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Show A Year of Change Men's Basketball ; p ' " 1 .ini.Mi ii -thJ r I , St lit -: . . V' ' , T j, J,, jf A- f . , . i . 4 I- 2 , 'i : : i 1 , " 'V. u , i . 1 ' '! " s .4 s fc S i r .. x- , 5 . I 11 111 1111 .... . .- -1;., . , Jt finisfi in the Big Sky. was a very tough season that was filled with t deal of personal challenge and itment," said WSC head coach Larry r. "Despite the fact that we didn't win very gam, I felt that the team stayed commited to be a team the best possible team that 3uld be. 5 one of those seasons I will never forget. I i a lot about coaching and a lot about lallenging schedule which included the likes of sixth-ranked DePaul University and a final 16 NCAA tournament team from the University of Wyoming didn't help matters much. But despite WSC's problems, the season wasn't a total loss. Once the conference tournament began, Farmer and company earned a reprieve from a year of hardships with a dramatic upset of Montana State, 106-101, in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was the first time ever an eighth-seeded team knocked off the regular season champion in tournament play. "To have gone through a whole season like we did. And, to lose to Montana State by 30 at their .'1 - -. ! -i ; tl " f" i I I c 5 -3! s I to place, and lose our last regular season game by 20 some-odd-points and play them (MSU) like we did, "said Farmer, "that would be one of the most satisfying moments that I have ever had as a player, coach, you name it. "I played on three national championship teams and that felt as good as anything." said Farmer. As the season came to a close with a 98-90 defeat to the University of Nevada-Reno, so too did the careers of six seniors. Dale Baum, Robert Maxwell, Darryle McDaniel, Walt Tyler, Curtis Webster and Harry Willis will not suit-up next year for the 'Cats. Willis, the man called "Gramps," had his finest season for Weber State. The 6'8" center led the league in rebounding at 10.4 boards a game and was the team's top scorer with a 14. 6 average. Willis was also a first team All-Big Sky Conference selection. WSC fans will miss Tyler's picture-perfect jumpshots, the bruising play of McDaniel, Baum's fiery enthusiam, Maxwell's hustle, and Webster's "silky" smooth moves. Farmer has a special admiration for these players that gave so much to the program and remembers practice as the best part of their year. "When I think back on the season, I remember those times. Despite what was happening on the weekends, the weekdays were pretty good," said the WSC coach. "There were times when our kids would get down, but they would always practice hard. But for the most part, we had fun in practice." Other players that helped make those practices good times include Karl Anderson, Greg Boyd, Chene Gardner, Steve Mills, Jeff Schofield, Tim Tyler and Curtis Williams. They'll also be the ones depended upon for next year. The Wildcat basketball season may not have gone the way it was expected to go, but it was full memories both good and bad. Dave Allison SignOff Tuesday, June 2, 1987 11D |