Birmingham Post-Herald from Birmingham, Alabama • 55

fflu Birmingham ton SATURDAY Birmingham Poat-Henld 0 Grandstand E2 nGolffE3 Pro football E5 0 Prep basketball E7 January 31 1998 Sports Twi Air i EMikMW MahMi hia tiJfftasTrrafcffdw UAB VS HOUSTON AUBURN VS OLE MISS Must win? Blazers thinking that way UAIIUIH Auburn today UAB TODAY At Mne point during a college JWball season a game no kxger is Jut game beeomea a must-win game The UAB Blazers have reached that point Three consec-nttve knees all an the road have left the Blaxen with a 1S-7 record That laaa total Homtoa (618 C-USA) fpg km FHmtt64fir 73 42 FYoungw 648a 69 15 FRatinKnil Sr 131 11 GMcMfcHar 121 31 10 31 UAB (11-7 44) FMtcMll Jr 17 13 Jackson 44 JT 71 41 Ward 63 So 14 12 Cobb Jr 77 11 GOnavUSr 117 31 TVOFKIpmstBirtowAim TV-WA8M41 RAOtOC WHM (1011 Fill WJZT (921 FHWSMQ (1450 AA1 UNEUABby16 IHEFASETteCougamnosn wmt Brough a cnwnorth span In which Bay loat nha consscuSw gamas by an swags msitfn of 111 points psr Smith learning discipline on off court AUBURN The Auburn basketball team spent ten weeks traveling the Netherlands Germany and France during the last week of August Bryant Smith stayed home This team won five out of six games against European dub teams formtog a chemistry getting to know each other and getting a jump-atari an the 1997-93 season Smith stayed home told him You put youneif in a position with mi where if you don't do what auppamd to do in the classroom you're not going to Auburn Cbach Cliff Ellis aaid Sure Smith a Junior small forward bom Huntsville had scored 11 paints a game and 12 rebounds the previous season but the truth is he was a role player and an taconaistent one at that If anyone needed the experience it was him Here's the irony Smith who out back of the list when we came back according to EUii quickly moved to the front exceeding nearly everyone's expectations As he returns to the lineup today against Ole Mias following a ooeame suspension Smith leafe the team in scoring UUX rehounding (7JX field-goal percentage C52Q and steals (21) Please tire to TIGERS page El Ols Mm (141 MSEC) FFQ RPG FSmSh53Jr 101 73 Sassy 69 Sr 181 71 Boons 1-7 Sol 64 41 GWNb6-1Jr 41 tJ GCsrbr64Jr 142 03 Auburn (124 43) FSmSh64Jr 152 72 FWWms64Sr 74 44 CN'days 7-0 So 72 71 GIX Robinson 628a 127 32 GRoNmsn62Fr 01 23 1F0FK4pjnCSTstBssn6CsMK MsmorWColssunki Auburn I1 TV: Fob Sports Souto RAMOtWJOX(690AM 1 UNCObMssbySL 7 THE RASE AShoutfi ON Mask off to Is bast start 71 yaws tot 7 -l-l amt among mnm uraon cnimpion hat tost Is past two read gamss to Tsnnaaaaa and Georgia BE Bs Ratals swigs bsaSngBstropponsnts -by an SECtasMAB points IMEWOniNshAubunhMd consscuOw horns gams against a top-il 25 oppanwit (wSh no vielarias yst) but Sis Tlgsraptoimdwslhs 6668 vtokxy titisaiitrppl Stats a IRE SCORE Oto Mas 72 Auburn 1- -StowXM "can have and (till hope to mfc the JYCAA Tournament Realistically UAB cannot afford more than two or three mare regular- aeaaan loaaea and expect to make the NCAAa without a strong showing in the Conference USA tournament TAnd the Btasers definitely mw afford to lose at home to a team with a losing record such aa Houston (9-10 CUSAX who UAB plays at 1 1 pm today at Bartow Arena This a must-win game right THE SHOT IBs Bazars haw any aspkaflons of raking Bs NCAA TounamantOwy battir bast this Warn Iha aatacSon oonanHaa lands not to fawr toama bat at borne to opponra rwKto ouwoi on lop loo oftoaRPL THE SCONE UAB 71 Houston 01 -Cky Eras JJ senior Dixon who never has Staff file photo Auburn Junior Bryant Smith wN return to the Ineup today when the Tigers play host to Ole Mian Smith was suspended from victory over Mississippi State on Wednesday piCAA Tournament Phase tare to BLAZERS page El I Olf tWt ALABAMA GYMNASTICS BULLS 6 BRASS 4 mM the vault i New NCAA rulef lets Spidle show her best moves Stellar third period gives Bulls victory By Ray Mellcfc Bfmtaghsm Fost-HcnM As well as the Birmingham Bulls have played in Janit-: ary and theyve played very well not having hat a game since January 2 how bad Birmingham pltned fat the tint period Ftidqr night at the Civic Center Coliseum had no Jump Bulls Coach Dennis Deraien said legs No intensity Stupid penalties We were htcky 1 to get out of that with our hides As bad as the Bulls played in the first period and they were down 61 after 20 minutes of play how good Birmingham played in the third the second and third period we had a dunce to get our atuff Desnsien said spirits were up and we realized we had given ourselves a 1 chance to win file game" The end result was a 64 victory by Birmingham (24-lJ-7)i Please tare to BULLS page El By Ray Melick Bnntaghamnwtfferald TUSCALOOSA Yon race down the runway leap with both feet landing on a qxingbosrd jump forward so that your hands come down on the top of the vault then push jwsdnip and out doing some kind of twist or turn or Hip It's ctdled the And Gwen Spidle coilArt doit Not that she 00011 vault Spidle had been an elite-level gymnast and a member of the USA National team and vaulting had been a regular part of her competition It'i Just that Spidle couliht do tint kind of vault What Spidle could do was race down the runway go have people come up to me -and say gosh how do you do that (back say them gosh how do YOU do Bulls today that (front I'' -Alabama last Gwen Jleonher favorite move the Yurchenko -1 some sort of major deficiency The back vault that Spidle does called a Yurcfaenka to mare difficult and more dangerous and therefore had oaf been allowed by the NCAA Until now The influx over the last few years of elite-level gynmsto such as Spidle gymnasts who were used to doing reek vaults finally forced the NCAA to allow the more difficult vault Please tare to VAULT page El into a back handning before rite got to the spring board that allowed her to hit the spring board with her feet only faring backwards then hands first onto the backwards and pushing herself up and out doing (twist or turn or tin file air lust not a front Spidle said with a shrug of her shoulden as if WHO: Bfemhgtwm Bub Jscfc-somli Uard MngsW WHBfe 620 pmCST WHERE JscfcsonvagFto HADKkWJQXfB90AbQ 1 CENTER ICE 91 a buy weekend tor 8w Btib who pkysd host to New Oilssns on FWtoy a 14 victory -end vM TMshossss on Suidsy 1 FUWWNUE Iha Bds era 340 agtowt tho Lizard Khgs lb season and hold a 1344 record allma OFF THE BOARDS: Jwnsy Hfcks oonUnuat to had tw Bub hMMbyi a I- rn I 1- BaJak tob 1-- I Mcmg rarao mnyigimt wn ponA raun 20 go vd 48 assists BODY CHECXE Mate Driamw puapsnstad ouL Dmb Pinfold has bssn ncslsd by Syracussot Ow Anwifesn Hocksytaagua FMAL HORN: Aftor Suvtoy's gams Ow Bub (by 13 of (Mr 24 games to home bagMng sMi a 720 pm gams Tuesday against tw Soutowsst DkMowtoadhg LouWans toa-Gslors at tw CMc Cantor Cobsum -TtaSMphans Jtoi badpMdKrPDstflctaid TIm Bufia Lane Brady center and Stefan Rivard fight for the puck wHh New Todd Brady cento McKay Norman right and BM IBM BOMBING Sports and all else should take a back seat to bombing TELEVISION Post-Herald columnist Finebaum adds WBMG anchor post to duties our the Finebaum will not be cutting back on Us three newspaper columns a wed (four during the tail) or Us 6hour per weekday radio show on WERC(960 AM) ta fact for end pm newscast on Channel 42 the plan is to have FV ndMuim on the radto and the TV ri-multanenusly for an abbreviated ypnftyd At the end of lari year Metfia Generekowned Suddenly the clock was tamed back and ift 1963 all over again We were frcsenfaitime Din Rather was ontdeviaian talking about another dark day in 'll airing a countdown dock during its i news times 5 and 18 pm counting down the daya hours min- tries and seconds until they would' have news bad on the air So far the station has been tight-1 lipped about what ita new show would be like and Us anair personalities When asked about Fhebaum Land issned a statement that are very excited about the p-S riUlity of Pauli wattim with! Channel 42 news He is a recognized authority and commentator on the state and national sporting By Steve Joyit If you have a low threshold for FV nehaum brace yourselt WBMG-42 has hired Paul Fhe-baum file Birmingham Pos6Her-ald's acerbic qnta cotumnlst who also horia a redo talk show to be ita weekday sports anchor was hi a date of shock when they asked me to do Finebaiim said practicallj tried to talk (station manager) Eric Land out of But Finebaum and the Natw came to a baric agreement late fids week and he expecta to rign a contract before Chrenel 421 revamped news program goes on the air Feb 9 important Or at least not to me What about the new footbsn league propored by TBS and NBC? What about it? Someone railed a point the other night saying: you think the bombing wUl hurt our chances of getting an NFL football team? Who knows and who really cues? But there is a point to the question There is a point to screaming out in frustration in anger in total revulsion about why aotnetady would wM to do commit There is also a point to refusing to allow it to bring us down to allow us to wallow in file mud and feel self-pity ft also should serve as a reawakening of our consdous Pfcees tare to F1NEBADM page E2 When I saw the opening of the CBS EveningNews on Tnursday night iqy heart fril again There it was right Wer the Bulred Mcnica story the familiar picture of a bombed-out building with the shattered windows andpoUre dogs under the beading: "Honor in You think of the tragedy and the famflin th ImptwlW Then you start to get self-centered You start to think about how this must look around the nation How we must be looking to the rest of the world At a time when Birmingham is trying to move forward toward the next millennium at a time when we are having a vigorous debate about spending a halmllion dollars on impravonents to our schools and a domed stadium another bomb goes oft splintering windows and lives and i that all of the on-air news employees torturing sports anchor Doug Bell and many others behind the cameras would be out of a Jab an JanL of victories and the future of David Bobta or high sdioai football recruiting doeail seem very Since fimi the station has been Please tare to WBMG page E2 li.