The Tennessean from Nashville, Tennessee • Page 135

Bo Jackson returns to Kansas City in pads, 8C Foreign influence at Cookeville High, 1 1C SECTION -C SPORTS Scoreboard, 2C NBA, IOC Outdoors, 12C The Sunday TENNESSEAN SUNDAY, December 13, 1987 For a night. Vols kings of foac 01 km1 JOHN BIBB Sports Editor Sunday Ayem Tennesscan Staff Reports LOS ANGELES Tennessee's Vols went prospecting on the West Coast yesterday and dug up an important and rare road victory as Southern Cal fell 74-61. It marked Tennessee's first win in a road opener in four years and upped the Vols' record to 2-0 entering a home game against Western Carolina on Thursday. The contest against Western Carolina kicks of a six-game homestand at the new Thompson-Boling Arena Southern Cal, which shot a horrendous 28 from the field in the second half, is 1-6 and has lost five in a row. Dyron Nix scored 21 points and Doug Roth added 17 points and eight rebounds as the Vols hit 68.8 of their shots in the second half to jCruisetothewin.

"We needed a winon the road and I can't The Vols also got a lift from Rickey Clark, another freshman. Clark scored four points and had four rebounds while playing strong defense. "Those two freshmen fought for the ball, made some big defensive plays and handled the ball well," DeVoe said. "They're going to have some big moments for us this season." Tennessee maintained a comfortable lead in the closing minutes despite the absence of Nix, who left the game with eight minutes remaining due to an elbow injury. Sophomore Ian Lockhart filled in at a post position and finished with six points and six rebounds.

Nix's injury was not considered serious. "When I went out, Ian and Doug did a tremendous job on the boards. We'll need that as the season goes along," Nix said. Tennessee won just three road games last season and the Vols were 1-12 away from home in 1986. violation on Friday night Henry, a 6-2 junior who played 33 of the game's 40 minutes, scored seven points and dished off nine assists.

The assist total tied his career high, set in the first game of his freshman year. Tennessee trailed 34-33 at halftime and was down 44-41 with 14:50 remaining when the Vol offense suddenly began to click. Over the next three minutes, UT reeled off 1 1 uninterrupted points, fueled by freshman Greg Bell's three-point basket, and eventually built the lead to 60-48 with just over seven minutes left. Bell had nine points during the 19-4 run. He finished with 13 points.

"Greg was trying to do too much in the first half and we talked to him about it at halftime," DeVoe said. "He settled down and showed more poise in the second half." ON 6C: Two Vols disciplined for missing curfew. think of a better time to get it than right now," UT Coach Don DeVoe said. "We were out of sync in the first half but we did a good job of sticking with our game plan." That game plan consisted of sticking the ball inside to Nix and Roth, who powered their way to the basket. "Both Dyron and Doug are a year older now and they've gone through some frustrating losses.

They're starting to reap dividends from their experience," DeVoe said. Travis Henry directed the Vols' offensive show in the absence of Clarence Swearengen. Swearengen, the team's usual starter at point guard, and reserve forward Anthony Richardson did not dress for the game due to a curfew Memphis State upends Missouri vlfA. 11 No news not always good news At the zenith of his coaching career, former Vanderbilt skipper Roy Skinner invested $1.29, plus tax, in a recruiting device that was to help shape the Commodores' basketball future. Browsing at a newsstand during one of Vandy's trips to Tuscaloosa, Ala, Skinner purchased a knife-like instrument with a needle blade.

It became the cutting edge of Skinner's nationwide recruiting program. He used it to clip newspaper stories of high school players' performances. Skinner subscribed to approximately 1 5 papers. Part of his daily routine was to read the publications and follow the exploits of prepsters he considered potential Commodores. "I read the boxscores and the appraisals of players by high school and college coaches.

Occasionally, there would be a personality piece that gave me an inside look at a guy's off-court habits and scholastic work," Skinner said. "It probably sounds crude when compared to today's sophisticated systems, but it worked pretty well for us." SKINNER doesn't recall all of the players who came to his attention through his clippings, "but I'll name two Fosnes and Feher." For the record, Jeff Fosnes, from Colorado, and Butch Feher, from Michigan, ultimately became stars at Vanderbilt in the mid-1970s. I mention this bit of Vandy basketball lore because when the NCAA holds its annual convention here next month, there's proposed legislation that would have put a serious crimp in Skinner's system. If adopted, the legislation would forbid college athletic staff members from evaluating or rating a prospect for the news media or for scouting or recruiting services prior to the prospect's signing a grant-in-aid. The amendment falls in line with an NCAA recruiting rule that made the news during a recent Clinic Bowl luncheon where Tennessee's football coach, Johnny Majors, was the guest speaker.

Majors told the group he couldn't talk about UT football because there were prep players in the audience. If he discussed the Vols' program, the NCAA might consider his appearance an official recruiting contact with players attending. NCAA RULES already have put clamps on alumni and friends interested in helping lure a high school recruit to a specific college. Because of the mass of rules that force limited access to prep players, a veritable forest of recruiting newsletters has sprung up. These publications claim to present the very latest information on the top prepsters in the nation.

The proposed NCAA amendment takes particular aim on these newsletters. Much of their information comes from prep coaches and college recruiters. Some college staffs accept the information as gospel. Others are skeptical. Frankly, this smacks of one more taste of unenforceable NCAA legislation.

Surely, these academic-athletic giants have more to do than write another a gag rule. There must be better ways to cure recruiting ills than throwing a shield over a sports page or newsletter. tED POWER Sports Writer Every year, it seems, Memphis State loses more than it can handle. I It lost Keith Lee, but kept winning. It lost William Bedford, but kept winning.

It lost Dana Kirk, but kept winning. Last spring it lost playmaker Vincent Askew. Guess what? Memphis State is still winning. The 20th-ranked Tigers defeated ninth-ranked Missouri 76-68 last night as two more homegrown newcomers stole the show. Guards Elliot Perry and Cheyenne Gibson combined for 36 points in the victory which is likely to keep Memphis State in the top 20 despite last week's 55-50 loss at St.

Louis. "The young players played extremely well," said Memphis State coach Larry Finch, whose Tigers are 4-1. Of course, just about any of the Tigers are young these days as Memphis State waits for senior guard Dwight Boyd to recover from a broken bone in his right hand. Last night's starting line-up included a freshman, two sophomoresand two juniors. Four of them scored in double-figures, led by Perry, the begoggled freshman who had 19 points, four rebounds, two assists and three steals.

The fifth starter, junior college transfer Rodney Douglas added eight key points, including the six-footer with 12:06 to play that gave the Tigers the lead for good. Perry followed that up with a three-pointer "They're the ones that really get me pumped up," he said and the Tigers were on their way. Most of the 1 1,200 fans didn't quite know what to expect of these young Tigers. With Boyd out of the lineup at SL Louis, the team crumbled, shooting just 30.9 from the field, The locals spent the week wonder ing if this would finally be the season that one too many of last year's heroes were gone. "You can't worry about what people Finch said of criticism the squad took during the week.

"We're young. We are going to have bad nights, but we are also going to have good nights. In the meantime, we just tell the young ones not to worry what people are saying." Perry and Gibson, who added 17 points and five assists, certainly didn't worry about the chatter. "I was just a little more relaxed out there. We all came in here with a lot of enthusiasm and got after their guards," said Perry.

He and center Marvin Alexander came up with four consecutive steals midway through the second half to start the Tigers' deciding run. Despite the play of his young guards, it was Alexander's renewed spirit which most pleased Finch. Alexander scored 14 points and added eight rebounds. Sophomore Sylvester Gray added 10 points and eight rebounds. "We need Marvin to play well and I think he is going to get better," said Finch.

The young guards' play overshadowed a 26-point night by Missouri Ail-American candidate Derrick Chievous. "Where are the Memphis State guards who can't shoot?" Missouri Coach Norm Stewart asked facetiously. "Memphis State is strong inside and that sets up their outside game. They have several young players who are doing a good job." Meanwhile, the injured Boyd sat and watched as his young mates handed Missouri its first loss in four outings. He could be back by the time the Tigers meet Kansas in the ECAC Holiday Festival Dec.

28 at New York. AP during Duane Cooper of Southern California is up high as he collides with Tennessee's Mark Griffin action yesterday in the Los Angeles Sports Arena. Evansville tragedy: 'the night it rained tears' heard about the crash." Ott gave the prayer at a memorial service the morning after the accident, and talked about it at commencement five months later. "It's appropriate that we come back to remember this moment in time because it was a moment of loss," he said of the anniversary. "Certainly loss ought to make us more appreciative about the life that we have and ought to make us cherish relationships more." Ott's son, Stephen, gave a hint of how the university might respond to the accident, the professor said.

The boy, who had attended a baskeball camp run by Watson the previous summer, heard of the crash and approached his father. "My son came in and said, 'Is Bobby Watson and I said yes. And he said, 'Is (senior) Kevin Kingston And I said yes. And he went right down the list from there of people he had met in the basketball camp and knew from the team. "And I remember with his fists clenched this little 1 1-year-old boy Turn to PAGE 13C, Column 1 crash.

It rained, and it rained the next two days," said Philip Ott, a UE professor of philosophy and religion. "And that rain was symbolic of the tears that fell on our campus, and it was not until Sunday that the sun came out" Ott said he mentions the tragedy in some of his courses. "I frequently tell them if they talk to their mom and dad they can tell you where they were when (President John Kennedy was shot," Ott said. "And some of my students from Evansville can tell you where they were when they JOHN STRAUSS Associated Press EVANSVILLE, Ind. A foggy, drizzling night 10 year ago was "the night it rained tears" for those who remember the plane crash that killed the entire University of Evansville basketball team.

The twin-engine propeller plane, chartered from National Jet Service of Indianapolis, was en route to Nashville. The Aces were scheduled to play Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro the next night, a Wednesday. A memorial plaza with a fountain and a plaque listing the names of the victims are about the only reminders on the campus of the Methodist school. A service will be held today to mark the anniversary, and memories of the crash remain crystal clear for some people. Coach Bobby Watson, his 1 4 players, 1 1 team friends and the plane's crew of three died Dec 13, 1977, when their chartered DC-3 crashed shortly after takeoff from Evans-ville's Dress Regional Airport.

"I will never forget the night of the Kentucky tip tops rival Louisville Vandy's giant signee upstaged by former Commodore Grider It Si AP Tennesscan News Services LEXINGTON, Ky. A little offense went a long way for Kentucky's Cedric Jenkins. Jenkins tip-in as time expired his only points of the game lifted No. 1 Kentucky to a 76-75 victory over Louisville yesterday. "Definitely I'd have to say it was one of my greatest moments," said the 6-9 senior forward, who had 1 1 rebounds.

"I'm not one to concentrate on offense too much. I'm in there to shut my man down and get rebounds." Louisville forward Herbert Crook, meanwhile, felt defenseless as the basketball bounced around on the rim. "It was dancing around up there and all I could do was watch," Crook said. "I was just hoping it would bounce off so I could grab it But it finally dropped through." Louisville, which had trailed by as many as 16 points in the first half, had taken a 75-74 lead on Pervis Ellison's baseline jumper with 40 seconds toga Kentucky worked 29 seconds off thetlock before calling a timeout to set up its final strat over the basket on that kind of shot," Louisville assistant Jerry Jones said about Daven-der's miss leading to the rebound. "That was the other 20." "I saw a long arm go up and I knew it wasn't Pervis'," said Cardinal guard Mike Abram.

Ellison was blocked out of the play, having slid out to the free throw line to pick up Kentucky's wide open Rex Chapman. "It looked like some of our guys had them boxed out, but I guess they were too far under the basket," Ellison said. But Louisville's Denny Crum, whose team fell 69-54 to Notre Dame a week earlier, was elated that his team rebounded to a near-miss. "At year end we could have a chance to be a very good basketball team," he said. "To come in here atid play the No.l team and have a chanccto take the lead with 1 1 seconds left, I couldn't be prouder of my team." Chapman scored 21 points, Davender followed with 20 points and forward Winston Bennett added 14 for Kentucky, egy.

The ball went to guard Ed Davender, who drove to the right baseline and misfired on a 12-footer. After one unsuccessful tip-in during the frantic final seconds, Jenkins slipped in on the right side of the basket to score just before the horn. "Rob (Lock) and I got a hand on it (first tip) and it came back to me," said Jenkins. "I just crashed the boards. It was an open lane and I just tipped it ia" When Jenkins tip did settle into the net with one second remaining, Louisville saw what would have been a colossal upset turn into an 0-2 worksheet for the Cardinals.

Jenkins' only basket pulled the heavily favored Wildcats back from the brink of defeat and on to a 4-0 season start "They got lucky, they know they did," said Crook, who turned in a stellar effort with a game-high 24 points, plus nine rebounds. "We had them. But this is what this series is supposed to be like; this was a great game." "Eighty percent of the time, the ball will go I Story on 7C Louisville's Herbert Crook tries to defend a shot by Kentucky freshman Eric Manuel. 4.