The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, January 26, 2000, Image 9
SPORTS Wconesclay. January 26,2(XX) THE BATTALION Page 9 nsume. ifidend the rij NOkK.Vh -cJmjt e tus v i,trcd U> its > sl*;um}k* staiijjicl«i c<.i h> the booninK Aggies travel to face Cyclones 9 ■V SALLIE TURNER/l'Ht BatiaI.ION sophomore guard Andy Leatherman drives against Oklahoma State guard Doug Gottlieb Saturday in the Aggies’ win. BY JASON LINCOLN The Battalion Bernard King has never become accustomed to losing. As the Texas A&M basketball team’s leading scorer, the freshman guard has all the ingredients to lead the Aggies to wins. Most recently, he put up 17 points and nine re bounds in A&M's w in over No. 12 Oklahoma State University earning ESPN.com “Freshman of the Week” honors. I lowever, one opponent — Iowa State forward Marcus Fizer has had King’s number since their days playing as best friends and high school rivals. Tonight the two will face offin their first NCAA pairing as the Aggies take on the Cyclones in Ames, Iowa at 7. The Aggies hope that King and the rest of the freshmen line-up can make up the difference that has seen A&M lose by nine or more points in all three games of the series between the schools. This season’s Iowa State team looks to be the biggest challenge yet in the series, as the Cyclones are 16-3 with only one conference loss at the hands of No. 18 Oklahoma. In addition to their impressive start, ISU has won 14 straight games in Hilton Coliseum, without a home loss since February of 1999. “Iowa State may be playing as well as any team in our league right now,” A&M coach Melvin Watkins said. “They play very solid basketball and don’t hurt themselves with mistakes.” Texas A&M (6-10; 2-3) has made major steps in “It'sgoing to be tough ... they're really well coached and we're go ing to have to play well to beat them.” — Larry Eustachy Iowa State men's basketball coach improving its game since conference play started with wins against Texas Tech and OSU. The Aggies only conference losses have been to three ranked op ponents. “It’s going to be tough. They’ve already won on the road against Texas Tech and they beat Oklahoma State,” ISU coach Larry Eustachy said. “They’re re ally well coached and we’re going to have to play well to beat them.” Just like every other matchup the two have played in, Fizer and King continue to dominate the court for their respective teams. It started in southern Louisiana where the two players were making waves as two of the hottest bas ketball prospects to come out of the “bayou state.” King was a young star at Coleman High School in Gibsland, La., while Fizer was controlling the courts in nearby Arcadia. Fizer, two years King’s senior, led Arcadia to dominate the rivalry and eventually win a state championship. When Fizer went on to ISU, the door was open for King to control the courts, leading Coleman to its own state championship while earning' Louisiana’s “Mr. Basketball” honors. Since Fizer’s transition into collegiate competi tion. King has been waiting to get a little payback on his best friend. “They usually won those games,” King said about their high school competition. “We only got them one time. Now we have to go out and get him in college since he beat me so much in high school.” Getting past the ISU star will not be an easy task for King and the Aggies. Fizer has dominated his match-ups with the Ag gies, posting two double-doubles in the two meetings. This season, Fizer has pushed his game to a high er level. The junior is averaging over 20 points and seven boards to lead the Cyclones. “Marcus Fizer is playing at a level where his See Cyclones on Page 10. snth apo 141.' araac 12t- A&M women look to end five-game losing streak BY BLAINE DIONNE The Battalion ^Kevengc is a dish best served cold and if the .hoLtfu: Jems A&M women's basketball team has anything to (was, do with it. it will be served up nice and frosty this ^vetting at 7 pin. at Reed Arena to the University oft )k- .-J nr lahoma. i I S. bvv jwo weeks ago. the Aggies visited Norman and x-Topx? 'were rudely received by the Sooners with a re- mucv,*v souhding 87-59 defeat that, according to head ;k>sca£toti r 2 0a lh Peggy Gillom, was not as bad as it looked ; • C / .m paper. ^Dur kids had the shots, but things just weren't go- or behind the.? k. which ttv e tonfic mg good for us,” Gillom said. “We were in the game for most of the first half, but they [Oklahoma] blew it open n buted the mers to a con flic, uinpleyrncnuto uul low mflSk'n stock make! cook x weaken and consi pending.” he saxl umusts caution h 1 - inmiv’s heavy rdiai tiding can be is • sentiment can bes sen factors suchufi sudden changes*: ,. like a tax inercas • t , r -fightibefore the half.” Bowing a game right before the half is a phrase that could also be used to describe the Aggies’ sea son thus far. After opening up the year by reeling off 11 wins in 13 games, the Aggies have hit a losing skid they have not been able to shake in the last five games. To make matters worse for the team, all of the losses were against conference foes. But Gillom says that the conference struggle is not a trend that w ill last much longer. "I don't think the girls are really down,” Gillom said, “because 1 am a confident person and I always teach them, ‘This too shall pass.’” Saying it will pass is one thing, but actually getting it to pass is another. According to Gillom, the first step in getting through this current losing streak was her team's second half shooting performance against a strong University of Nebraska team in Lincoln last Saturday. In that game, Gillom said her ballplayers rediscov ered two essential ingredients for winning basketball games. "With the game against Nebraska, 1 think they found their shooting touch and their confidence,” Gillom said. “That was a game that I think we could have easily won, but because of unforced turnovers or a shot here or there or a missed assignment, we weren't able to pull it out.” Gillom is not the only member of the women’s bas ketball team that is confident they can turn their season back in the right direction. Sophomore guard LaToya Rose said that the team is eager to get back on the court to prove that the loss to Oklahoma was a fluke. "Oklahoma is a good team, but when we played against Oklahoma, we had a lot of mistakes,” Rose said, “so if we can correct those mistakes, it’s anybody’s game.” See Streak on Page 10. JP BEATO/Tm Battalion Texas A&M freshman forward Meg Banahan looks to inbound the ball in the Aggies early season win over Sam Houston State. l* s? t. 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