| Show STANDARD-EXAMINE- R THURSDAY DECEMBER 7 1995 SPORTS EDITOR: 6254260 o J$P r as 7cbsr - Sports OUTDOORS OBITUARIES IE)E PJMES Center stage Van Horn sets tone from opening tip as No 14 Utah humbles WSU Best play: The opener Just seconds after taking the opening tip Utes guard Terry Preston a pass to Keith Van staff 10GDEN spotlight definitely ally-oope- not on Weber State on Wednesday was more like a tt bulb There were no bright spots for the Wildcats in their home opener with Utah dismantling them 0 in the first of four games for Weber State this season slam-dun- 60-wa- 89-6- Van Horn found himself with the ball inside the paint and a clear path to the basket Funny thing though: he missed the dunk and instantly heard the jeers from the crowd Almost instinctively he went into a crowd of players scrapped for the rebound went straight up and dunked his second attempt with more authority than the te ““I’m not pleased with anything” Wildcats coach Ron Abegglen said “You ean pick out anything that you want and Fm concerned about it” - It was Weber State’s worst home loss since Purdue drilled the Wildcats by 35 in December 1993 and it was just the third loss at the Dee Events Center in the last three seasons for WSU It was the first win in Ogden for Utah coach Rick Majerus and it was impressive It also was Abegglen’s first loss at team home' against an candidate Keith Van Horn feasted on the smaller Wildcats for 25 points and 16 rebounds Mike Doleac Utah’s center had 10 points and 10 rebounds and forward Ben Melmeth came off the bench for 12 points and 10 rebounds Guard Mark added 13 points - Before the biggest crowd for a Weber State game since 1990 the Wildcats were crushed by the size strength and timely outside shooting of the 1 Utes “We didn’t play real smart but we played real hard” Majerus said The score was 19-- 4 before Weber State knew what happened Utah hit 10 of its first 15 shots and when the Utes missed they usually got the rebound and k basket a ' “They shot it better than I expected and we gave them good shots” Abegglen said Utah had a 5 rebounding advantage on Weber State Only 6 Jimmy DeGraffenried who had 12 points and 15 rebounds was effective in picking up missed shots The Wildcats’ four big men - Andy Smith Bart Mclntire Joey Haws and Eric Ketcham - combined for a total of eight rebounds and Smith had five of those They also combined for just eight points “We’re a bunch of nice guys a great team to be around” Abegglen said “This is not a game for sissies” - Weber State had to resort to perimeter shooting and the Wildcats shot a season-wor29 percent from the field “We’ve definitely got to get our big guys posting up and going” DeGraffenr-ie- d said “If we don’t it’s going to be a - in-sta- te first ca Defining moment: Midway through the first halfaWSUfanwho’d brought his trumpet to the game stopped playing battle charges and started playing taps for his fallen 6-- 10 ch Wildcats Worst call: With 10:05 remaining in the first 4-- half Van Horn driving on the left side clearly double dribbled en route to an easy 1 jumper Not only was the double dribble not called Smith was called for a defensive foul and Van Horn promptly completed the three-poiplay You could almost hear the officials thinking “That guy (Van Horn) is a -- ot put-bac- nt 55-3- 6-- preseason it probably just looked like he double dribbled" Thanks for coming: Utah guard Andre Miller experienced a marked improvement through each of his first four games this year Against the Wildcats however he learned the difference between good fouls and bad ones He picked up three cheap fouls off the bench in the first half He added two more k in the second half and was gone from the game with more than 15 st problem” - DeGi affenried tried to post up but with the 9 Van Horn guarding him it was tough for the Weber State senior to get good shots The 2 Wildcats started the game in a zone defense much like they have in the ' previous four games Unlike Fresno State and Colorado State the Utes were ready shots and They got wide-ope- n found the open spots of the zone for easy inside shots Four of Van Horn’s first-ha- lf field goals were dunks back-to-bac- 6-- 3-- TONY RtVETTVStandard-Examine- Weber State had already beaten two Western Athletic Conference teams Fresno State and Colorado State earlier this season But the Wildcats were no match for the Utes the preseason pick to win the WAC title this season Maybe say they are After all the University of Utah men’s basketball team was ranked 14th in the nation this week Hey if they’re only the 14th-beteam in the country Weber State would hate like heck to face the best team right now st Center WSU’s largest home-cou- rt crowd in five years Utah walloped the Weebs 0 - by far the most lopsided score ever series between the in the two schools 89-6- The Utes certainly made believers out of the Wildcats on Wednesday night Playing before 10362 fans in the Dee Events 24-ga- Earlier this week WSU coach Ron AbegglSn said “They’ll probably beat us by 30” As it turned out he was prophetic and he was dutifully impressed by the Utes’ overwhelming “I knew they were good but they shot the ball better than I thought they would” he said “Before the game I rated them in the top five in the nation I rated them right there with Kansas “They’re 20 points better than anybody we’ve played they're 20 points better than Michigan” he said referring to another Top 25 team that handed the Wildcats (3-their only other loss thus far this season “And we made ’em look good too” Abegglen said “That might 2) Watson’s surgery opens door for Eisley Malone questions guard’s decision regarding his injured ankle Rodman grabs 20 rebounds in retum4B INSIDE: By TOM McEACHIN r staff r performance only enhances their reputation these guys from Lake City really are as some people Standard-Examine- minutes remaining Best quote: "They’re 20 points better than anyone we’ve played They’re better than Michigan" -- WSU coach Ron Abegglen REJECTED: Forward Keith Van Horn (right) the Utes’ candidate attempts to block the shot of the Wildcats’ Jimmy DeGraffenried during Wednesday’s game at the Dee Events Center No 1 4 Utah won 89-6- 0 See MISMATCH2B Utes5 That play k sparked a 19-- 4 run Best rebound: With 3:46 left in the first half 14th-rank- ed Ry-dal- d a rousing Homfor night it was UMass better Camby-le- d than Duncan Wake Forest 2B FYI By JEFF SIMON - The on his left ankle to remove calcium deposits and will be out about four weeks Watson’s surgery is sure to be a popular subject Karl Malone who has missed four games in his career including one because of a suspension questioned the d-year guard's decision to have surgery “Let’s put it this way” Malone said Wednesday “If there was a young talented power forward waiting to take my place I might wait a little longer to have secon- - SALT LAKE CITY Eisley’s strong performance in the exhibition season finally paid off for him How-ar- d Eisley signed with the Jazz on Wednesday and will be in uniform tonight when the Jazz host the Denser Nuggets at the Delta Center He replaces Jamie Watson who will have an operation surgery” Watson said team doctors “told me it had to be done I've had problems with it since I got here and I just don't think I - - CUrto CO 0 0 Standard-Examin- : LdS could play effectively over the next three or four months It’s better to get it done and get it out of the way” Eisley played well enough in the preseason to land a roster spot but there were simply no roster spots to be had The Jazz carried 15 players throughout the exhibition season and 14 of them - everyone but Eisley - had guaranteed contracts So when it came time to roster for the seaset the son Eisley was out He averaged 47 points and 29 assists m seven preseason games and made a strong impression on the Jazz coaching staff That's why they're happy to 12-m- have him back “He seemed to play under control and get us in our offense and as a point guard those things are critical to you" Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said “And we thought he shot the ball pretty well” Eisley started this season with Rockford of the Continental Basketball Association and in seven games averaged 124 points 33 assists and 23 rebounds The Jazz signed Eisley for the rest of the season but his contract is not guaranteed However it would become guaranteed if he was with the team on Dec 27 The Associated Press contntxjed to this moon be one of the worst games in Weber State history We had one good effort in the first half “It was a real rear-en- d kicking and we’ve got to learn from that We had a lot of breakdowns and a lot of mental breakdowns Take any aspect of the game shooting rebounding defense taking care of the ball - and we didn’t do it very well” Indeed the Wildcats shot a in dismal 33 percent the first half then were even 25 percent) in worse - On the run Nation's top steeplechasers 3B come to Ogden for clinic Second setback Dallas center Roy Tarpley is banned from NBA again 4B Smokin’ ropes g duo wins again at National Finals Rodeo 8B Team-ropin- NBA 4B Philadelphia 108 Dallas 87 Washington 96 Atlanta 79 Charlotte 94 Cleveland 82 Boston 105 Miami 101 Chicago 101 New York 94 Minnesota 108 New Jersey 97 Houston 112 LA Lakers 99 Orlando 109 Golden State 107 NHL 5B Hartford 7 NY Islanders 4 Montreal 4 New Jersey 2 Tampa Bay 2 Anaheim 1 Chicago 5 NY Rangers 5 Los Angeles 6 Winnipeg 3 Sports Shorts Tyson better than ever partner says PHILADELPHIA -- Mike Tyson says he's getting his feel back for boxing Nate Tubbs would agree “He’s faster and stronger than he ever was and a lot better fighter than he was" the 31 year-old T ubbs said after Tyson knocked him down in -- sparring Wednesday at Joe Hand’s Boxing Gym ip North Philadelphia Tyson is preparing to fight Buster Mathis Jr on Dec 16 at the Spectrum in his second comeback fight Although his match with Peter McNeeley lasted only 89 ' seconds Aug 19 Tyson said he was nervous going into the I fight because he was thrust into it less than four months after he prison completed a three-yea-r ! term Now he said “I'm more -- confident" Doves won’t fly over Atlanta Olympics KARUIZAWA Japan -- The doves of peace have been grounded For the first time at a Summer Olympics since 1920 the opening ceremonies at next year’s Centennial Games in Atlanta will not feature the traditional release of live doves Wednesday that in the interest of the birds’ welfare the ceremonies will include only a “symbolic and theatrical" release of doves ACOG has been under : pressure from animal rights groups not to use live doves in order to prevent a repeat of what happened at the 1 988 Seoul Olympics - when flocks of doves went up in flames as the cauldron was lit ACOG president Billy Payne informed the International Olympic Committee executive board that doves will be safe when Atlanta stages its opening ceremony on July 19 The tradition of releasing live doves as a symbol of peace started at the 1 920 Olympics (10-for-3- 0) 36 See HOLLIS2B JazzYsJ'igcts When: 7 tonight Where: Delta Center No TV KISN 570 AM TV-radi- o: KSOS800 AM Records: Utah 12-- 5 Denver Season series: Tied Last year Jazz won 1 4-- 1 Pfayerstowatch:lnUtah's loss at Denver Nov 25 Nuggets point guard Jalen Rose scored 18 pants oft the bench Notebook: Nuggets forward Reggie Williams is out four weeks with a stress fracture m his leg Teammate Mahmoud Abdul-Rasuffered a concussion in a game this week and is questionable tor tonight s game uf Take A Ticket Prep basketball: Tiger Classic at Ogden High School Morgan vs Northridge 6 pm Ogden vs Carbon 8 pm NBA basketball: Denver vs Utah 7 pm Delta Center On The air NCAA basketball: Georgia at North Carolina ESPN 530 pm 6-- 9 NCAA football: College Football Awards Show ESPN 7:30 pm Sports Quote Slump buster Detroit Pistons coach Doug Collins on his NBA playing career "I shot so much I'd be in and out of a slump m the same game - " Standard-Examine- r staff and wire services f A y ' The Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games said |
