News Scrapbook 1982-1984

2B T~h:e~D:a~lly~C~:al~if;o~rn~ia;n~~

• E~a~s.t.s.a_no.1e_g_o_c_o_ujn_~_. FEB 2 3 1984

E-S

THESTRIBUNE

(2)

.,.

San Diego, Friday, February 24, 1984

DIGEST LOCAL NEWS

Toreros take Broncs by the.~~~~ . (Whitmarsh) is the guy that makes~ go;,but we 24 at halftime th~!D ~uss scored on a 10-foot FroSmANTriTbA=;;:;,,.-:."';.. USO Tomo, Wn,ed '"""'•good''"" from &ott tomgbl. ~":,',;i::'1h"f2•1 k..i,1n, 1n gamed. to a

USO ON ROAD/ It's on to a place which ~s not been kind to the University of San Diego men s basketball team. The road. The Torero ar~ 14-~ overall going Into tonight's crucial West .oas Athletic Conference contest at Santa Clara Un1Ver- l USO is 12-2 at home and 2-7 on the road. Coach Brovelli's Toreros are in secon~ ~lace 1 ~';! WCAC at 6-3. Pront-numing St. Ma~ s ts 6-2. Clara and Loyola-Marymount are tied for fourth at 4-4. A USO win would put the Toreros one-half game behind St. Mary's, which is idle tomght... USO defeated Santa Clara 69-62 in the first round If we are going to be a factor in_ the league we have to wm on the road," Brovelli said.

illi what Santa Clara coach Ca~ 01 !, '9! his team's "self-destruct tune mto their own self-improvement time last night. And fresh- man center Scott Thompson ~as ~~c!ta~i~ USD won 63-61 an~ mov~ o ,w1 ga~:~1:r~1=:~g!·o~tla~ for_~: i!18t great," said USD coach Jim Brovelli. Mike ams_ ca lied

• · •~ b t Whitmarsh scored a game-high 25 porn...,, _u son's 11 all came in the second half, m- ~lu~: three in the last three miout_es. And his defense against Santa Clara's leadmg serer, center Nick Vanos, prevented a game- ying basket inc~be f~;; f:~n:~ start and was up 29- h

d 6-3 in the West Coast

e wm imp

Th

·

·

roved the Toreros recor

best-ever 15-9 overa an

'

la

at Santa

II

Athletic Conferenc_e.h~\fs;{~fa:s rext Thurs- ~lara/;mJr;~: Zrfer·a game at Gonzaga next Sai ad o USD ·closes out i~ season at home w~t:ra ~~rch 8 game against St. Mary's.

I

Santa

ara

LOS ANGELES TIMES FEB z 5 l98f

THE TRIBUNE FEB 2 5 1984

8

Part III/Saturday, February 25, 1984 J

SPORTSCENE Conti ed from Pare 1 CindePel!a 1s getting into her ball gown here in San Diego. Coach Jim Brovelli's University of San Diego Toreros are near first place in the West Coast Athletic 1 Conference. They are one-half game out of first place, and would move into a tie for the top spot if Santa Clara beats front-runner St. Mary's tonight. What it all means. to be precise, is that USO could quietly sneak into the NCAA Tournament. USO? Which NCAA Tournament? I mentioned USD's tournament possibilities to a couple of people this week, and they shrugged their shoulders. They figured USO was Division II or Division III, and would be up against someone like Augustana, Otterbein or Albion. Not so. If USD makes the NCAA field, it'll play the big boys. It goes into the same pot with North Carolina, Kentucky and Georgetown. And it would get its share of arched eyebrows. Al McGuire, for example, probably doesn't know the University or San Diego from the University of South Dakota And there will be those who suspect that San Diego State is trying to slip in under an assumed name. And, the truth is that USO is anonymous in its own hometown. When folks hereabouts think of college basketball, they think of San Diego State. USO is a little bowl of alphabet soup the Aztecs consume each January in a crosstown matchup of little interest. Everyone wonders when the Aztecs will finally make the NCAA tournament, which probation and a lacklus- CAA tourn.iment. It's like wondering when Liechtenstein will wm an Olympic gold medal or Bill Shoemaker win the heavyweight championship. I don't think it has ever ocruued to anyone that USO is eligible for collegiate athiet1es' biggest post-season party. The populace perceives USO as a sleepy collection of pastel buildings on the bluff overlooking Mission Bay. Like the other buildings, the gym looks like it was de8igtled by a cake decorator rather than an architect. lJ. D's gym-capacity 2,400-might well fit in the Norkp Carolina locker room. And the usual USO crowd would fit onto a bus-or maybe a van. I sent a photographer to USD this year to take some crowd shots, and she called and said the game must have been; cancelled. I assured her that the players would show up. I also told her to take a head-shot or each fan . ter record Will deny them once again this season. Ni one wonders when USO will make the

PRESSURE'S ON - The heat will be on the St. Mary's Gaels tonight when they play Santa Clara with first place in the West Coast Athletic Conference basketball race on the line. Should the Gaels become victim, they will fall into a first-place deadlock with the Uni- versity of San Diego Toreros, who defeated the Broncos 63-61 Thursday night at Santa Clara. But victory over the Broncos would give the Gaels a 7-2 mark and almost acer- tain bid to the post-season NCAA basketball tournament.

and let me know if she used up a roll of film In all fairness to USO, interest has increased La. t week's games against Pepperdine and Loyola Mary. mount drew 1,600 and 2.245, respectively. We're not talking Torero fever, but there is an awakening or sorts. However, I thought USD's little run for glory would come to a crushing conclusion Thursday night It went to Santa Clara, where the home side was waiting with a 13.J record in its own gym. What's more, USD had never won at Santa Clara. My conclusion, naturally. was that Santa Clara would win and USO would do a neat little tumble back mto the middle of the pack. What happened, of course, was that USO won, 63-61. And then I looked at the numbers and scratched my head. Santa Clara had a 34-19 rebounding advantage and a 57.4% to 51.I % advantage in shooting. A team out-shot and out-rebounded on the road is usually hoping only that the bus doesn't break down on the way back to the hotel. On this occasion, given a game it could not win, USD simply refused to lose. It could not take the game, but 1t would not give it away It committed only 11 turnovers, forced 21 and won by a basket. Obviously, it takes unlikely wms to get an unlikely team to the top. By the stroke of midnight tonight, USD may well be dancmg with St. Mary's in a first-place tie Of course, there is still work to be done. USO will be on the road next week, playing at Portland on Thursday and at Gonzaga on Saturday. St. Mary's gets no break, however, because it plays the same teams in the same places on opposite nights. After all those years setthng for being better rather than being good, USD is finally in a position to make it all happen. It could come down to its final regular season game, a March 8 date at home against St. Mary's. If it all comes down to such a conclusion. I suspect a lot of gas station attendants on the hill down below will be badgered by the same question. "I can see the USD campus," motorists will say, "but I can't for the life of me figure out how to get there. Can you help?" That is the way 1t has always been for the basketball team. It has always known where it wanted to go, but never known quite how to get there. Now, however, USD has tip-toed to the fringes of collegiate basketball's brightest spotlight. It can see where it is gomg, and 1t 1s simply a matter of getting there.

SAN DI EGO UNION

J'EB 2 S 1984

BARBARA MARTIN USO crowds have grown since this sparse turnout for January game against Mt. Marty College.

S an Di go port c n

UC-Santa Barbara 65, USO 58 - Susan Coupland scored 17 poiuts to lead the Gauchos over the Toreras, w~o turned the ball over 14 times in the second half. Debbie Theroux led USD (14-14) with 16 poin~ and 14 rebounds.

U. Who May Get Chance to Raise NCAA Eyebrows By DA VE DI TEL, 'l'ime ta// Writer I Jove a Cmderell story, though I despise the •Cinderella" chche I love underdog or unknowns who urpa what 1s expected or them. and come to demand attention. I was covenng Cal State Fullerton a few years back when it surprised San Diego State, among other folks , and qual!f1ed for the NCAA Western Regional ba ketball tournament. In those regionals, the team called Cal State Who? was supposed to make a cameo appearance The Titans were up against a New MeX1co team with a 24-3 record in Round One, and that figured to be 1t. What's more, UCLA. USF, North Carohna and Arkansas were in the same regional. In fact, 1t was planned that I would cover Fullerton until it lost and then help a colleague wtth the UCLA coverage. It turned out to be the other way around. Fullerton overcame 18-point deficits to beat both New Mexico and USF. and fell three points short fter another furious rally in the final against Arkansas. I flashback to Cal State Who? because another Pl aae He SPORTSCENE, Pare 8

SD BUSINESS NEWS

FEB 2 7 1984 Webster Burke Kinnaird of the San Diego • Court of Appeals became the new president of 1he Law Alumni Association, University of San Diego School of Law. •

•

It should be a rather hectic and i:lectr1c stretch run, but don't bother trying to find q:m•s games on your radio. No one broadcasts USO games That, to be sure, is what hfe 1s like for The Other Team in a town which doesn't seem to care jf it has any.

SAN DIEGO UNION FEB 2 4 19a. USD rally produces 63-61 win Mike Whit- marsh had the highest numbers, but Scott Thompson provided the deci- sive plays in the University of Sao Diego's 63-61 victory here last night over Santa Clara. Thompson, the 6-11 freshman from Citrus Heigh~, scored all 11 of his poin~ in the second haH, including a free throw and a layup in the fmal three minutes to help the Toreros move within a haH-game of St. Mary's in the West Coast Athletic Conference race. More importantly though, be both- ered Santa Clara center Nick Vanos enough in the final five seconds to prevent the Bronco post man from tipping in what could have been the_ game-tying basket. Terry Davis had missed two free throws to set up those tips, but Vanos never got a clear shot at any of them. By Ray Ratto Special to Tbe Union SANTA CLARA -

SAN DIEGO UN ION FEB 2 7 1984 WCAC honors USD's Whitmarsh Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO - Mike Whitmarsh of the Uni- versity of San Diego was chosen the West Coast Ath- letic Conference's player of the week yesterday for his 25 poin~ in a 63-61 victory over Santa Clara Thursday. Whitmarsh, a 6-foot-7 senior, also had three as- sists and two steals as be led San Diego into a first- place tie in the WCAC with St. Mary's at 6-3.

Anthony Reuss (34) and USO teammates have solid chance for an NCAA tournament berth.

u-y 24, 1984 CD USD: Rally trips Broncos Continued from D-1 "Scott had a great second half for us, just great," raved Coach Jim Brovelli. "He really came on for us after the half. Mike's the guy that makes us go, but we needed a good game from Scott tonight." Whitmarsh, who finished with a game-high 25 poin~. sparked a 14-2 run midway through the second half to enable USD to erase a 29-24 halftime deficit. The lead grew as large as seven with six minutes to play, but the Broncos, who needed this game to remain in contention for a post-season bid, trimmed the lead to four, three and finally two, all on baske~ by senior guard Harold Keel- ing. Keeling scored 14 of bis team-high 22 poin~ in the second half in a singular but vain attempt to rally the Broncos. Santa Clara started quickly enough, taking a seven- pomt lead midway through the half. Vanos who finished with 20 poin~ and 17 rebounds, scored 12' of his poin~ before the break, and Thompson struggled in allowing him those 12. Brovelli professed he wasn't concerned by the halftime deficit, however. · "We were five down at the half, but I thought we were p..aying fairly well," Brovelli said. "I thought we were controlling the tempo, so I wasn't overly concerned." The Toreros tied the game at 33 on a free throw hoe jumper by Thompson, but three quick Bronco baskets pucbed the lead back to six. Then came an eight-minute run Santa Clara coach Car- roll Williams called "self-destruct time." USD ou~coreJ the Broncos 18-4, during which time Santa Clara turned the ball over seven times in 12 possessions .

LOS ANGELES TIMES

16 Part III/ Friday, February 24, 1984 J USD Edges Toward First Place With Win Special to The Times

•

and took the lead for the first time, 41-39, on two free throws by forward Anthony Reuss With 12,01 remain- ing. "We were five down at half," USD Coach Jim Brovelli said, "but I thought we played fairly well. We controlled the tempo, I told the players if we could keep the lid on we could Win on the road." USO increased its margin and was in the lead throughout the final minutes. USO was aided by sloppy ball handling by Santa Clara, which had 21 turnovers to only 11 for the Toreros. Whitmarsh was the game's high scorer with 25 points and one rebound. Vanos led Santa Clara With 20 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocked shots. USD is idle this weekend but plays at the University of Portland Thursday and at Gonzaga University March 3. The Toreros finish their regular season schedule by hosting St. Mary's College on March 8.

SANTA CLARA-The University of San Diego basketball team made another bid to move Into first place for the first Ume in the West Coast Athletic Conference with a 63-61 Victory over Santa Clara Thursday night at Toso Pavilion. The win put USO 05-9, 6-3) a half game behind league-leading St. Mary's College, which plays Santa Clara here Saturday night. A St. Mary's loss would move USO into a tie for first in the WCAC. USO hasn't been in first In the WCAC since joining the league for the 1979.so season. Thursday ntght's loss was only the second at home this season for Santa Clara (17-9, 4-5) and was the first win there for USD. Santa Clara Jumped out to a 29-24 halftime advantage with the help of 59% field goal shooting. But the Toreros moved back into contention quickly in the second half

THE TRIBUNE FEB 2 7 1984

BASKETBALL HONORS - Mike Whitmarsh of USO was selected the West Coast Athletic Conference player of the week yesterday. Whitmarsh, who joined the Toreros from .Monte Vista High via Grossmont Community Col- lege, scored 25 poin~ 10 USD's 63-61 road victory over Santa Clara last week. The 6-foot-7 senior forward also had three assists and two steals against the Broncos. The Toreros are 6-3 in the WCAC and tied with St. Mary's for first place. USO has three regular-season games left as the team continues its bid for a confer- ence title and automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.

'·The ball was just rolling around up there," Thompson said. "What'd they do, miss three in a row there right at the end? Boy, that was the longest five seconds lever saw." Those five seconds, however, im- proved the Toreros· conference posi- tion. USO is 6-3 and does not play until Thursday night in Portland. St. Mary's, 6-2, plays the Broncos here tomorrow night. See USD on Page D-3

SAN DIEGO UNION rra 2 4 1984

USO 4, POINT 1,0MA NAZARE 'E 4 - The Torcros and Crusaders battl ed to a tic, givi ng way to darkness after 9½ innings at Point Loma. USO picked up the game- saver with a single run in the top of the ninth. PLNC had scored four runs in the bottom of the eighth to take tbe lead.