ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 10, 1996 TAG: 9603110099
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: GREENSBORO, N.C.
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
WAKE FOREST SEEKS to become the first repeat winner since 1981-82.
Dave Odom said the teams that win tournaments are the teams with causes.
If the Wake Forest coach wants one, he's got one.
The Demon Deacons put themselves in position to become the first repeat ACC men's basketball champion since 1981-82 when they defeated Clemson 68-60 in the semifinals Saturday afternoon.
``I did not know that,'' said Odom, whose Deacons meet Georgia Tech today at 1 p.m., ``so we couldn't use that as a cause. I don't think our team is into firsts or records.''
The more Odom thought about Wake's possible place in history, however, the more he warmed to the topic.
``That's a huge statistic,'' said Odom when told of the 14-year lapse between repeat winners. ``I think that's a long time, particularly since we've had a back-to-back national champion [Duke] during that time.''
The Deacons (22-5) never trailed Saturday against Clemson, which had upset third-seeded North Carolina in the quarterfinals, but they had to sweat out the last 6:57 after All-ACC center Tim Duncan picked up his fourth foul.
Duncan ended up playing 38 minutes and finished with 22 points and a season-high 19 rebounds. Tony Rutland scored 20 points and Steven Goolsby added 11 off the bench.
``I did not [consider] taking Tim out of the game,'' Odom said. ``He's the best player in the league and I'm not going to win or lose a game with him sitting on the bench.
``He's played enough basketball at Wake Forest to know what he can do and can't. I'm not going to say accidents don't happen and I may be a bozo, but I was going to take my chances.''
Odom's gamble paid off when Duncan, who was a step inside the 3-point line, took a turnaround 15-foot jumper that hit the side rim, bounced high off the glass and through the net.
That put the Deacons ahead 60-54 with 2:23 remaining and Odom, clearly bewildered by Duncan's shot selection, followed his every step down the floor. Only when he got to the defensive end did Duncan turn, look at his coach and smile.
``I called `bank,''' Duncan said, ``and, since it hit the rim on the first bounce, I wanted to make sure it went off the glass on the second.''
Clemson (18-10) cut the deficit to 60-56 on a driving layup by Terrell McIntyre with 1:51 remaining, but Rutland buried the Tigers with a 3-point field goal - his fourth - with 43 seconds left.
``They made me nervous with those two shots,'' Odom said, ``but I'm not sure we hold them off without them. I have an awful lot of respect for Clemson. They'll be in the upper division of the league next year, if not now.
``I was amazed on the way over to the game to hear two radio commentators say that Clemson needed to win today to secure an NCAA bid. If there are 30 better teams in the country, I have not seen them.''
Clemson committed just five turnovers - one reason it was able to hang with the Deacons despite 40.4-percent shooting. Sophomore Greg Buckner had 16 points and McIntyre, one of four freshman to start for the Tigers, added 15.
``If they run the numbers, it should be good enough to get us in,'' said Clemson coach Rick Barnes, whose Tigers beat every team in the ACC this season. ``If they don't put us in the tournament, they're crazy.
``I left Madison Square Garden one year after losing a first-round game [in the Big East Tournament] and thinking we had a bid. When we didn't, it was one of the hardest things I've ever had to deal with. We deserve one now, but I don't want to get our hopes up.''
Wake will receive its sixth straight NCAA bid, regardless of what happens in today's championship game. The Deacons finished one game behind first-place Georgia Tech (21-10) in the regular season.
``They're playing the best basketball in the league and have been for the last month,'' said Odom, whose Deacons beat Tech 66-63 in Winston-Salem and lost 64-63 in Atlanta.
see microfilm for box score
LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP Wake Forest's Tim Duncan grabs a rebound overby CNBClemson players Harold Jamison (left) and Tony Christie on Saturday.
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