University of Miami - Ibis Yearbook (Coral Gables, FL)

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Summer Olympics marred by drug scandal When all was said and done in the 24th Summer Olympic games in Seoul, Ko- rea, the United States Olym- pic team, though disappoint- ing to some, had captured 94 medals including 36 golds. These Olympic games would be remembered due to several outstanding individu- al performances. Swimmer Matt Biondi, who won seven medals including five gold; teenage swimmer Janet Evans, who brought home three golds; sprinter Flo- rence Griffith-Joyner, who took four medals and an Olympic record; and diver Greg Louganis, who for the second consecutive time, swept the diving events. These efforts helped to off- set the major disappoint- ment of the men ' s basketball team bringing home only the bronze and the men ' s gym- nastics team not winning any medals. Other teams, how- ever, fared much better win- NBA finally lands in South Florida On Saturday, November 5, professional basketball fi- nally landed in South Flori- da. The Miami Heat, one of two National Basketball As- sociation expansion teams, opened their inaugural sea- son in the Miami Arena with a 111-91 loss to the Los An- geles Clippers, a team that had won only 29 games in the past two seasons. The night began with a 40 minute pre-game party, in- cluding appearances by ce- lebrities such as Don John- son and Ben Vereen, cele- brating basketball in a football dominated city. A sellout crowd of 15,677 wit- nessed an electrifying event come alive in downtown Miami as the Heat took the court for the first time. The Miami Heat and the Charlotte Hornets, part of a four-team expansion plan created by Commissoner David Stern ' s office, each made their professional de- buts in November. In the following season, the NBA would expand to Minnesota with the installation of the Timberwolves. Florida would also become the host of its second NBA team in as many years as the Orlando Magic begin play. In beginning a team from the ground up, the Heat own- ers hired Ron Rothstein, a former assistant coach under Detroit ' s Chuck Daly, to coach the young team. With the aid of an expan- sion draft and a number eight pick in the regular NBA draft, Miami at- tempted to fill the roster around its number one pick 6-foot- 10-inch center Rony Seikaly from Syracuse Uni- versity. Seikaly was joined by such players as Billy Thompson, Jon Sundvold, Pearl Washington, Slyvester Gray, and veteran point guard Rory Sparrow. At the half-way point in the season, the Heat were on track to set a new record for futility in a season with a record of 4-37. In front of a sold-out crowd of 15,008 in tfie Miami Arena, the Miami Heat, one of two NBA expansion teams, fall to the defending world champion Los Angeles Lakers 138-91. ning a total of three golds. The women ' s basketball, baseball, and men ' s volley- ball teams each stood atop their respective worlds. The greatest controversy of the games came as a result of the men ' s 100-meter dash final. It was supposed to be the moment of the Olympics in the Games ' showcase event. However, 9.79 sec- onds later as Johnson crossed the finish line ahead of Lewis, it was all but over. Three days after his victory, the world was shocked at the report of his failed drug test. He was stripped of his gold medal when traces of ster- oids were found to be in his system. Lewis was presented with the gold and Johnson left Seoul without a medal, his eligibility, and having been banned from interna- tional competition for at least two years. Headlines 107

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Miami liosts Super comebaci( In front of 75,179 people in Miami ' s Joe Robbie Stadi- um, quarterback Joe Mon- tana hit wide receiver John Taylor for a 10-yard tou- chdown with 34 seconds left in the game to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals 20-16 in Super Bowl XXIII. The Niners had won their third championship of the decade and had laid claim to being The Team of the Eighties. In the first Super Bowl played in Miami since 1979, Jerry Rice set championship records, and was awarded with the Most Valuable Play- er trophy, with 1 1 receptions for 215-yards and one tou- chdown. The game pitted such stars as Cincinnati quarter- back Boomer Esaison, the National Football League ' s Most Valuable Player, rookie running back dancing sen- sation Ickey Woods, stand- out 49er running back Roger Craig, as well as Rice and Montana. After two consecutive Super Bowl blow-outs, the Bengals and Niners went to halftime with the score 3-3, the first time a Super Bowl had been tied after the first half. In the second half, the teams traded scores until late in the fourth quarter with the Bengals on top 16-14, Montana hit Taylor for the winning touchdown in 49er head coach Bill Walsh ' s final game. The game featured four products of the University of Miami football program. San Francisco starting de- fensive lineman Kevin Fagan, reserve lineman Dan Stubbs, Cincinnati wide re- ceiver Eddie Brown and de- fensive lineman Eddie Will- iams. San Francisco quarterback Joe Montana drops back to pass in the first tialf of Super Bowl XX- III. With their 20-16 comeback win over the Cincinnati Ben- gals, Montana led the 49ers to their third Super Bowl win of the decade. Dodgers take series from A ' s It ' s still not quite clear how a team of unknowns with an Opie-esque pitcher beat-up on the American League champion Oakland A ' s and Jose Canseco. How- ever, unbelievable as it was, the Los Angeles Dodgers, behind the near flawless pitching of Orel Hershiser, drubbed the A ' s four games to one in the World Series. After miraculously de- feating the National League East champion New York Mets, the Dodgers ignored the talk of the impossibility of their beating the baseball machine in Oakland. They were criticized for fielding perhaps the weakest lineup in World Series history by NBC sportscaster Bob Cos- tas, but the boys in blue lost only a 2-1 decision in Game 3 on a ninth inning home run by Oakland slugger Mark McGwire. Hershiser, who was named the Series MVP, won two games during the series with one shutout. Though out of the regular lineup due to an injury, Gibson provided one of the most memorable mo- ments in World Series histo- ry when, in Game 1, he hit a two out, game-winning, pinch-hit home run. After completing the first 40-40 season with 43 home runs and 40 stolen bases, Miami native Jose Canseco, the catalyst of the dangerous Oakland offense, hit a mea- ger .053 in his first World Series. 106 Headlines

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Michael DiBan 108 Sports Division