The Morning Dish – Friday, February 11th
Wake Forest Moves into First-Place Tie with Duke and UNC: Justin Gray’s 18 points led five Demon Deacons in double figures and Wake Forest overcame a 27-point outburst by Julius Hodge as Wake defeated NC State 86-75. The Demon Deacons raced to a 48-32 halftime lead and Wake held off a second half rally by the Wolfpack to force a three-way tie for first place in the ACC with their Tobacco Road brethren, Duke and North Carolina. Hodge did not start because he was late for a team shoot-around.
Cincinnati Captures Crosstown Shootout: Cincinnati led by as many as 21 in the second half and held on late to defeat Xavier 65-54 to capture the crosstown shootout. The Bearcats rode their defense and Eric Hicks’ 16 points and 11 rebounds to defeat the Musketeers. Xavier shot only 30 percent from the floor, made only 3-of-11 from three-point range and went the first eight and a half minutes in the second half without making a shot from the floor. Cincinnati overcame a 2-of-14 performance from three-point range and connected on only 15-of-25 from the foul line. Xavier, which played without leading scorer and rebounder Brian Thornton, was led by Stanley Burrell with 12 points.
Arizona Sweeps USC: Arizona rode another hot shooting performance from Salim Stoudamire and swept the season series from USC with an 88-76 victory at the Sports Arena in Los Angeles. Stoudamire finished with 26 points including hitting 5-of-7 from three-point range. The Wildcats shot 56 percent from the floor. Greg Pruitt led ‘SC with 21 and freshman Nick Young had 18. Derrick Craven sat out with a sprained ankle.
Washington Outlasts Oregon: Washington needed overtime and a late three in regulation by Will Conroy to defeat Oregon at MacArthur Court 95-88. Nate Robinson paced the Husky attack with 24 and the coach’s son, Jordan Kent was the high scorer for Oregon with 19. The Ducks played without center Ian Crosswhite, who was suspended for unspecified reasons.
Gonzaga Survives on the Beach: Gonzaga survived a valiant effort from archrival Pepperdine by placing five players in double figures and escaped with an 82-75 victory in Malibu. Ronny Turiaf and Adam Morrison paced the Bulldog attack with 19. Yakhouba Diawara led the Waves with 24.
Pacific Backs Up First National Ranking: Pacific backed up their first ever national ranking with a 78-56 pasting of Idaho on the road. The Tigers, who are ranked 24th in this week’s poll, were led by David Doubley with 21 and hit 9-of-17 from three-point range.
Status of Terps’ Ibekwe Uncertain:
The status of Maryland center Ekene Ibekwe is uncertain. The 6-9 sophomore from Carson, Calif., has been experiencing pain from a cracked rib that is likely to keep him out for at least another week. Ibekwe has missed the Terrapins’ last two games, a loss to Miami and a win against Virginia Tech. It is unsure how Ibekwe cracked the rib in the upper part of his chest near his shoulder. He was supposed to be examined earlier this week, and he will this Saturday’s game against Duke. The injury has also affected his breathing. Without Ibekwe, Gary Williams has gone to a smaller lineup.
Terp Assistant to Interview for Top Stop at Vermont: Terrapins’ assistant coach Mike Lonergan is interviewing for the Vermont job. Lonergan is hoping to replace 19-year coach Tom Brennan, who will retire from his job as head Catamount at the end of the season. Lonergan coached his alma mater, Catholic University, to the Division III title in 2001 and is seeking to become Williams’ 12th assistant to become a college or NBA coach.
Was Telfair offered Cash? In two separate reports, Portland Trail Blazers rookie Sebastian Telfair has given conflicting statements about whether or not he was offered money by someone associated with the Georgia Tech program. Early in the week, Telfair denied contact with Georgia Tech but then later said that he was offered money by someone claiming to represent the Yellow Jackets. Ian O’Connor’s book “The Jump: Sebastian Telfair and the High Stakes Business of High School Ball,” says Telfair claimed he was offered the money to attend a specific school. Tech coach Paul Hewitt denies any involvement with Telfair and has said that the school never had him on any guest list for tickets to a Georgia Tech game.
Price Has Surgery to Eliminate Mass:
A pair of UConn Huskies are hurting. After losing three stars from last season’s national championship team, Jim Calhoun knew this would be a tough season, but it has probably been much more difficult than he could have anticipated. Incoming star freshman A.J. Price has had to sit out the entire season after suffering a brain hemorrhage in October. More specifically, he has a blood vessel abnormality in his brain. Price is now back in class, but arteriovenous malformation, a vascular abnormality, will not allow him to play or practice for several months. The condition is caused by masses of blood vessels that grow in the brain. It can develop into a mass capable of bleeding. Price had radio surgery to eliminate the mass at Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston.
Anderson out Indefinitely: Price’s teammate, Rashad Anderson, is the latest Husky to have to miss time. UConn’s leading scorer at 13.8 points per game, Anderson is out after spending two nights at Windham Hospital near the Storrs campus with an infection in his upper leg. He was transferred to Hartford hospital and received treatment in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber for a skin abscess on his leg. He is expected to miss Sunday’s meeting with North Carolina in Hartford, and it is not known when he will be back. Because of privacy laws, the school could not elaborate further.
Tulsa Loses Cardwell: 6-10 reserve center Brian Cardwell has decided to leave Tulsa. Cardwell was averaging 2.1 points per game and 2.8 rebounds per game in 11 minutes of playing time in 17 games. He had not played in the Golden Hurricanes’ last three games. Cardwell, who is 24, had enrolled at Tulsa after four years in the Blue Jays’ organization.
O’Neil in Trojans Lineup for the Remainder of the Season:
USC interim coach Jim Saia has announced that senior forward Rory O’Neil will be in the starting lineup for the rest of the season. O’Neil had a lot of promise when he entered USC but has only posted 8.5 points per game and 4.3 rebounds per game, and those stats have dropped to 6.5 and 3.5 in Pac-10 play. O’Neil joins classmate Jeff McMillan in the remade Trojan frontcourt. O’Neil’s promotion means that Nick Curtis and Gregg Guenther will now come off the bench.
