Southside High School - Southerner Yearbook (Fort Smith, AR)

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Senior Joe Bob Wise trots out to greet the other starters tbelow leftj before the starting ofthe game against Waldron December 19, He set an all time scoring record for Southside with 53 points. During a time-out in that game, Coach Ronnie 'Bateman trightj discusses new strategy. Showing his slam dunk techniques to spec- tators is senior Steue Hathcocle tbelowj in the pregame of the McAlester game on December 9, ,., 1 1 sf 1 I X A, at-f F-X JM! ' 1 2 xqluy .149 ' f rsfy . ,N 4 ,F L41 -10' rw' -QNX Rebel cagers acquired two new guards in the starting lineup this year. They are, seniors Randy Cates tfar leftj and Randy Lloyd tleftj. Tipping off against the Rogers Mountaineers tbelowj is Joe Bob Wise with Hathcocle i452 and Cates waiting anxiously, Getting the ball back down court are Joe Bob Wise and Mark Hutson, fleftj against Charleston. The Rebels won this important game 77 to 75 on January 20. 113

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A New onop or TALENT REBS REBUIID Several questions remained unanswered as the 1978 Rebel cagers took the court in late No- vember. Only two returnees from last yearls squad were left to build around and Head Coach Ronnie Bateman had to look to a new crop of talent to find the remainder of his lineup. Bateman had a pair of 6'3', players to form the nucleus ofthe starting five. All-State and All- Conference teamer Joe Bob Wise, who also re- ceived Southwest Times Record Player of the Year, was destined to be the Rebs' offensive weapon. Big postman Mark Alexander was back to control the boards and provide versatility on both offense and defense. But the rest of the team had little or no varsity experience. Bateman and his staff settled on 6,3U Mark Hutson to help underneath and a backcourt tandem of 5l11 Randy Cates and 5,9 Randy Lloyd. The Southside squad got more than they bargained for from Siloam Springs in the season tip-off. Foul trouble plagued both teams and Wise retired early with five and only ten points. After the smoke cleared, the Panthers owned a narrow 62-61 triple overtime win. Steve Hath- cock came off the bench to lead the Rebs with 17 points. Alexander added 11. Southside's bench strength was cut during the opener as both Mike Mann and Galen Hunter suffered ankle injuries that sidelined them for long periods. 112 X ' . ,.,t , In the home game against Subiaco, sophomore Brian Dickinson fleftj shoots up for two. A while later, Kenny Johnson U22 and Randy Lloyd take the ball down to add to the Rebells 89 to 42 victory. I

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A NEW CROP OF TALENT fcontinuedj But the Rebels were not to be denied. Subi- aco and Greenwood, two Class AAA schools, became the first victims of the Rebel steamrqller. Wise bounced back to true form as Southside trounced Subiaco 53-20 and Greenwood 76-49. Another close encounter came against Mc- Alester and the Rebels pulled off an 82-80 over- time victory behind Wise's 48 point output. In fact, it was Wise who tied the game and then hit all Southside points in the extra period. Tough Blytheville, a AAAA-East contender, abruptly halted the Rebs 76-64. Wise dumped in 31 points, including 18 in the final stanza. Winning ways returned in a re-match with the Subiaco Trojans 89-41. Wise rang up 28 while Cates and Frank Sharum came off the bench with 20 and 12 points, respectively. Southside upped its record to 5-2 by blasting Waldron 87-66 as the Christmas break rolled around. During that win Wise eclipsed the old school scoring record of 49 points. He hit 53 points before setting out much of the final period. With the Christmas break came the Fort Smith Classic, held at Southside. The Rebels picked up third place with two wins and a loss during the three-day event. Southside beat Van Buren in the first round but fell to Springdale in second round. They bounced back to beat Rus- sellville 47-40 in the consolation game. Spring- dale nipped a rough Muskogee team in the finals. .ji gr 'T r , Q . y v A bfi? .1 S' Two upsets of the season for the Rebels were the opening game with Siloam Springs, and the home- coming game against the Rogers Mountaineers. Ran- dy Lloyd and Steue Hath- cock put the pressure on a Panther fabovej, while Wise leaps through Mounty defenders in hopes ofadd- ing to the score frighlj. Rogers defeated the Rebels 66 to 52, while the Pan- thers gave Southside a triple overtime 62 to 51 upset. AWISE GAME 5 W, W .. ,. Senior Mark HIUSOH f0 C95 his way ket during the conference battle which through Mountaineer defenders for a bas- the Rebg suffered their third defeat, 114 B' S E alll X EK if J T 1 E Z