THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, March 15, 1995 TAG: 9503150576
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK VEHORN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 114 lines
North Carolina coach Dean Smith could offer no help Tuesday to those wanting to know the status of Tar Heels center Rasheed Wallace before filling out their office pools.
``It is still 50-50 as to whether Rasheed can play,'' Smith said.
Thus, North Carolina is preparing for its NCAA first-round game against Murray State in the Southeast Regional in Tallahassee as though Wallace won't be playing.
Wallace sprained his left ankle in the second half of North Carolina's loss to Wake Forest in the ACC championship game on Sunday.
``If he can go, he will,'' Smith said. ``But we will show up and be ready to play if he can't.''
North Carolina used three different combinations after Wallace left the game Sunday.
Serge Zwikker, Pat Sullivan and Jerry Stackhouse took turns at the center position.
``We probably will use all three combinations again if Wallace can't play,'' Smith said.
WILLIAMS RECOVERED: Maryland coach Gary Williams is over his bout with pneumonia and getting the Terps ready for their West Regional first-round game against Gonzaga on Thursday in Salt Lake City.
Williams missed the Terps' final two regular-season games and their two tournament games because of his illness.
``Monday was my first day back at practice, and it was a great feeling to walk back onto the court,'' said Williams, who lost 15 pounds during his illness.
``I got a little tired, but I am feeling pretty good and will be OK for the tournament.''
Williams said he took notes while watching on television as the Terps defeated Florida State and lost to North Carolina in the tournament.
``I could see some things that I probably wouldn't have picked up by watching from the bench,'' said Williams.
He quipped that before watching the games on television that he cleared the room of all throwable objects.
``I didn't want to get angry and throw something at the television and have to go out and buy a new one,'' Williams said.
QUICK LEARNER: Coach Jeff Jones knew virtually nothing about Virginia's first-round opponent, Nicholls State, when the pairings were announced Sunday.
By Tuesday, Jones knew enough to tell the Cavaliers not to expect an easy game.
The Cavaliers, seeded fourth in the Midwest Regional, play the Colonels of the Southland Conference Thursday in Dayton, Ohio.
Jones acquired video tape of Nicholls State and talked to coaches who had played the Colonels to get enough information for a scouting report.
``They force you to react to them with their quickness on the defensive end, and they have good inside strength,'' Jones said.
``They don't look to shoot 3-pointers a whole lot, but they do a great job of looking to the low post and when they get the ball around the basket, they know what to do with it.''
Jones said point guard Harold Deane, who still has soreness in the left wrist he injured 10 days ago, has not complained about it.
Deane, who averaged 16 points in the regular season, scored only 17 points in both ACC games.
Jones doesn't believe Deane, who plays more minutes than anyone on the team, is getting worn down.
``He is not tired,'' Jones insisted.
``If he told me he was tired, I would tell him it was all in his head. He should be feeling good. At this time of the year you just suck it up. This is what we've worked so hard for all year.''
SHAME, SHAME: Most fans who witnessed Randolph Childress' performance in the ACC tournament agree with Wake Forest coach Dave Odom that it might be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
``Some people who have seen every ACC tournament say it was the finest individual performance they had ever seen,'' Odom said.
``I feel fortunate to have been there.''
Childress scored all nine of the Deacons' points in overtime to beat UNC in the championship game, and broke the tournament scoring record that had stood since 1957 with 107 total points for the three games.
Not everyone was impressed, though.
A few people did not vote for Childress as the most valuable player, and a couple left him off their all-tournament teams.
``My reaction to that was one of disbelief,'' Odom said. ``It doesn't degrade Randolph's performance, but it does degrade the (selection) process a little bit.''
Meanwhile, some are wondering if Childress burned himself out in the tournament and may not have anything left for the tournament.
That concern was voiced by commentator Digger Phelps on national radio Tuesday.
Odom says Childress has plenty left for the playoffs, which begin for the Deacons on Thursday against North Carolina A&T in the East Regional at Baltimore.
``I am not worried about that at all. I expect him to give a good accounting of himself. He may have a bad game, but it won't be because he is tired or has nothing left,'' Odom said.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS: ACC commissioner Gene Corrigan is still considering whether or not to hand down any penalties or reprimands from the incidents between Clemson and North Carolina in their first-round ACC tournament game last week.
But, Corrigan says nothing will be done until after the NCAA tournament.
UNC's Smith and Clemson coach Rick Barnes had a verbal and finger-pointing confrontation on the sidelines, and a few minutes later players from both teams had to be separated at the end of the game.
Corrigan described the incidents as being ``a sorry spectacle,'' and a blot on what otherwise may have been the best tournament in conference history. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
UNC's Rasheed Wallace, who sprained his left ankle against Wake
Forest in the ACC title game Sunday, reacts to the Tar Heels' loss.
His status for playing Friday is 50-50, says coach Dean Smith.
by CNB