Newspapers / The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, … / Dec. 29, 2005, edition 1 / Page 18
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2C €)f)0 SPORTSttle Ctarlfttt $o(t Thursday, December 29, 2005 Panthers have one shot at playoff party Continued from page 1C started. That’s the mindset we have to have. We are for tunate to be in position to control our destiny as far as getting into the playoffs,” said Fox “Those guys are going to be ready and going to be on that turf They are going to be looking at what they did first time against us. These guys are definitely focused so we are going to have to go down there and take a win,” said safety Mike Minter. Last week against Dallas, Carolina gave up 214 yards rushing Cowboys running back Julius Jones, who came Fox into the game averaging just 3.7 yards per carry, rushed for 194 yards csi 34 attempts. Fox attributed the rush defense breakdowns due to more mental than physical breakdowns. The Paiithers slipped fiom fourth to fifth in rush defense in the league. “That is where the game is really won at. You start with the run and end with the run. You stop a team and make them one dimensional and then the ball moves into your favor... We have to ti^ten up all around This team is going to run the ball. So it’s not going to be a secret,” said defensive end Mike Rucker. That’s the truth. Atlanta does likes to run the ball with Warrick Dunn who averages 5.1 yards per carry with 273 carries for 1,387 yards. Oh, let’s not forget about Vick who is the team’s second lead ing rusher with 101 carries for 597 yards and six touch downs. ‘It’s going to be a big and emotional game. It’s going to be a dc^;fight down there No one is going to come rescue us. We got to do this. We just have to get better and blow up,” said Rucker. The Panthers’ window of opportunity to make the play offs is still open. However, with one game left in the sea son, it’s now open for deja vu to. That’s why you play the game. “The key is getting into the tournament.... And we still have that op^rtunity” said Fox. •-T: Riley mulls a weighty idea Continued from page 1C “You can’t stop him,* Hawks center John Edwards said last week after CfNeal scored 28 points in only 24 minutes against Atlanta. Riley divulged his plan Sunday, after the Heat beat Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers 97-92 • a game where O’Neal stru^ed a bit offensively shooting 8-of-18 against the likes of Chris Mihm and Kwgime Brown and finishing with 18 points. His comment wasn’t designed to express dis pleasure with O’Neal. Instead, it was borne out the long-standing fiflstration Miami has with the way teams defend their behemoth center, perhaps the most physically imposing man to play the game. TTie worst-kept secret in the NBA mi^t be this; ordeal cannot get away with the same tactics teams use against him, even thou^ the rule book states that “contact initiated by the defensive player guarding a player with the ball is not legal. This contact includes, but is not limited to, forearm, hands, or body check* “Tm sure that everybody will say that Fm just up here trying to complain, but I don’t see how he could ever get to the basket," Riley said. “I don’t care if he’s 340 pounds. They get locked into siudi a defensive position that they just hold him.... Impeding his pregress. But he’s got to find a way to get around that." Miami (17-12) got past its showdown with the Lakers, but will soon begin propping for another nwyor test. After closing a four-geune homestand against Milwaukee on Tbesday the Heat will visit Detroit - the team that beat Miami in the Eastern Cihnference finals last season today. “We still have to learn how to keep leads," O’Neal said "But it’s coming together.” For his part, O’Neal shrugs off the talk about how teams tend to bend the rules when guard ing him. And he wouldn’t give Mihm and Brown any credit for their defense Sunday even though he missed six straight shots in one stretch - mostly around the rim. “It wasn’t them. It was me," O’Neal said. “It’s never them. It’s always me.” Unless Riley is serious and finds some of the biggest sumotori out there, O’Neal probably won’t be facing anyone logger or stronger than him anytime soon. At a recent m^or tourna ment in Japan, the average weight of a sumo was 341 pounds - about what O’Neal checks in at. And whether he signs a couple wrestlers or not, Riley is starting to sound a bit anxious over finding new ways to squeeze more pro duction fix)m O’Neal, who’s averaging 18.4 points and 9.6 rebounds, both off his 22.9- point, 10.4-rebound pace of his MVT-runnei^ up season a year ago. O’Neal doesn’t soimd worried quite yet, though. “Remember, Fve only been back a couple weeks," he said, referring to the 18 games he missed with a sprained ankle this season. ‘Tm still getting there. Not there yet. Fll get there." Information that is always on line, 24 hours a day www.thecharlottepost.com Clavlotte Deep talent pool in prep shootout Continued from page 1C boys’ game tipping off at 9:15 p.m. The tournament also has star power with several high-profile college prospects Division I signees Charlie Dewhurst of Charlotte Latin (Charlotte) and Stephen Curry of Charlotte Christian (Davidson) will play as will Jerry Hollis and DiJuan Harris of Victory Christian. Christian beat Norcross (Ga.) in last week’s Chik- Fil-A Classic in Columbia, S.C., last week. Norcross (13-1) is in the Bojangles’ field as well. Tbp players from around the country like Wayne Ellington and Gerald Henderaon (Duke) of The Episcopal Academy (Pa.) and Laurinburg Institute’s Chris Douse and Antoine Watson are also among the top collegiate recruits. Providence Day’s girls, which upset No. 19 nation ally Winter Haven (Fla.) in the Crescent Bank Holiday Invitational in Myrtle Beach last week, will be among the favorites in their bracket, but South Meek and Harding will con tend as well. The girls’ draw also has Duke signee Joy Cheek and teammates Betsy Horowitz and Erica Williamson of South Mecklenbiug. On the Web www.dccharity.org OBSESSED WHyreadlliePos^ irsessenOal “I couldn’t imagine being a resident of Charlotte and not subscribing to The Charlotte Post. It covers a wide range of news and serves a vital function for the African American community and for the entire Charlotte community, the Post does a great job in covering the local issues; not just news, but sports and leisure as well.” Cliris Vkiller, e.xeaith'e vice president jor imirketing and communications. 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Dec. 29, 2005, edition 1
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