Birmingham Post-Herald from Birmingham, Alabama • 20

I Change HASKETBALL for the better: improved Bandits win again ii weeks ago and the different teams By Chet Fntsman The Birmingham lhAnd SKt night'i 138120 victory Racers at State Fair Arena that point panHiti of two of today are two utive points and behind Tim Legler (38 points) Roland Gray (28) and Cedric Hunter (12) who combined to score all 33 third-quarter points narrowed the gap to 100-89 after three quarters But Ansley opened the fourth quarter with a turnaround jumper and the Bandits scored the next 10 points to put the game away Bandits finished the game shooting a sizzling 65 four of 23 shots He percent with Ansley missing only also found plenty of support from his teammates Jim Farmer Ansleys former Unlversit lity of of totaihr! bSfcoach Morris McHone said but it's getting there a lot better right McHone said we still have a lot to improve on" The Bandits might find it difficult to Improve on last first half They shot 61 percent from the field missed only one outraced the Racers to a 75-56 halftime Bandit player made at least half of his first one stop said Omaha coach Mike Thi-bault team had won three if Its first four games oursleves to big a hole In the first half We in the third quarter but one quarter took their biggest lead of the game at 88 remaining in the third when Omaha made the game The Racers scared 14 consec SCORE: Birmingham Bandts 138 Omaha soars 120 STAR: Birmingham's Michael Ansley the CBA's leading scorer scored 40 points on 1B-of-22 shoot big KEY 8TAT: The Bandts sank 65 percent of their shots from the field NOTE: The Bandts after opening the season 0- 3 won their third consecutive game QUOTE: "We're a lot better right now but we sta have a lot of things to Improve on" Bandits coach Mo McHone said NEXT: 7:05 pm Friday at home vs Wichita Fals (Texas) ChetFusaman Alabama 22' while Michael Cutright i Birmingham 17 teammate and Skeeter Henry scared double figures Still it was the Bandits' improved defense that had McHnne smiting after the game we really got It going" McHone said guys are starting to understand our theories of doubling and rotating It really showed out there" added 21 players was the third consecutive victonr far the Bandits who opened the season 0-S Birmingham won three the four quarters to earn six of seven points and extend their Eastern Division lead About the only thing that changed for Bandits is the play of forward Michael Araley The CBAs leading scorer poured in 40 points on 18of-22 shooting most from close range weeks ago we didnt know each other said Ansley who added eight rebounds seven assists a blocked shot and a steal have our chemistry Seikaly stands out as Heat stays hot free throw and lead Every half shots except whose dug did a good lob good enough" The Bandits 66 with 7:57 its lone run of 1 i Magic begins AZT treatment Aarciated Prcfli MIAMI Rony Seikaly had 23 points and 17 rebounds to lead Miami to its fourth consecutive victory 111-91 over Utah last night The Heat moved to 6-2 the first time the franchise has been four games above 500 and took their third consecutive victory over the Jazz in Miami Miami moved in front at the end of the first quarter as six Heat players scored during a 14-4 run to give them a 32-22 lead Miami outre-bounded Utah 14-4 in the quarter with Seikaly pulling down eight of his Mason-high totalT The Jazz dosed it to 41-34 before the Heat ran off 11 straight points six tor Steve Smith to lead 52-34 with 4:14 left in the second quarter After that Utah never cut the margin below 14 points Rockets 90 Knicks 79 HOUSTON Hakeem Olajuwon scored 12 points in the fourth quarter and Houston held an 1 100 points in regulation for the ninth consecutive game New York continued to struggle on the road losing its third consecutive game and moving to 0-5 this i away from home Olajuwon ended with 25 points and 14 rebounds for Houston undefeated in five home games Only twice has an opponent gotten 108or-more points against Houston both in overtime The Rockets defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 126-121 in double overtime to open the season and in their next game fell to the Denver Nuggets 109-101 in overtime LOS ANGELES Magic Johnson had an initial medical evaluation that revealed no signs or symptoms of AIDS his agent said yesterday Lon Rosen said in a statement that Johnson was examined Monday by Dr Ronald Mitsuyasu in an outpatient visit to the UCLA Medical Center and according to Mitsuyasu was in excellent physical condition Johnson on Monday began taking the drug AZT the standard treatment for HIV according to UCLA School of Medicine spokesman ard Elbaum Doctors generally start giving AIDS-infected people AZT when damage to their immune system has progressed to the point that they nave a reduced number of white blood cells called which are key components in the body's ability to combat disease Johnson's physicians have refused to UCLA for routine followup visits1 Elbaum said Elbaum also said he had no information on wife Cookie who is two months pregnant Johnson announced Nov 7 he had tested positive for HIV and was re to reveal his T-cell count An AIDS-infected person can have a reduced T-cell count even before developing symptoms of AIDS AZT delays the Jazz forward Karl Malone canter ia presaured by the onset of AIDS symptoms Grant Long left and Glen Rica i T-cell com will return periodically from home this season Great Midwest makes great impact Milwaukee outscored Charlotte 41- Auburn star Chris Morris had a from home this i on UAB recruiting over the Omaha was difficult to NBA wrapup Mavericks 96 Nuggets 93 DENVER Dallas started with a three-guard offense but fourth guard Brad Davis ended up playing the key role as the Mavericks beat Denver for their third consecutive victory Dans a reserve in his 13th season scored all seven of his points in the fourth quarter and made two to help Dallas take command In a game that featured 12 lead changes and nine ties Sonics 113 Bullets 106 LANDOVER Md Gary Payton scored 16 points in the second naif and Michael Cage had 20 rebounds to help Seattle overcome Washington for its third consecutive victory Trailing 6881 in the third quarter Payton had eight points in a 20-4 run that gave Seattle nine-point lead and helped send the Bullets to their second consecutive loss and fifth consecutive loss at the Capital Centre Bucks 127 Hornets 104 MILWAUKEE Moses Malone had 23 points and Dale Ellis scored 11 consecutive points in the third quarter as Milwaukee beat Charlotte to end a four-game losing streak Ellis who finished with 22 points expanded an already wide lead with three consecutive three-pointers and a basket from an offensive rebound midway through the third quarter Post-Herald's Most list and earlier signee Jeremy Bearden a forward from Gardendale give the Blazers two of the top 10 recruits in Alabama In addition UAB signed Travis Harper a 6-8 power forward from Columbus Ga who was one of the most sought after players in that state Bartow said moving from the Sun Belt Conference to the Great Midwest is one of the main reasons UAB is eqjoying its best recruiting season just had a fantastic Mashburn averaged 129 points and 70 rebounds including a Kentucky freshman single-game scaring record of SI points against Georgia think Jamal Mashburn is one of the premier college basketball players to the Pitino said Forwards John Pelphrey (144 points) and guards Sean Woods (97) and Jeff Brassow (81) are the other returning starters for the Wildcats who averaged 859 points per game last season Georgia Tech coach Bobby Cre-mins is concerned about James Madison saying the Dukes have quickness and great knew we would not have an easy said CTemins whose KJjackets are coming off a 17-13 season in wMch they advanced to the second round of the NCAA We need to play tournament somebody good The Dukes were 19-10 last year and woo the Colonial Athletic Association regular-season championship Theyreceived a bid to the postseason NIT Their coach Lefty Driesell is making his first appearance at the Tech coliseum since being forced to resign at Maryland in 1988 The Princeton-Monmouth game will match teacher against pupil Hawks coach Wayne Szoke was an assistant in 1983 under Pete Carril starting his 25th season as coach Princeton noted for its slowdown tactics has been to the NCAA tournament three consecutive seasons after winning the Ivy League title each year The Tigers were 24-3 last season and have a 27-game winning streak at its home court Jadwin Gym By Cary Estes Foat-HcnM Reporter The UAB Blazers have yet to play a game in the Great Midwest Conference but they already are reaping the benefits of belonging to the new league UAB signed its third premier player of the early signing period yesterday when Nigel Hodges a 8 foot-9 point guard from Parker High School agreed to play for the Blazers Hodges No 6 on the Birmingham tiring after a 12-year the Los Angeles Lakers At that time Johnson said his wife had tested negative for the virus Mitsuyasu is a specialist in HIV and director of the UCLA Center for Clinical AIDS Research and Education He has been treating HIV and AIDS patients at UCLA since 1982 The 32-year-old Johnson who led the Lakers to five NBA championships was examined a day after attending his first Lakers game since he retired The Lakers announced yesterday that Johnson had been placed on the injured list and guard Demetrius Calip had been signed to take place on the roster As long as Johnson remains on the injured ust he will be allowed to sit on the bench during games Johnson sat on the bench serving as a cheerleader of sorts as the Lakers beat the Atlanta Hawks 111- 89 Sunday night for their fourth con- secutive victory following a 1-3 start Calip was released shortly before the start of the season then signed when Tony-Smith went on the injured list a few days later and released again last week when Smith was activated career with Unless something changes today or tomorrow the Blazers will start Rogers Willie Chapman and Reginald Allen at the forwards and Stanley Jackson and George Wilker-son at the guards But Bartow said sophomores Carter Long and Clarance Thrash have been playing well lately and should see substantial playing time in Albuquerque Thrash averaged 135 points and six rebounds in the two exhibition games Long averaged 105 points and 45 assists Huggins From page Cl Joining Buford in the backcourt is junior point guard Allen Jackson who took over the starting role midway through last season and averaged 10 points and 35 rebounds per game Jackson is expected to get the green light to snoot the ball even more this season and combined with Buford should give the Bearcats one of the post prolific backcourts in the conference Jackson has improved Huggins said a much better player than he was a year ago And that gives us a good foundation to build WMle the Bearcats lost much of their rebounding power from last season they do return starting forward Herb Jones a 8foot-4 211- Eenior who averaged a team-1 points and 78 rebounds as But after those three players Cincinnati is filled with new and inexperienced faces several of whom will have to see substantial playing time This combination of newcomers and veterans makes for an interesting challenge for Huggins The motion and five-man-open-post offenses he likes to use requires perfect synchronization If one man goes astray the entire offense breaks down been so frustrating for some of the guys during Huggins said one guy is off it kind of throws everything out of whack So a guy may do his job perfectly but the play still work And that gets frustrating we have some talented people on this team get better it just may take a little while" Tonyrow St Louis i i 1 i t- Wildcats Mountaineers ready to begin play in preseason NIT key basket and two clutch free throws in the final minute as New Jersey beat Sacramento to end a seven-game losing streak It was the 41st consecutive road loss for the Kings who are 0-5 away probably kind of look during the winter at a 7-footer if any around in junior colleges but we feel real good about the players have next Bartow said (6-10 Proposition 48 casualty) Patrick Craft sitting out got one Mg guy anyway really pretty much where we want to be Numbers have caught us too so we do too much Now Bartow can turn all of his attention to this season opener Rick Wildcats are finally Pitino From page Cl Mashburn and Riddick give the Wildcats a talented inside game to Rwith solid perimeter players who iw how to play pressing fullcourt defense and run the floor the way Pitino wants it done WMle Pitino says he might try to cut back on the playing time for his starters because of the longer season he expect his players to change much this reason team the last two years could not have worked any harder than they Pitino says they have to do now is duplicate what done the past couple of 20 in the quarter and also got eight points apiece from Malone Larry Krystkowiak and Alvin Robertson Nets 122 Kings 118 EAST RUTHERFORD NJ Sam Bowie scared 27 punts and farmer a smiling Bartow said yesterday in pretty good shape I think the Great Midwest has definitely helped us It's really playing an The three signings practically bring an end to recruiting for UAB this season With only Elbert Rogers leaving after this season the Blazers are expected to have 11 scholarship players returning next year plus the three freshmen That gives UAB 14 scholarship players one below the limit think people will always be worried because Princeton's traditionally been good in point guard George Leftwich said know what to do and how to win" Like Kentucky the Tigers have four returning starters the only exception being at center Kit Mueller the two-time Ivy League player of the year has graduated Monmouth figure to be an easy opponent The Hawks 19-10 last season are favorites to win the Northeast Conference title and have 6-7 forward Alex Blackwell the preseason choice to be the league's player of the year Last season Blackwell averaged 229 points and 76 rebounds guys are going to get a taste of what Division I is all about real Boise State coach Bobby Dye said about the game against Colorado State Boise State is led by 6-9 Tanoka Beard an all-Big Sky center who averaged 177 points and 50 rebounds last season The Broncos who have averaged 19 victories for the past five seasons were 1811 last season They lost to Idaho State in the first round of the Big Sky Conference tournament and to Southern Illinois in the first round of the postseason NIT Colorado State 1814 last season has a new coach Stew Morrill former coach at Montana Morrill's team played Boise State 10 times winning four times The Rams have only one returning full-time starter guard Lynn Tryon (133 points) and only four returning players against Duquesne at Friday in Albuquerque first round of the Lmo 9:30 pm CST jue NM in the first round of the Lobo Classic New Mexico will take on Idaho State at 7 pm CST in the other game Bartow said the Blazers still are not where he would like them to be but that they are ready to start the the last four or five days it hasn't gone as well as it was at one Bartow said if we can just get them all playing together and playing hard well be in pretty good Staff pinto eligible for postseason play years and I think be a highly successful basketball team because doing it now with more people" Because some of those key people such as Mashburn and Riddick are young Pitino says his team is not where it should or could be The good news for Kentucky fans is that Pitino believes that will happen and the Wildcats will have a postseason in which to make it happen think a top 20 team" Pitino says think good enough to be ranked there but not sure as lofty as where that mean we be there at the end and that's what striving for" Tomorrow: South Carolina 4 Amdatad Prw Now that a two-year ban from postseason play is history Kentucky can look forward to being rewarded for its performance during the regular season The Wildcats ranked No 4 in the preseason poll begin their season tonight at home against West Virginia in a first-round game of the Big Apple NIT Kentucky coach Rick Pitino is excited about his team that has 10 let-termen including four starters from last 22-6 squad that had a league-best 14-4 record in the Southeastern Conference and finished ninth in the rankings think it takes two things for a basketball team in order to win great chemisty and great balance Pitino said we have on this basketball team are those two Five other first-round Big Apple NIT games will be played tonight James Madison at No 23 Georgia Tech Monmouth (NJ)at Princeton Washington at Texas Colorado State at Boise State and Manhattan at Pittsburgh The first round will be completed tomorrow night with Evansville at No 13 Oklahoma State at Purdue The quarterfinals will be played Friday and Saturday nights at campus sites with the semifinals and final at New Madison Square Garden on Nov 27 and 29 respectively only missing starter from last season is center Reggie Hanson who led the Wildcats with 144 points and 72 rebounds Sophomore Jamal Mashburn a 6-foot-B forward is expected to fill much of he void left by Hanson's departure.