THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 24, 1996 TAG: 9603240186
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ATLANTA LENGTH: Long : 101 lines
The revelation for Massachusetts coach John Calipari came earlier than anyone would have expected in a meeting of the East Regional's top two seeds.
``With about 4:30 to go, I looked up and thought `Oh my goodness, we're going,' '' Calipari said.
Where the Minutemen are going is the Final Four next weekend at the Meadowlands, the first trip for UMass. The top-seeded Minutemen overwhelmed Georgetown 86-62 before 32,328 at the Georgia Dome Saturday.
UMass (35-1) will meet Kentucky in a national semifinal Saturday. The top-ranked Minutemen and second-ranked Wildcats dominated the top spot in the national polls all season. UMass defeated Kentucky, 92-82, in its season opener.
At the final horn of UMass' blowout victory, Georgia Dome maintenance workers rolled out a mat under one basket and began to set up a ladder. But another maintenance worker walked over from the vicinity of the UMass bench, waving the others away.
The Minutemen were not interested in taking home their prize. They only want the Meadowlands twine.
``This team is expecting more, and they want more,'' Calipari said. ``It's one step to their final goal.''
Georgetown (29-8) took a misstep here because All-American guard Allen Iverson was asked to do too much by himself.
He struggled to score 23 points against inspired defense, while no other Hoyas made a significant offensive contribution. Center Othella Harrington - who had 23 Thursday against Texas Tech - was the only other Hoya in double figures with 13. Most of those came after the outcome had been determined. Iverson's backcourt mate Victor Page had no points, four turnovers and four fouls. The Hoyas committed 22 turnovers, and UMass was credited with 16 steals.
``They were probably better defensively than I thought they were, although I thought they were good,'' Georgetown coach John Thompson said. ``They were physically stronger than I thought. Looking at them I did not feel they were strong. We could not penetrate and they kept us on the perimeter better than I thought they could.''
Iverson, who had averaged 29.3 points in three NCAA tournament games, was 6 for 21 shooting against a defensive effort spearheaded by Carmelo Travieso, who got good support from his teammates when Iverson got by him.
``I think they did a good defensive job,'' Iverson said. ``They held a lot. I know on my penetration other people were stepping up and contesting my shots. They had a good plan coming in.''
Iverson, who had five turnovers and just one assists, said he had faced better defensive guards in the Big East than Travieso.
``It wasn't just me who stopped him today,'' Travieso said. ``Marcus (Camby) and the guys coming off the bench helped a lot. I tried to make the game real hard for him.''
With the game coming hard for Iverson, the victory was surprisingly easy for the Minutemen, who were a 1 1/2-point favorite according to oddsmakers. UMass jumped to a 14-point lead in the first half that the Hoyas trimmed to 38-34 at the break.
But then Minutemen All-American center Camby (22 points, seven rebounds, three blocks) took over.
Camby opened the second half by tipping in a miss, then dropped in a 6-foot floating jumper and made an 8-foot jumper after that to account for the first six points of the second half. He made yet another basket before three minutes had elapsed, sparking the Minutemen to a 15-2 run before the Hoyas made their first field goal with almost six minutes expired.
``I took it upon myself to make things happen,'' said Camby, chosen the East Regional's most outstanding player. ``I got a tip in, got in the rhythm and began knocking down shots.''
But soon he was sitting down with four fouls with 12:34 remaining and the Minutemen up 55-40. Didn't matter. Calipari substituted him in-and-out in offensive situations several times, Camby never fouled out and Georgetown never mounted a serious threat. The UMass lead fluctuated between 13 and 24 points during the game's final 17 minutes.
Georgetown shot 27.6 percent in the second half, 35.1 percent for the game in producing their second-lowest point total of the season, almost 22 below the Hoyas' average.
``What we did was play great defense, handle their pressure and rebound the heck out of the ball,'' Calipari said.
The Minutemen also got a great night from their backcourt. In addition to his defense, Travieso scored 20 points with six 3-pointers, six assists and four steals. Point guard Edgar Padilla had four assists, five steals and a respectable five turnovers against the Hoyas' pressure.
The Minutemen - 5-0 against top 10 teams this season - had 10 straight losing seasons and had made one NCAA tournament appearance before Calipari arrived in 1988. Now they are among college basketball's premier programs.
``I don't know if it has any significance,'' Calipari said when asked about the personal importance of getting to the Final Four. ``It may to you, it doesn't to me. If it did, I'd be sitting on the rim out there.''
But he later acknowledged he dreamed of taking his team there one day.
Friday night, it's doubtful he dreamt the Minutemen would get past Georgetown so effortlessly. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Carmelo Travieso of UMass, left, puts the defensive squeeze on
Georgetown's All-American guard Allen Iverson.
by CNB