February 27, 1987 Sports Page 7 From the Sideline Sports Talk By S’ven Levister and Langston Wertz Heil Herman! The J. R. Reid Show is continuing to take the nation by storm and by season’s end could very well give its finale in Louisiana. In 1987, the Tar Heels have history on their side. The last time 80,000 plus fans crammed into the Superdome for the NCAA finals, Eric Smith passed Georgetown's hopes for a 1982 national championship into the hands of MVP James Worthy and some pleasantly sur prised Tar Heels. Also, 1982 was the last year the Tar Heels wielded the all-important weapon, A1 McGuire's self-termed Aircraft Car rier — the dominant big man. Now, Mr. Daugherty was a good center who could be counted on for 20 quiet points. Quiet. MISTER REID, aka the truth in tennis shoes, is the explosive type of shot- blocking, intimidating, dunking center that may land the jet, Kenny Smith, in Louisiana this March. Speaking of Smith, he is a definite All-America. His 41-point outburst against Clemson should have erased all of the critics’ doubts as to his ability to score. His importance to the Tar Heels should list in the utmost category. Says basket ball analyst and NBC commentator A1 McGuire: “If Kenny Smith played for the By Charles Mills Staff Writer Randy Wiel is a very cordial and ar ticulate man with the slight remains of an accent and a relaxing sense of humor. He came to Chapel Hill in 1975 from Cureisol in the Caribbean. From 1975-79, he was a part of some of the best basket ball teams in UNC’s history, including the 1977 team, that may have been the best. When Wiel left Chapel Hill in 1979, he probably did not think that he would one day return to be the head coach of the junior varsity and assistant coach of the varsity basketball teams. Yet today, Wiel often finds himself up at 2 a.m. watching films of basketball games and devising new strategy for his JV team. Before coming to UNC, Weil com peted in the Pan Am games and in the 1968 Olympic games. He actually work ed as a police officer for six years. This all-around athlete competed in track and swimming before picking up Boston Celtics and he didn’t play in a game, the Boston Celtics would miss Ken ny Smith.” Nuff said. While I’m on basketball, the Lady Tar Heels also sport a dominant center. Dawn Royster, she of the vertical leap. Royster is a known shot-blocker who can also rebound. Still, her forte is definitely scoring... However, when the ladies took on State earlier this season, Marlene List really looked good. This lady could make Pete Rose jealous with her hustle. She’s a perfect complement to the “Rooster.” And speaking of State, they of Tina Trice, have laid hands on America’s number one or two high school girl’s hoopster (depending on which poll you trust) Charlotte’s Andrea Stinson. Stinson may well spell relief for a State squad and trouble for its opponents. Stinson, who plays for North Mecklenburg High School in Huntersville, averages 28 points per game and has a sweeping one-handed scoop move that has observers asking, “Is that James Worthy or the Doc”? Swamy S’ven will now make predic tions for the NCAA Final Four: UNLV, UNC, Kansas, Iowa. Prove him wrong. Whammy the Swamy and win a free, all-expense paid trip for two... to class. Plus we’ll write your name and correct answer in a future Ink. Continued on page 8 basketball as his number one sport. Weil returned to Carolina to finish up his masters degree in education and to work as an assistant coach. Upon Eddie Fogler’s leaving for the head coaching job at Witchita State University and Roy Williams’s promotion up to Fogler’s old job, Wiel became the coach of the JV basketball team. After leaving in 1979, Wiel played professional basketball in Europe, where he played for a team in Holland. While there, he was named Rookie of the Year, Most Valuable Player, and led the league in scoring twice. Wiel says the European league is full of American players. He played against such former Atlantic Coast Conference stars as Rod Griffin and Derrick Whitten- burg, just to name a few. “The European league is somewhere between the college and the pros (National Basketball League). The college teams that travel to Europe usually end up los- Continued on page 8 Stop the fights By Charles Mills Staff Writer The sport of professional boxing has had a long and glorious history, dating back to the late nineteenth century, with such stars as John L. Sullivan, Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, Muhammad Ali, and Ray Leonard. But in recent years boxing has come under heavy public scrutiny. Because of its high injury rate, many people have begun to feel that professional boxing must be banned. Incidents such as the highly publiciz ed detached retina of former welterweight champion Ray Leonard and the death of Korean fighter Duk-Koo Kim at the hands of Ray Mancini in front of a national television audience, have set off a chain reaction of demands for a ban on pro boxing. Injuries have to be considered the one constant in boxing. Rarely is there a pro fessional fight in which one of the par ticipants does not receive some kind of injury. The eye, unlike some of the other parts of the body, is extremely vulnerable and is always a target for injury in pro fessional boxing. One of the more serious injuries in boxing is the detached retina. The chances of full recovery of sight is very slim. Some prominent boxers such as Er nie Shavers and Ray Leonard have suf fered a detached retina, received surgery and have been able to return to the ring without any ill effects, but another boxer has not been as lucky. Ray Seales, winner of the only gold medal in boxing for the United States in the 1972 Olympics and veteran of some 300 amateur fights and 80 professional fights, was left blind. Another extremely serious injury all boxers must face is the possibility of brain damage. Thirty-eight retired boxers and two current boxers were tested by com puterized tomography (CT) and EEG and neurological examination. It was conclud ed that the number of fights a boxer has relates directly to CT and EEG abnor malities. The constant pounding to the head boxers must absorb takes its toll, but knock-out victims suffer more damage. Though pro boxing has had its share of fatalities, three recent deaths have drawn a great deal of attention to the sport. In June of 1980, Roberto Duran and Blacks vie Continued from page 3 will cast ballots on will be of music released between Oct. 1, 1985 and Sept. 30, 1986. Since Whitney Houston’s LP was released in the spring of 1985, her self entitled album will not be included in this year’s nominations. However, Houston’s single “The Greatest Love of All” was nominated for record of the year. Also failing to make it into the time schedule was Lionel Richie’s “Dancing on the Ceiling” and “Say You Say Me.” The show will be broadcast live from Los Angeles from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Feb. 24 on CBS-TV. Ray Leonard fought for the welterweight championship in what is now considered a classic match, but in a preliminary bout Cleveland Denny was killed after being knocked out. In September of 1983. twenty-two year old bantamweight Fran cisco (Kiko) Bejines died of a cerebral edema (swelling of the brain) after being in a coma for a number of days. Bejines, ranked number three in the world, was ahead on all the judge’s scorecards going into the twelfth round when he was knock ed out. He underwent major surgery to remove part of his brain, skull, and a blood clot in order to relieve pressure from his brain. Bejines died the next day. But the most highly publicized of all ring deaths has to be that of Duk-Koo Kim. Kim was knocked out in the four teenth round and never got up again. Writer David Noonan of “Time” says Kim suffered cerebral edema and died a few days later. The AMA has said boxing is equivalent to a cockfight because the ob ject of the game is to render one’s oppo nent unconscious. Though the argument for the ban of boxing seems to be strong at this point, boxing still has its share of supporters. One supporter, sports writer Stanley Cohen, argues that boxing has a redeem ing value because it takes kids out of poverty and gives them fame and fortune. Boxing is a way out of the mills and mines and can be financially equal to tiic salaries of bank presidents and corporate executives. Cohen is correct when he says box ing has taken impoverished men like Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Roberto Duran, and John Tate, who could neither read nor write, and gave them a chance to earn riches that they would have never been able to achieve any other way. Another argument in favor of boxing is freedom of choice. These men have the right to use their bodies anyway they choose. Boxers face death every time they enter the ring. But then too, suicide is il legal in this country. In the past 100 years, the sport of pro fessional boxing has undergone iiulc change. Of course there have been rule modifications and the athletes have got ten better, but boxing is still based upon a man versus man fight to the finish. Groups like the AMA will probably ct)n- tinue their attempts for a ban, and boxing advocates will do their best to see that the sport survives. DON DAVIS Program Director 1060 Gatewood Ave. P.O. Box 6626 Greensboro, NC 27405-0702 919/275-9161 Winston-Salem 723-6759 High Point 884-1168 Wiel returns to UNC as new coach, student