter " 1 1 When the No. 3 Nebraska wrestling team steps on the mat today at the NCAA Championships in Iowa City, Iowa, the Comhuskers will not rally be battling the competition but also history. The meet starts today and runs through Saturday, with championships at 7 p.m. 1116 Huskers, who finished 17-3 this season and won their second Big Eight title in three years, have never finished above third at the NCAA Championships. They have never fin ished ahead of Iowa or Oklahoma State at the tournament. But despite their record, Nebraska coach Tim Neumann said that if his team won a few key matches, it could place in the top two at the Carver Hawkeye Arena. “Iowa is definitely the favorite,” he said. “But if we put Tolly Thompson and Temoer Terry in the finals, we have a chance at finishing as high as second. “If we put more than that in the finals and Iowa has some trouble, we’ 11 have a.shot at the title.” But Neumann also said that he doubted that host Iowa would have See NEUMANN on 10 Banner baggage weighs down NU basketball program This is the biggest year in Coach Danny Nee’s nine-year attempt to build a basketball program. After sub-par teams during his first four years, Nee finally built the Nebraska basketball program into a competitive Big Eight school that found itself in die middle of March Madness for four straight seasons. Now the Comhuskers have exited the scene, and the direction they go from here will be the determining factor in whether Nee is capable of building a basketball tradition at Nebraska—or whether the Huskers are destined to join Colorado as perennial Big Eight cellar-dwellers. The most important goal of the Nebraska basketball team, accord ing to most players, is that it ends the season on a positive note. More importantly, the players should make sure they don’t enjoy so much success, if it comes, in the National Invitation Tournament that it once again becomes the Comhuskers’ annual post-season party. In the 1980s, the Huskers were invited to the NIT six times and actually took it as a compliment. It’s good to see this year’s Huskers aren’t beaming about making a tournament designated for the No. 65 through 96 teams in the country. It’s now up to the Huskers to make sure it’s only a rebuilding year. And if success comes in die NIT, they must keep it in perspec tive. That starts with an image. If Nebraska wants to continue to establish a basketball program, the first trip to the NIT in the ’90s should not be celebrated, only built upon to make sure it’s the only trip to the NIT this decade. Not only should Nebraska refuse to hang a NIT banner for this season in the Bob Devaney Sports Center, . the NIT banners already hanging in the Devaney Center should be tom down. As if the players aren’t upset enough that they’re not competing Derek Samson in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in their careers, now they have to be reminded that they’re in the same tournament as some of Nebraska’s teams of the ’80s. How many colleges with any basketball tradition celebrate not being one of the top 64 schools by decorating their gyms with NIT banners? A. !■ Oklahoma hangs banners showcasing the years they weren’t good enough to make the 64 teams invited to the NCAA (NIT years), but they also have other banners like the Final Four and Big Eight regular-season championships. Kansas hangs its Big Eight season championships—all 42 of them—in groups of 10 on each banner. They also hang Final Four appearances and National Champi onships. Iowa State only hangs the banners for the years it was invited to the NCAA Tournament, and Kansas State only hangs Final Four appearances and conference championships. In Oklahoma State’s case, it only hangs banners for years it won national championships in any sport, which tally 41. “You’ve got to win it all to get a banner up,” said Mike Strauss, Oklahoma State associate sports information director. Considering Nebraska’s last Big Eight regular-season championship was in 1950, it’s obvious that the Huskers must keep the one Big Eight Tournament Championship and five NCAA Tournament appearance banners up to keep the men’s basketball team represented. But if Nebraska wants to re establish itself as having a serious basketball program, it has to put this year behind and not be reminded by a banner saying,”We weren’t one of the top 64 schools in the country this year, so we played in the ‘Never Interesting Tournament.’” Georgia will come in tonight and see how much basketball tradition Nebraska has by looking up at the ceiling. With NIT banners floating above, the Nebraska basketball program lacks tradition. So enjoy having another home game, if that’s possible, but keep in mind that there is another tourna ment going on—a tournament Nebraska must return to next season or else return to the ’80s. If the Huskers do well and celebrate mediocrity too much, they will return to it as fast as Husker fans can say “Moe Iba.” Samson is a Junior news-editorial major and a Daily Nebraskan senior reporter.