Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 20, 1994 TAG: 9403190074
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LANDOVER, MD. LENGTH: Medium
The 6-foot-9 center should have it tougher in Sunday's second round against top-ranked North Carolina, with its superior size and strength, right?
"We're used to playing against bigger teams, since we usually play three guards," Curley said. "If we don't back down and just take it to them, we'll be all right."
BC, making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1985, has a starting five that averages 6-4 1/2.
\ BIG PLANS: Liberty, having made its first NCAA Tournament appearance an impressive one Friday, might be making bigger news in the Big South, thanks to its Nigerian connection.
First, the Flames recruited 6-foot-10 Julius Nwosu, who averaged 14 points and seven rebounds during his Liberty career. He's playing pro basketball in Spain. Next, coach Jeff Meyer tried to sign 6-9 Sylvester Nikoro.
Nikoro couldn't get a student visa to enter the United States, but during a trip to Africa, Meyer also learned of 6-10 Peter Aluma, who became the MVP of this year's Big South Conference tournament. Aluma is a native of Lagos, the same city that produced NBA star Hakeem Olajuwon.
Aluma could become a huge star in the Big South, where size is at a premium. Meyer also supposedly has a 7-1 Nigerian player coming to Liberty in two years.
No names. Recruiting, even in Africa, is tough.
\ NEW HOMES: Friday's four first-round games added USAir Arena (formerly the Capital Centre) to the long list of facilities used during 56 years of the NCAA Tournament.
The other East early-rounds site, Long Island's Nassau Coliseum, has been used by the NCAA once before, in 1982. The 1995 East first- and second-round games will be played at two new NCAA sites - the ancient Baltimore Arena and Knickerbocker Arena in Albany, N.Y.
\ COLD SHOTS: The marksmanship in Division I men's basketball is chilling. Only five of 301 Division I men's team are shooting 50 percent this season, led by Auburn's 50.6 - and that got coach Tommy Joe Eagles fired.
Fourteen teams hit 50 percent last season. Unless North Carolina or Connecticut overtakes Auburn, the Tigers' percentage will be the lowest for a national field-goal percentage leader since Ohio State hit 49.8 percent in 1961.
Besides Auburn, UNC and UConn, the other 50 percent teams this season were Radford and Michigan State, which was at .500 and playing Seton Hall late Friday night in the NCAA Southeast Regional.
\ THREE-DOG KNIGHT: East Region participant Indiana leads the nation in 3-point field-goal accuracy, at 45.3 percent. You'd never know it, to hear coach Bobby Knight.
Asked whether he likes the 3-point shot, the traditionalist coach said, "No. A 10- or 12-point lead built through better basketball can be shot down too easily.
"It's like catching trout with worms. You ought to catch 'em with flies."
\ PAC-10 COUNT: It hasn't taken the Pacific-10 Conference long to sink this postseason. Washington State's 67-64 setback to Boston College on Friday made the conference 0-6 before Arizona salvaged some pride with an 81-55 victory over Loyola (Md.) on Friday in the West Regional.
California, UCLA and Washington State lost their first NCAA games, although each was a higher seed than its opponent. The Bears and Bruins rank as "major" upset victims to Wisconsin-Green Bay and Tulsa, respectively, in NCAA records - those separated by at least five places in the seedings.
The Pac-10 also is 0-3 in the NIT - with Southern Cal, Arizona State and Stanford falling to Fresno State, Brigham Young and Stanford, respectively.
\ A SMASHER: You don't have to be a beast to break a backboard. Boston College shooting guard Gerrod Abram shattered the plexiglass Jan. 22 in a victory over Providence.
Abram is 6 feet 1, 169 pounds.
Keywords:
BASKETBALL
by CNB