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DECEMBER 14, 1992
lEATURES 5
BLACK INK SPORTS: The Tar Heels look good in ‘93
By Corey Brown
Ink Co-Editor
It’s that time of year again. Time
fcff all the three-pointCTS, 360 de
gree dunks, fast breaks, free throws,
last-second jumpers and Cinderella
squads. Yes, basketball season is
back. This year will mark the pre
miere of the all-important Black
Ink Top 15 College Basketball Poll.
For Dean Smith’s troops in ‘92-
‘93, expect anoth^ year of 20 wins
and a trip to the sweet sixteen of the
NCAA tournament
With the deq) lineup that re
turns for the Tar Heels, this year’s
squad can prove to be even hetter
than the unit that reached the Final
Four two years ago.
The firontcourtof Eric Montross,
George Lynch and Brian Reese is
arguably the best in the country.
The Tar Heels could conceivably
out-rebound every opponent with
these guys cleaning the glass.
The t^kcourt features the tena
cious d^ense of Derrick Phelps,
who Ixings much needed experi
ence to point guard. The only ques
tion that remains unanswered with
Phelps, is if he will be able to nail
the open jumper to help open things
up for the big men.
Donald Williams will probably
take over the starting position from
Henrik Rodl, once he curbs his
shooter’s mentality and shows some
shot discipline. Freshman Dante
Calabria is also showing some early
maturity and should get more play
ing time as the season progresses.
Bench ^th will not be a prob
lem. Kevin Salvadori, who would
be a starts' at most otho* schools,
has proved to be a good shot blocks'
and rebounder. He’s even surprised
most by his offensive skills. Pat
Sullivan finally looks comfortable
in the offensive scheme and Henrik
Rodl can instantly contribute solid
minutes in both the point and shoot
ing guard positions.
Matt Wenstrom is, well, a big
body to take up space and give five
fouls. Freshman Ed Geth and Larry
Davis, although they will only get
limited playing time, can both fill
important roles for the Tar Heels.
The only weaknesses this team
has will be its lack of experience at
shooting guard and its lack of team
speed. Donald Williams is a pure
shooter, but will he be consistent?
Herick Rodl has the experience, but
has no speed and only a set shot at
best
The lack of team speed will show
up when the Tar Heels face a squad
that has a lot of quickness like
FloridaState,orateamwithatheletic
ability at key spots like Duke.
There are also intangibles such
as if the team will stay healthy. Or
will the players maintain a level of
discipline and maturity.
Last year, the peak of the season
seemed to be theFeb. 5 victwy over
then-unbeaten Duke. In order for
the Heels to do any damage this
year, the team has to stay consis
tent.
Now, for the rankings. The Kan
sas Jayhawks debut as number one
in the Ink Top 15. Coach Roy Wil
liams, a prot6g6 of Dean Smith and
the heir apparsit to coach UNC
when(God forbid) Smith retires, has
his team primed andready forbatUe.
This is a fundamentally sound Kan
sas team, they play as a team and
stick to their game plan. In typical
student-teacher fashion, Williams
has Kansas run the same system as
the Tar Heels —only they run it
better. The Jayhawks have no true
superstar, but senior Addonis Jor
dan is their go-to-guy in the clutch.
Look for Kansas to win the Big 8
title and be a top ranked team going
into the NCAA tournament.
Duke is not number one because
they are living off the reputation of
previous Blue Devil teams. They
lack the depth to be as strong as the
“experts” project them to be.
Michigan, despite their loss to
Duke is not as close to number one
as most people think. Sure, they
have lots of talent, but the Wolver
ines have no system or team phi
losophy to follow. They rely too
heavily on athletic ability.
The sleq»r team of the year,
Arkansas. E)espite the loss of Todd
Day, Lee Mayberry and Oliver
Miller, Coach Nolan Richardson
will have his Razorbacks turn a few
heads before it’s all said and done.
Black Ink Top 15
1 Kansas Jayhawks
2 Indiana Hoosiers
3 Nwrth Carolina Tar Heek
4 Kentucky Wildcats
5 Duke Blue Devils
6 Michigan Wolverines
7 Seton Hall Pirates
8 Florida State Seminoles
9 Iowa Hawkeyes
10 Georgetown Hoyas
11 CHdahoma Sooners
12 Syracuse Orangemen
13 Loiusville Cardinals
14 Arkansas Razorbacks
15 Georgia Tech Yellowjackets
The creators of TAJ Mahal Productions
By Corey Brown
Ink Co-Editor
For black students on the
University’s campus, the weekends
can be as boring as Mondays.
But Todd Reid, Jared Neal and
Antoine Howard—the men behind
TAJ Mahal Productions—have de
cided to try and change that out
look.
TAJ Mahal F*roductions has
sponsored several parties
throughtout the semester, but it’s
not just an average jam. They pro
vide live entertainment in a
resuiarant atmosphere.
Todd Reid, a juniw biology ma
jor from Charlotte, said that he and
Howard developed the idea while
dining in the Looking Glass Caf6.
They talked to the manager, who
in turn expressed an interest, but the
groiq) felt like they needed a tnggs
place such as Pizza Hut
“We were surprised at how easy
it was,” Reid said. “When we ap
proached the manager of Pizza Hut
with the idea, he instantly ^jproved
it”
Jared Neal, a junior pditical sci
ence major from Gastonia, ex
plained his vision of the purpose of
TAJ Mahal Productions.
“We want to present black stu-
and reggae.
Antoine Howard, a biology ma
jor from Charlotte, was quick to
point out the advantages TAJ Mahal
Todd, Antoine and
Mahaflliieattio palace,
X ' /
wtnne noivard
dents a diffsent type of situation
that they are used to,” said Neal.
“By having parties in this setting,
it’s a much more relaxed atmo
sphere.”
Neal also said that the group
was trying to expose sbidents to
different forms of music, such as
hip hop that hasn’t reached the area
parties have over Great Hall in the
Student Union.
“Parties in Great Hall can only
nm until 1:30 and most people don’t
even show up until it’s half-way
over,” Howard said. “ We can keep
aparty going until we want to stop.”
The trio stressed the need for
support from University students.
Howard said, “At our last jam, A &
T, N.C. State, N.C. Central and Shaw
were in the house deep.”
Reid added, “We really encour
age UNC students to support us, 1
mean after all, that’s who we want
to cater to.”
Reid added, “We would like to
provide entertainment on a campus
for black people. Eventually we
would like to open a structure with
a live food and a DJ.”
Be on the lookout for TAJ Mahl
Productions events. They are plan
ning a New Year ’ s eve party for Tar
Heels fan and students who make
%
the journey to Atlanta.
They are also in the process of
putting together a ski trip in West
Virginia the third weekend in Janu
ary.
They’ve hooked up with a pro-
motCT in Washington, D.C., to try
and bring live acts to Chapel Hill
including Kid Capri, A Tribe Called
Quest and Redman.
With projects like these, expect
to see more from Todd Antoine and
Jared in the future.