Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, February 1, 1994 TAG: 9402010142
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE LENGTH: Medium
That could change Wednesday night, when the Cavaliers play host to Maryland and its standout freshman center, Joe Smith.
"I would like to have a shot," Parker said. "Hopefully our big men can stay out of foul trouble and hang with him, but I think I can guard him. I know certain things he likes to do.
"I haven't guarded anybody big since I came to college, but in high school I guarded Alonzo [Mourning] and J.R. [Reid], and then I was much smaller. It's a chal- lenge. I look forward to the challenge."
Virginia coach Jeff Jones indicated that Parker was one of several players likely to spend some time guarding Smith, the leading freshman scorer in the country. Smith ranks third in the ACC in scoring (20.8), second in rebounding (10.7) and first in blocked shots (3.6).
"I have no problem putting Cornel on him," Jones said. "There's not that much difference in height between Cornel and [center] Yuri [Barnes]. Aside from Joe, Maryland is relatively small. You put Cornel on Joe Smith, and there's almost nobody else for your big men to cover."
It was Maryland's lack of height that forced Smith, listed at 6-9 and 220 pounds, into the low post. His perimeter skills were so well-developed that he almost could have played a wing in some programs.
What makes a Parker-Smith matchup so compelling is the pair's background. Both went to Maury High in Norfolk, although they never played together. Parker, who spent a year at Fork Union Military Academy after high school, was a senior at Maury when Smith was an eighth-grader.
"I've had a chance to play against him in the summers when I've gone home," Parker said.
Smith's only official recruiting visit was to Maryland. He went to Virginia on his own, but stories conflict on how closely he considered the Cavaliers or what may have turned him off.
According to one version, Parker, not always happy during his first three years at UVa, may have told Smith to go to Maryland.
"That's not entirely accurate, although I can't say I'm pleased with what happened," Jones said. "My understanding is that [Parker] took a little too much responsibility for evaluating things. Let's just say he and Yuri are very, very good friends."
The inference is that Parker wasn't overly encouraging on the subject of early playing time.
"I really don't like the subject," Parker said. " [If] he's at Maryland; he's at Maryland. I think we should leave it at that."
There is a perception nationwide that Smith was an overlooked "sleeper," but he was a third-team Parade All-American who was rated the No. 23 prospect in the country by recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons in his final report.
"To be honest, he hasn't surprised me," Parker said. "I thought he'd do well. I thought he'd average 16 or 17 points, so maybe his scoring has surprised me a little because Maryland didn't have a [natural] big man.
"I think the people he's shocked the most are the press. When we went down to press day [in Greensboro, N.C.] they were asking, `Who should we put down for freshman of the year, Jerry Stackhouse?' I said, `You better take a look at Joe Smith,' and they just laughed."
\ MORE ON ALEXANDER: Jones said NBA contacts have told him that junior guard Cory Alexander might be drafted late in the first round if he returns from a broken ankle and plays well in the last month.
"Whether he was hurt or not this year, I think it would have been difficult for him to be drafted in the top 10 or 12, which is where the best [financial] opportunities are and where he might reasonably be taken after a good senior year," Jones said.
Alexander said he may take advantage of a new rule that allows underclassmen to apply for the NBA draft and gives them 30 days to reapply for their college eligibility. That is one of the incentives for Alexander to return. He expects his cast to be removed Wednesday.
"That wouldn't surprise me," said Jones, who expects Alexander to need a minimum of 10 days and a maximum of 14 before he can play. "I'm not going to rush him back, though. He's not coming back to practice until he's ready, and I'm not going to play him if he's limping."
\ IN THE BONUS: Parker, who has assumed a playmaker's role in recent games, has not taken more than 10 shots in a game this season. Last year Parker had 10 or more field-goal attempts in 15 games. . . . Jason Williford is shooting 56 percent (14-of-25) on 3-pointers in ACC games. Junior Burrough is 5-of-6 from 3-point range in the past four games and 6-of-10 overall. . . . Virginia's free-throw shooting woes have returned. In the past five halves, the Cavaliers are 23-of-45.
by CNB