University of Arkansas Monticello - Boll Weevil Yearbook (Monticello, AR)

Page 238 text:

BASKETBALL , = : 2 es A ew. £ ow + v AA Od, Ux, - cs i Kneeling: Bennie Bogan, manager; Head Coach Doug Barnes, Assistant Coach Knox Prosper, Darrell Rhodes, Larry Robinson, Karl Smith, Andre Williams, Joey Harry Crossett, Ricky Donham, trainer. Standing: Connie Cobbs, Theodis Bealer, Anders, Bobby Watson, Richard Chappell, Steve McKinnon, Jeff Johnson. 234 Athletics Above: Larry Robinson tries to gain control of a jump ball. Right: Coach Barnes confers with team members on their next plan of action.

Page 237 text:

Above: Darrell Rhodes stays low in a defensive move against Millsaps. Above Right: Larry Robinson releases an outside shot in the District 17 Tournament. Right: Jeff Johnson moves the ball around a Har- ding team member. whipping the host Crusaders 52-50 in the finals. The Weevils avenged their loss to Bel- haven by defeating the Klansmen in Jack- son, Miss., 48-45 in double overtime. UAM opened the AIC race with a 68-63 victory over Ouachita, then raised eye- brows around the state by whipping in succession; Henderson, Harding and Col- lege of the Ozarks. Following a noncon- ference loss at Delta State, the Weevils reached the Christmas break with an 8-2 record. More importantly, they were un- beaten in the AIC. Resuming play after the holiday break, the Weevils took an easy win over Xavier of New Orleans, came from behind to overtake Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia, and coasted past Millsaps 86-68 to set up a showdown with Hen- drix. Athletics 233

Page 239 text:

The Warriors rolled into Monticello with an 11-1 season record, a 4-1 confer- ence slate, and a number nine ranking in the NAIA division one basketball poll. The student body, Monticello, and southeast Arkansas got caught up in the excitement as the biggest crowd in over a decade squeezed into The Pit. Represen- tatives from two state newspapers, anda Little Rock television station were on hand to add to the hoopla. What they saw was a superb perfor- mance by a well-prepared team. UAM led from the early moments and blew to a 44- 32 advantage at the half, thanks to bal- anced scoring from Bealer, Smith and Johnson. The Weevils threatened ‘to make it a runaway when Rhodes nailed a long jumper for a 61-44 lead with just over ten minutes to play. It was then that Austin Sullivan, the Warriors 5-8 sharpshooter, began a shooting barrage that almost brought Hendrix back. With 7:04 left, UAM’s lead had been cut to 63-54, but the Warriors could get no closer than seven points down the stretch as the Weevils held on for the win. Now they were 12-2 for the season and 6- 0 in the AIC. That was the high point. The next day in practice, Smith sprained an ankle when he went for a rebound, and had to miss the next seven games. With his replace- ment Richard Chapple ill and playing at half speed, the Weevils suffered through a five-game losing streak before whipping Harding 92-70. The rest of the season was like a roller- coaster ride, up and down. The Weevils fell by six at Ozarks, came back with one of their best performances of the year in a 70-68 win at Hendrix, then dropped games to Arkansas Tech and Arkansas College. The Weevils concluded the regular sea- son by overcoming a 19-point deficit to beat Central Arkansas. They stunned pre-tournament favorite Arkansas Col- lege 75-74 in double overtime in the first round of the NAIA District Playoffs be- fore losing to UAPB. “I think we’ve proved in the past year, with the fan interest and our record, that we’ve turned the program around,” said Barnes. ‘“‘We are and will continue to be competitive in the AIC. I guess it’s espe- cially gratifying to me since so many peo- ple said it couldn’t be done. And it’s grati- fying for players like Theodis and Larry who’ve been here four years and stayed with it. And to the kids we’ve got now, Jeff and Darrell and the others, who took a chance on coming here when the pro- gram was down. “We won with a group of young men who some people said couldn’t play in the AIC. It was good that they came back and beat those people. That gave me a great deal of satisfaction.” faa