Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 25, 2000)
Senators take on gambling Betting on college, high school and Olympic sports under attack By Brandon Schulte Staff writer Whether they knew it or not, members of ancient Mesopotamia likely connected sport to what many consider its greatest evil today. In the days long before luxury boxes, stadi ums, even the pyramids, they invented boxing. And with the advent of prize fighting, sports inevitably became linked to gambling. As sport evolved, so did gambling - to the point where estimates have amounts as high as 380 billion wagered annually in the United States on sports at both the amateur and professional levels. The true figure isn’t known because some 90 percent of sports gambling done in this country is outside of the state of Nevada and the Oregon Lottery - the only two legal places to place bets on athletics in the United States. In an effort to curb the illegal wagering, two U. S. Senators - Vermont Democrat Patrick Leahy and Kansas Republican Sam Brownback - have introduced a bipartisan bill to ban all bet ting on college, high school and Olympic com petitions. “Legal college sports betting undermines college sports across die country and encourages gamblers to tempt college students into gambling problems and point-shaving schemes,” Leahy said. “A national ban on college and high school sports betting will send a strong message to stu dents that sports gambling and point-shaving • schemes will not be tolerated in this country. And it will help prevent these ravages.” But whether the proposed bill, the High School and College Sports Gambling Prohibition Act, would be a success or failure is as complicated to comprehend as the wording of the legislation itself. Anatomy of a bill The Prohibition Act statute would close a loophole in the Professional and Amateur Sports Please see RETTING on 17 Melanie Falk/DN Florence says goodbye to Devaney on Saturday By Joshua Camenzind Staff writer For the Nebraska men’s basketball team, reality has set in. The Comhuskers have three regular season games remain ing, and their postseason hopes have been washed down the ith a 10-16 overall record. , NU ’s only hope of playing past March 12 (the Big 12 Tournament Championship) is to win on that date, which would bring an automatic entrance into the NCAA Tournament. So what do the Huskers have left to play for? For one, Saturday’s 12:45 matchup with Colorado is Senior Day at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Larry Florence will play his last hope game for the second year in a row alter receiving a fifth year of eligibility last ofF-sea son. NU guard Cary Cochran said expects Florence, who declined comment for this story, to play above his low-key per sona. “I think he just wants to come out and play well,” Cochran said, “so people can see what kind of career he has had. He has had an extremely suc cessful career. “He doesn’t show a lot of emotion, but I think he’ll come out with some emotion and play well.” Florence will also be look ing to better his performance against Kansas on Wednesday night. He shot six of 15 from the floor with four turnovers and his bad night culminated 'ith a technical foul with 12:15 - Meoraska uoacn Danny wee said his senior has gone through some tough times. “He is very disappointed with the losing,” Nee said. “I Wjk told him that getting a tech K nical isn’t going to help ■ you.” After Florence received the technical, BMfik Nee took out his senior MM and had a little chat. “I explained to B him about being pos B itive,” said Nee, who ■ remains tied for the B school record in MB wins six games after tying it. “He said he had nothing to be positive about. I said Br ‘You’ve got a pro BP career ahead, and we wHUfF have to get some film on you.’” SENIOR FORWARD LARRY FLORENCE finishes his home career against Nebraska Saturday against Colorado. —SPORTS OPINION— Attacking CU team prayer is ridiculous Joshua Camenzind No matter how good a job you are doing, there is someone always there, waiting to knock you down. ...... Take Colorado Basketball Coach Ricardo Patton, for instance. He is well known fra* teaching his players how to excel in life skills as well as defending the pick-and-roll. But for some, those abilities, com bined with a 16-10 record and NCAA tournament hopes, aren’t good enough. Patton, whose team will face So the Buffaloes miss out on a recruit because he doesn’t want to pray. Big deal. Nebraska on Saturday, has come under fire recently for organized team prayers that have become a staple of his squad. The American Civil Liberties Union in Boulder, Colo., has filed a complaint with the university, saying the prayers violate CU’s own policy and the U.S. Constitution’!; First Amendment, involv ing the separation of church and state. Colorado’s policy was written in Please see PRAYER on 17 Lydia S. Gonzales/DN LONG JUMPER Tobyn Rucker digs his feet in during practice at the Bob Devaney Sports Center Wednesday. Track teams to do battle ■ Both men’s and women’s track teams expect three-team race in Iowa. By Jamie Suhr Staff writer Nebraska Track and Field Coach Gary Pepin called both the Big 12 Indoor Conference Men’s and Women’s Championship in Ames, Iowa, a three-team race. Texas, Kansas State and Nebraska, Pepin said, are expected to battle it out Friday and Saturday for the women’s top spot, with KSU as the favorite. On the men’s side, UT, NU and Iowa State will do battle. In the women’s competition, UT, which won die national championship in 1998, finished first in the confer ence championships, while NU placed second. Team captain Dalhia Ingram, the No. 1 -ranked long jumper and triple jumper in the Big 12, will be compet ing in her final conference indoor championship. Ingram was the 1999 Big 12 Champion with a leap mark of 20 feet, i % inches in the long jump. This year, she and Iowa State’s Aurelia Trywianska are the only two Please see TRACK on 19