Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 10, 1991 TAG: 9103100189
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SCOTT BLANCHARD SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Charlie Ward hopes so. His 26-foot 3-point shot gave Florida State its first and last Metro Conference basketball tournament title Saturday night at the Roanoke Civic Center. But for the moment, Ward isn't thinking about where the Seminoles will play their first-round NCAA Tournament game.
Ward is Florida State football coach Bowden's quarterback of the future.
"Coach Bowden is, I guess you could say, owning me right now," said Ward, who is projected as Florida State's starter two seasons from now. "I hope my play will [make him say], `This guy could play basketball.' At first, he was like, `How many 6-1 point guards do you see in the NBA?' I wanted to prove something to him. He told me he was surprised I was playing well."
Ward has started the past 19 games, in which Florida State has a 14-5 record, including Saturday's 76-69 victory. He averaged 7.5 points and had team highs of 88 assists and 61 steals before Saturday's 18-point, six-assist, two-steal game.
He made the Metro's all-freshman team and is listed as a freshman in Florida State's press releases, but there is some question about that. He said he did not qualify under Proposition 48 requirements and attended classes - but was not a full-time student - for a year at Tallahassee Community College before entering Florida State.
"At home when we get introduced, I'm a sophomore," Ward said. "On the road, I'm a freshman."
Whichever, Ward was heartburn for Louisville coach Denny Crum on Saturday. The Cardinals blew a 20-point second-half lead and were caught at 69 when Florida State's Chuck Graham hit two free throws. Louisville then turned the ball over.
The Cardinals' defense shut off several Seminoles attempts to get the ball inside, and with the shot clock showing :03 and the game clock at :22, Ward fired over LaBradford Smith.
"I thought he was going to try to penetrate and draw the foul, but he pulled up and stuck the shot," Smith said.
With a broad grin, Ward, from Thomasville, Ga., said, "I knew I was deep, real deep. Past the NBA [3-point] line, I do believe.
"There's no way to describe it. [But] I wouldn't consider it luck."
Florida State basketball coach Pat Kennedy might consider it providential if Bowden allows Ward to keep playing basketball. Kennedy said that decision will be left to Bowden, Ward and Ward's parents.
"But I'll tell you this," Kennedy said, smiling deviously. "He's a great basketball player."
Ward's winning shot wasn't his only contribution to ACC-bound Florida State's victory, their first in a Metro Tournament championship game in six tries. He helped hold Louisville's Smith, who had 20 first-half points, to six second-half points. And he settled down the offense when the Seminoles began rallying but botched several offensive sets in the process.
"We held our composure, came back and ran our offense and had some good breaks," Ward said. "We got some easy points and sort of clawed our way back."
With about 10:40 left, Ward stole the ball from Cornelius Holden, took off downcourt and made a spinning layup to cut Louisville's lead to 58-51, the first time in the second half Florida State had gotten that close.
Then, with 1:05 left, Smith jitter-stepped against Ward - but didn't shake him - and came up short on a 15-foot jumper that would have put Louisville up by two.
Forty-three seconds later, Ward skewered the Cardinals.
Asked if it was planned, Kennedy said: "Coaches don't really design that. Players make those things happen."
It went according to Ward's wishes.
"I practice that; we'll just be jiving around [in practice]," Ward said. "I was praying that I could get this opportunity to make this kind of shot before the game."
by CNB