THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, February 13, 1997 TAG: 9702130580
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK VEHORN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. LENGTH: 69 lines
Wake Forest guard Tony Rutland expressed surprise about the physical nature of Wednesday's 55-49 victory over ACC rival Clemson.
But somebody on the Deacons' side must have figured this key game between two of the league's top-10 heavyweights would wind up looking like a wrestling match.
Why else was pro wrestling superstar Ric Flair invited to be the Deacons' guest of honor?
Flair, a Deacons fan, watched intensely from behind the Wake Forest bench as the No. 2-ranked Deacons (20-2, 9-2 ACC) put a sleeper-hold on Clemson's offense.
The win gave the Deacons a one-game lead over second-place Duke in the ACC regular-season standings. Seventh-ranked Clemson (19-5, 7-4) dropped two games behind with its second loss to the Deacons.
Wake Forest coach Dave Odom laughed when asked if Flair had written the script for the defensive struggle in which Clemson shot 28 percent and the Deacons 32.5 percent.
``No, but he (Flair) had to like this kind of game,'' Odom said.
``He never asked me if he could go in, but I expected him to (ask) at any time. I'm sure he left here thinking `I could play this game.' ''
Wake Forest led most of the way, but the Tigers were never very far behind despite hitting only one field goal in the final 8:10 of the first half and not scoring their first second-half field goal until the 9:35 mark.
In fact, after Harold Jamison jammed in the Tigers' first goal of the second half, he followed with a free throw to tie the score at 35.
A minute later, Terrell McIntyre sank a 3-pointer for Clemson's only second-half lead, 38-37.
The Deacons broke away for a final time on two free throws and a following 3-pointer by Ricky Peral.
``We had chances to put the game away, but we missed some good shots and made too many turnovers,'' All-American center Tim Duncan said.
``But we didn't worry about putting them on the line so much. We were playing tough defense, really fighting and not worrying about what they got in free throws.''
Rutland said the Deacons were caught off guard by Clemson's physical play at the outset.
``It surprised me. We expected it to be that way when we played at their place the first time, but we weren't expecting it here,'' he said.
``It was frustrating at first, but we had to settle down.''
Rutland had three field goals, and two of them were the only goals scored by either team during the first 10 minutes of the second half.
The Tigers did a masterful job on Duncan, who was 3 for 7 from the field but collected another 12 points at the free-throw line.
``I told my players if we gave a good effort and played great defense that we'd find a way to score points,'' Clemson coach Rick Barnes said.
``We did the first two, but we just couldn't get the points we needed.''
Barnes, though, was not unhappy with his team's play.
``If we keep getting that kind of effort there will be a lot more wins,'' he said.
Odom attributed the defensive struggle to both teams being too familiar with the other.
``They knew what we were going to do before we did, and we knew as much about them,'' Odom said.
The victory ensured a fifth straight season in which the Deacons have won 20 or more games. It is the longest such streak in school history. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Wake Forest's Tim Duncan takes charge against Clemson, leading the
Deacons to their fifth straight 20-win season.