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Page 13 • Thursday, September 3, 1998
European Vacation
i’s Basketball struggles against European pro teams, while gaining confidence and showing signs of greatness
help m
BY AL LAZARUS
The Battalion
ink of it as Saving Private Ryan, hoops style,
basketball team from the United States travels to Eu-
or at five-game exhibition tour in two different coun-
HflOTORtthings get pretty ugly at times, but in the end, every-
turns out OK.
:h was the case for the Texas A&M Men’s Basketball
- this summer, and no, Matt Damon did not see any
p^ig time.
th new coach Melvin Watkins at the
the Aggies traveled to Holland and
—!lany|in August to play five games,
against a different professional bas
il team.
aior jShanne Jones, the Aggies’ lead-
;orer last season, said A&M’s goals
ROOMIU s ' m P* e heading into the tour.
Me wanted] to win games and have
V Jones said. “That was our focus
there.”
irting their tour on Aug. 16 in Weert,
nd.jthe Aggies fell 83-79 to the Weert Basketball
5-.es_--soed a former Dutch Champion. Jones, picking up where
y saisrc - f t j ast seasonj i ec i a&M with a 29-point, 10-re-
d effort.
ie next day in Amsterdam, the Aggies suffered their
loss of the tour, a 75-50 thrashing at the hands of the
; i Astronauts. With only seven players available to play
e tour after the dismissal of junior guard Steve Hous-
\&M's personnel shortage was worsened when three
fouled out, leaving the Aggies with only four men on
aurt|for the last two minutes of the game,
oving on to Germany, A&M dropped games against
JONES
Bayer-Leverkusen and Telekom Baskets Bonn. To close out
their tour, the Aggies traveled to Hagen, Germany, on Aug.
23 for a game against Brandt-Hagen. Things finally came
together for the men in maroon and white, as they rolled to
a 96-85 victory.
Highlighting the winning effort for the Aggies was senior
Chris Clayton, whose game-high 34 points included a stag
gering 10 three-pointers in only 14 attempts.
Clayton, who showed similar signs of greatness last sea
son before missing the Aggies’ last seven games due to in
jury, said despite finishing 1-4 on the tour, the team has rea
sons to be optimistic.
“We got better every game, and what a lot of people don’t
realize is that those guys are pros over there,” Clayton said.
“Some of them have been playing together five or six years.”
After finishing the tour as the team’s leading scorer at 20.6
points per game and hitting 25 of 43 three-point attempts,
Clayton said he is ready for a breakout year.
“I feel confident,” he said. “I was hitting a lot of shots
over there, and having a good season will depend on having
a lot of confidence.”
Another bright spot in the Aggies’ victory was their 11-12
performance from the free-throw line, a place they had ma
jor problems connecting from last season.
Also giving A&M reasons to expect improvement this sea
son was the play of sophomore Aaron Jack, who averaged
a double-double on the tour with 11 points and 10.6 re
bounds per contest.
As Jones looks ahead to the upcoming season, he em
phasized that, regardless of the Aggies’ record last season
and this summer in Europe, there is reason to be confident.
“We have five new players, and with the proper coaching
and grooming we should be a pretty good team,” Jones said.
“We are optimistic, because we know we have nowhere to
go but up.”
Jake Schrickling/Thi: Battalion
Shanne Jones scored 28 points in the Aggies’ 96-85 victory.
McGwire
Continued from Page 11
“I would not rule out Ken Grif
fey,” McGwire said. ‘‘The man is
going to get hot. There’s a great
possibility that it’s going to be two
or three guys doing something
that people are waiting for.”
Sosa was tied with McGwire for
24 hours, then went 0-for-4 Thesday.
‘‘Now it’s getting a little excit
ing,” Sosa said. ‘‘Mark has 57 and
that’s a lot. Everybody knows that
everybody is pulling for Mark, and
I’m pulling for Mark, too. And I
want him to break the record first.”
Wilson’s 68-year-old NL mark
was erased in electrifying fashion.
Mighty Mac overtook Hack with a
pair of majestic clouts that traveled
an estimated 450 and 472 feet to
center field — impressive even for
the Paul Bunyan of batters.
‘‘All you can do is turn around
and see where the ball lands,” Li-
van Hernandez said. ‘‘When he
hits it, you’ve got to watch it.”
An 11-year-old Little League out
fielder and a 17-year-old part-time
magician recovered the souvenirs
and gave them to McGwire in ex
change for autographed balls, bats,
jerseys, photos and tickets to an
other game. The youngsters won
entertaining scrambles for the
balls, with clusters of kids sliding
wildly across a banked tarp beyond
the center-field wall.
They were doing more than
chasing history. They were riding
the wave.
^eKORA
inued from Page 11
his year, people who visit
r e volleyball games will see a
' v that consists of a much
—uger team than the previous
<5HIWIf : ^^ oraaware °f the added
.sure on her to perform on a
ngerteam.
Of course there is going to
pressure, not only for being
only senior, but also for be-
one of only two returning
,. rters, because we are young,”
' said.
■ ■ ‘It is pressure, but it is good.
i need that, because every-
■*Q9>69c > is looking at you to per-
n, and when things go
mg, you need to fix it.”
WAHTHykora seems to take her
ie to the next level and to be
“fix” when things are going
ALL FOOTBALL
WEIGHT^S;
When
D OUT FOR PM 11
wy
Steal
things aren’t going
way, that is when Stacy re
knows how to turn the team
.pnd by picking up her
lie,” Corbelli said, “and it is
action the team follows.”
(Vhether on or off the court,
ora said she loves to per-
an assessment Corbelli
she agrees with.
Off the court, she has a per-
ality that they [her team-
Jjes] really enjoy.” Corbelli
said. “She
likes to have
fun and does
n’t take too
many things
too serious,
and that adds
a lightness to
the team.”
Volleyball is
not the only
lenge Sykora has tackled in
;ege. So far in her A&M ca-
condos :, Sykora has lettered in
. . LessonAe sports.
Ski j etterec j j n basketball
mg her sophomore year and
ack and field her freshman
fyy.ubgiL.
he captured the Southwest
^ference championship title
me heptathlon her first time
daffiffibmpete in the event.
■he also has not ruled out
ipeting in basketball during
upcoming 1998 season.
Right now I’m undecided,”
said. “It all depends on the
eyball season. Volleyball is
>t important right now.”
’he Aggies get their season
erway Friday at the Univer-
of Pacific Tournament in
kton, Calif.
' (V he: tournament kicks off a
j|t r-week road swing in which
p|/pnnilW A88ies also wil1 visit San Mar ~
ultfflll Texas, for a contest with
/B8aV6n thwest Texas and Ann Arbor,
noitdl/lfllif 1 '’ f° r anot her tournament.
Pul lil"Q ( 'or Sykora, it is the begin-
^ Qmj#! of her final year at A&M.
Burleson, Texas, native
fj Jgfrfy add to a stellar career that
E iNPORMA^jii speak loudly of her leg-
)0*$UN* ar y A&M performance once
a w.uat www^is gone.