Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, March 6, 1990 TAG: 9003061737
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: LOS ANGELES LENGTH: Medium
Gathers, a fifth-year senior, fell to the floor just after dunking to give the Lions a 25-13 lead in the first half of a West Coast Conference Tournament game against Portland.
"We called him `Bank Man' because we went to him for everything," said coach Paul Westhead. "We went to him for rebounds, we went to him for points, we went to him for life. He was a walking thunderbolt.
"Whatever we were, we were Hank's team."
Gathers, who was projected as a first-round pick in the NBA draft, was pronounced dead Sunday night at Daniel Freeman Marina Hospital. He was 23.
The 6-foot-7, 210-pound center from Philadelphia last season became the second player in NCAA Division I history to lead the nation in scoring (32.7 average) and rebounding (13.7 average). The feat first was accomplished by Wichita State's Xavier McDaniel in 1984-85.
Gathers also was 11th on the NCAA Division I single-season scoring list, with 1,015 points in 1988-89.
Bob Dambacher of the Los Angeles coroner's office said results of an autopsy have been deferred pending the completion of toxicology and tissue studies. "So there is no determination yet as to the cause of death," he said.
Dambacher said the results probably would not be announced for a week to 10 days.
Gathers was on medication for cardiac arrhythmia, which was discovered after he collapsed on the foul line Dec. 9 during a game against Cal-Santa Barbara. He missed two games, but began taking medication and was cleared to play again. Gathers recently persuaded doctors to cut back on his medication, saying it made him sluggish.
Bo Kimble, a close friend and teammate, told reporters Monday that Gathers "was taking his medication."
Dr. Mason Weiss, the attending cardiologist at the hospital where Gathers died, said: "As far as I know, everything was done to make sure that it was safe for him to play. And to the best of what medicine can do to predict these things, everything was correctly done. He was still taking his medication. He took it Sunday afternoon."
Nearly 16 hours after Gathers' death, teammate Per Stumer was wearing a black arm band with Gathers' No. 44 on it.
"We're all pretty much stunned about what happened," Stumer said. "It's hard to realize he's just gone. We all knew he had this problem, but nobody thought it was this serious. We didn't realize it was a live-or-die thing.
"All the players on the team are pretty close. Hank took care of all of us. He made everybody happy. He was an unbelievable leader."
"It sure has affected the whole country," said Jay Hillock, one of the Lions' assistant coaches. "He was energetic and full of hope for all of us. It'll never be the same."
One of those hardest hit by the death was Kimble, who leads the country in scoring.
Gathers and Kimble go way back. They attended Dobbins Tech in Philadelphia before coming west together in 1985 to play for coach Stan Morrison at Southern Cal. They both transferred to Loyola Marymount a year later, after Morrison was fired and replaced by George Raveling.
"Hank and myself, we've been through some very, very tough times in the 10 years we've been friends," Kimble said haltingly at a news conference. "Hank and I were like brothers, we were so close. We overcame so many obstacles.
"There's not one thing you can remember about Hank. I have 10 years of great memories."
Kimble was overcome by emotion and had to be helped from the podium.
Although Coach Paul Westhead said no decision had been made about whether the team would play in the NCAA tournament, Kimble said he wanted the No. 21 Lions to play as a tribute to their fallen star.
"Oh yes, definitely, I'm sure we're going to play. We can turn a negative thing into a positive thing," said Kimble said later. "We're going to be up for the challenge, we're going to dedicate this to Hank." The Lions won the West Coast Conference at 13-1 and earned the berth when the tournament was called off following Gathers' death.
by CNB