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Show U 'Birds looking at Classic tradition J includes two teams which have played in the tournament before. Fresno Pacific finished fourth in 1974. The Sunbirds are considered much stronger this year than the 1974 contingent. They will be favored, along with SUSC, to advance to the finals. Claremont finished fourth in 1975 and moved up to third in 1978. Claremont and Fresno Pacific will meet at 7 p.m. December 29 in the tournament opener. Occidental, the other team in this yearns field, will be making its first Classic appearance at 9 p.m. in a first round game against host SUSC. So far, SUSC has never lost both Classic games to finish in fourth place. Always, the 'Birds have won at least once each year. In the 12-year history of the Classic, SUSC has come away with six of the championships. Other tourney titles have gone to UNLV, U. of Albuquerque, Azusa Pacific, Westminster, United States International University, and Oklahoma Christian. The Thunderbirds had a four-year string of championships going until 1979 when Oklahoma Christian toppled the 'Birds, 78-71, in the finals. Last year, SUSC got back on the title trail by nipping Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo in a 70-69 thriller. The first Color Country Classic was played in 1966, shortly after SUSC moved into four-year competition. The T-Birds won their first game that year, 93-88, over Southern California College, but lost in the championship game, 84-70, to UNLV. No tournaments were played in 1968, 1970, or 1971. The 1969 version of the Classic went under the title of the "Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Holiday Tournament," but "Color Country Classics" have been played every year since 1972. CEDAR CITY Only once in the past 12 Color Country . Classic basketball tournaments has Southern Utah State College failed to win its first round contest, and the T-Birds are hoping to keep that tradition alive this year in the December 29-30 games. That lone failure came way back in 1973 when SUSC was toppled, 71-55, by Redlands University. Redlands was then dumped, 57-54, by United States International University to finish second that year. In every other season that the four-team tournament has been played, SUSC has won its first round game to advance to the finals. Sometimes, those first round victories have been squeakers (in 1974, the T-Birds T-Birds barely got past Cal Baptist, 90-89), and once in a while SUSC has romped in the first round ( like the 52-point victory, 107-55, over Los Angeles Baptist in 1976). This year's Color Country Classic field Mike "The Boomer" Cannon throws a left jab with blood in his eye. Unfortunately the blood is his own. The Iron County Record's Cannon -T mmJkV-' L, was one of 26 boxers particiapting in the Elks-Cedar Boxing Club charity fund-raising event. Take that! George Orton delivers some heavy leather during last week's boxing action conducted at the SUSC War Memorial Fieldhouse. Fight fans witnessed some good action during the the 13-bout card. |