Show f Section Saturday March 2 2002 Page! The Herald Journal ies wamt BW title outfight Win at Northridge would give AGGIE BASKETBALL USU the conference crown By Gragg Hardy staff writer NORTHRIDGE Calif — When the Utah State Aggies step onto Cal State Noithridge’s Matadome court for tonight’s game they will do so knowing they already have the top seed at next week’s Big West Tournament locked up But die Aggies (13-- 4 Big West 21-- 3 overall) want more They want to win the conference title outright and a victory over the Matadors (10--7 will accomplish that It won’t be easy though because the Matadors are in a three-wa-y tie with Pacific and UC Santa Barbara for the third seed in the tournament which will be held in Anaheim Calif Els takes lead at Genuity Championship B3 two-stro- ke - Sports briefs Mullins leads Aggies lOth-pla- ce 45th-pla- RimillCE Tonight Matadome Record: second-ha- lf team blew a lead in a 33-3- 1 loss at Pacific Thursday night “That’s obviously what you’d like to do and get a little momentum (for the tournament) But we’re going to have our hands foil Northridge in that small gym presses the heck out of you and they’re very athletic “It’s a lot better than if Irvine won We’d be going in with our backs against the wall” Morrill was alluding to UC Irvine’s 76-6- 0 loss at Long Beach State Thursday A win over the 49ers 10-poi- nt 11-1- 3) Utah State will enter today’s final round of the Herb Wimberly Tournament in after shooting a 673 total over the first two rounds on Friday in Las Cruces NM Kevin Mullen is USU’s leader after the first day finishing tied for with a score of 164 which was Mike Eric-so- n is in 52nd-plaat 168 followed by Woody Spainhower who finished at 169 and Danny Kettle who is in at 172 Wichita State leads die tournament after two rounds by six strokes with a score of 382 SL SICUST 8:05 pm (MST) ‘We’d like to win it outright on Saturday if we could” said Aggie head coach Stew Morrill after his 13-- 4 KVNU 610 AM KLZX 959 FM Uno: Utah State by 2 21-- 5 Big West PROBABLE STARTERS Utah State F-- 2 F-- 5 C-- 4 G--1 1 ' ht yr ppg rpg Desmond Penigar Toraino Johnson Jeremy Vague Ronnie Ross 0 Tony Brown Dan Read 0 Joseph Frazier G-- 1 2 Markus Carr Assists per game G-2- See AGGIES on B4 6-- 4 Jr 173 71 Jr 36 32 84 55 70 33 3 Sr 154 48 ht yr ppg rpg Jr 80 50 Fr 79 35 Jr 30 16 Fr 35 20 9 Sr 6-- 0 Jr 6-- Lionel Benjamin Ian Boylan 4 7 6-- Pacific F-- 6-- 6-- 4 6-- 6 6-- 6-- 2 6-- 1 Sr 161 61 Record: 10-- 7 11-1- 5 Big Weet Series Record: Utah State leads Last matting: Utah State won 73-5- 5-- 0 6 Dec 20 in Logan Head coaches: Utah State Stew Morrill 4th year at USU (92-316th year overall (310-16Cal State Northridge Bobby Braswell 6th year at CSN (96-76th year pyerall (96-7Gama notse: Brown (1502 points) is 33 points shy of Reid Newey for eighth place on USU’s scoring list Boylan was nominated for Big West Player of the Week last week He scored a career-hig- h 25 points in a Feb21 win at UC River2 USU is side in March over the previous two seasons all-ti- 11-- ce ce 34th-pla- toft ce Friday's scores Portland 91 Toronto 81 Philadelphia 110 New Jersey 102 Charlotte 100 Boston 87 New York 89 Seattle 87 Detroit 110 Orlando 102 San Antonio 85 Minnesota 77 Chicago 90 Washington 81 Denver 96 Memphis 83 ' LA Lakers 96 Indtana 84 Sacramento 116 Golden State 109 By The Associated Press The Toronto Raptors hope they can turn their season around just like tire Portland Trail Blazers have Rasheed Wallace scored 20 points Friday night as the Trail fMazets extended their winning streak to eightwith a 1 91-3- 4Boston3 -- r n Tampa Bay '4 Sari Jose 2 Atlanta 4 NY Islanders 3 New Jersey 4Toronto 2 Oh television AUTO RACING 11 ajn — at IRL Grand Prlx of Miami ABC Homestead Fla GOLF '9 am--TG- — European PGA Tour Carte- berg Malaysian Open third round (same-da- y tape) TGC —Australian LPGA Tour round (same-da-y tape) seo-on- d ii1 1) Vic-to- wewerc” AWf Antonio Carter and Davis met for a couple of minutes after the game They discussed what they would say to their teammates during practice on Saturday “The last thing we want is for guys to feel that we don't have an opportunity We still have an' opportunity to do everything we set out to do” said Davis whose team expected to contend for the Eastern Conference championship “Until that opportunity diminishes completely don’t put you’re head down continue to fight as if we were still 10 games over 300” Davis who scored 21 points ' made a jumper to cut Portland’s lead to five early in the fourth 10th straight loss 7 Damon Stoudamire added 19 points and Dale Davis had 16 rebounds and 13 points for the Blazers who have won five consecutive road games and 21 of 27 overall after a slow start Portland was 13-1- 8 when Toronto handed the Blazers sixth straight their season-hig- h loss on Jan 2 "Coach Wilkens had an interesting point after the game He said ’Just as easily as we got into this we can get out of this” Toronto’s Morris Peterson in u ' said '' Vincb Carterj playing his third game since coming off the injured list scored 23 points fire fire Raptors who are On their 1pm NBC — PGA Tour Genuity Championship third round at MUyrif 3 pm TGC — LPGA four Takefuji Claa-si- c final round at Waikotoa Hawaii longest losing streak in four years They dropped 13 in a row 12 1998 from March SdOpm CNBC — Senior PGA Tour SBC Senior Classic second round at Valencia Calif ' Toronto has lost seven straight at home to fall two overgames below 500 (29-3all The Raptofs fell to ninth place in the Eastern Conference “We’re two games under 500 right now yet we’re still in the playoff race” Peterson said “We have to look at the positive We can get back to where ' NHL Buffalo Blazers win 8th straight ” NBA 20-Apr- quarter! Portland Trail Blazers forward Rasheed Wallace back blocks a shot ' See NBA on B3 ter Keon Clark Friday night 1 il Twoand done GYMNASTICS 11am NBC —American Cup at Orlando MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL 10 am v CBS— CaMomla at Arizona ' ESPN— Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament qhampionshto game Georgia State vs Florida Atlantic 1 Oregon at UCLA 3pm ESPN2 — Big South Conference Tournament championihip game wmthrppvsHKjh Point 7 pm ESPN— foxaa Ottawa State at Colorado State: 1 pm ' SOCCER-:- 2 pm : V V £ Vs' VV Utah V:- t: - ' U8V ’ pm J Vi h 4 '( ’i' 4’“’ A SPN2 — Stela Farm Women’s' Tennis Classic semifinal match at Soottsdale Artz (semday tape) I a '': "V: ‘ ar - w vs Honduras at Seattle I' S xj ESPN— Men’s national team ’if: - 57-4- ' AB- C- Dallas at Colorado' - ? - NBA NHL treated differently because he is black Richardson won the national championship in 1994 took Arkansas to the title ' game die next year and led the Razorbacks into die postseason 15 of die last 16 seasons But they are 4 this season and could misstbe postseason for the first time since his first year at Arkansas in 1983 ' : APphoto' Richardson had no comment and referred Arkansas baskalbal coach Nolan Richardson questions to Little Rock civil rights attor- gestures to an official after a foul was caled on ney John Walker whom he hired this week ' Arkansas earifarttfo season' v w'y that we got (to “We believe it’s dure for a change in ' bastito the for interests of best and hesaidNo’” White sauL“I still state)” said Preston leadership head coach Coy Pratt ketball program" aihleticdirector Frank : believe that we resolved this amicably I : after the 'V4 loss to the BroylessahL y '1 hope that Coach Richardson sices it that “Rut we’re disap-Hawks Arkansas had die option of buying out way foo” Vy iyv The announcement followed two days of pointed we weren’t able to Richardson’s contract for $300J)00 for each coach and the take care of die tiling we talks between die of die remaining six years of his seven-yeneeded to do1 university including a session Friday with pact Sports infonnationdirector Kevin “We never gave up we were two lawyers for the school and Richard- - y Trainor said clause would allow the! able to get over the school to stop paying Richardson jfhe took ' son’s lawyer and agetdv just neyer — s — Lakeland)” a job with another school top Broyles sakl assistant coach Mike Ander’ Prerton had its back against son would take bver ss interim coach Chancellor John White said'qutside his ' wall after losing Thursday the that the school would office Friday' night that Richardson has h addjUg begin seeking to Declo 60-4The double- - ' areacementwhe& appropriate yf until noon Monday to ask system President ( elimination tournament Alan Sugg to review the dedsionv-“I asked him if it was a civil rights issue v v See BUYS obBJA allowed jhe Tribe t6 stay alive - : ' : 13-1- v J fifei Mhineeota but forced them to rebound quickly if they wanted to put up a good showing against Lakeland a powerhouse from With Preston exiting die 3A the first district State Tournament early the The Tribe stayed with the rest of the teams in Meridian Idaho can breath a sigh of Tigers ifrom the tip and went into die locker room down 27- -' relief ' It was only a year ago the ' 22 The second half was more' of the same until the Hawks1 Tribe got to the state tourney countered a Preston rally with and upset th&r way to the one of their owp championship trophy : Preston But sifter a loss to it came down to boys basketball die Hawks making ' Lakeland Friday — ' their free throws their second loss of which they did They the tournament — the Indians will spoil no knodted down One’s title hopes this from the stripe season Many of those free: ' throws came from “It was rewarding ' - FOXSN—Starfford at Arizona State BpJm ' ESPN -- Saton Halt at Connecticut v 6 pm FOXSN— Oregon 8tate at USC KSL—BYU By Shana Frazier staff writer FAYETTEVILLE Ark (AP) — Arkansas bought out Nolan Richardson’s contract for $3 million Friday capping a week in which die outspoken coach complained he was KJZZ— ' Utah at Wyoming ESPN2 — Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Championship game Temessee Tech vs Murray State 4pm Preston exits state tourney : pm m I?CBS— ' r out - Florida at Kentucky ESPN — Massachusetts at Xavier C8S - AP photo by Toronto Raptors cen- - j4 r 4 i V V- " -- v v S 3 4 s t 18-of-- 23 the Hawks- big man “(Jamie) Ploetnerv had good moves and knew howto get to the basket” Pratt said “Ifo did a nice job He kept them in the game” Ploetner finished with 24 points including eight free throvfsThe Hawks got scor- ing from only five players but it was clearly enough t Preston was led by Kelly' Rawlings and Yance Bosen who both had 1 1 points each : ‘ f- ' ''"'See PRESTONm B4' rt |