6Basketball '89The Daily Tar HeelFriday, November 17, 1989
Tech bolsters backcourt, flounders
By JASON BATES
Staff Writer
To understand this year's version
of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Ramblin' Wreck, one must master
several basic points.
Number one: Believe all the hype.
Kenny Anderson is as good as his
billing. The most heralded and most
desired point guard in the history of
basketball is going to play, and he is
going to win some games for Geor
gia Tech.
"You ask yourself can this guy be
as good as they say," senior Brian
Oliver said. "After playing with him
now, I can say he is legit. We haven't
had a true point guard here in a while,
but we sure have one now."
Number two: Anderson will im
prove an already-loaded Yellow Jack
ets backcourt. Oliver and Dennis Scott
were formidable to begin with, and
Anderson should be ready to step up
and create an almost unstoppable
combination.
"Dennis came into camp in great
shape this year, and that's because
he saw Kenny coming into town,"
Oliver said. "I think he figures if he
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RESTAURANT
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Kenny Anderson
wants to get involved in the offense,
he's going to have to run, too."
Number three: No matter how good
Anderson is, he is not good enough
to fill the void created by the loss of
Tom Hammonds. The backcourt may
be tremendous, but a lackof talent
mocna ruagerie, -
- i i
and experience in the frontcourt pro
vides this team with a major weak
ness. "They really don't need a scorer;
they need a rebounder," UNC head
coach Dean Smith said. "They're
going to get the scoring from the
backcourt."
Number four: Georgia Tech, 20
12 a year ago (8-6 in the ACQ, will
not pose a major threat to either the
top teams in the ACC or the best in
the nation. While good point guards
win championships, those same cham
pionship teams also have intimidat
ing inside players something the
Yellow Jackets are a good two years
away from developing.
"Our biggest problem is inside,"
said Tech head coach Bobby Cremins.
"We probably have the least-experienced
frontline in the U.S."
But, without a doubt, the backcourt
has become the Yellow Jackets'
strength. Scott, Oliver and Anderson
should get most of the playing time,
and without a dominating frontcourt
player, Tech might resort to a run-and-shoot
offense with all three of
them on the floor, using Scott at the
small forward. If any of those three
need a break, look for senior Karl
Brown to come off the bench and
spell them, though not for long.
While Scott, a 6-foot-8, 225-poun-der,
is listed as a guardforward, he is
known more for his deadly outside
touch than his power moves to the
basket. Just ask any UNC fan about
him, and you'll probably get a de
scription of Scott's steal and three
pointer with two seconds to go to
give Georgia Tech a 76-74 win over
the Tar Heels in Atlanta last year.
The numbers tell the story on Scott.
During his two-year career, 214 of
his 408 field goals have been three
pointers (52.5). He set the ACC fresh-
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Georgia Tech Roster
No. Name Pos. Hgt. Wgt. Year Hometown
12 Kenny Anderson G 6-2 172 Fr. Rego Park, N.Y.
34 Rod Balanis G 6-3 185 Fr. Williamsburg, Va.
15 Darryl Barnes F 6-7 210 Fr. Brooklyn, N.Y.
23 Brian Black G 6-1 174 Fr. ' Marietta, Ga.
5 Karl Brown G 6-2 186 Sr. Leicester, England
3 'Brian Domalik G 5-11 159 Jr. Leesburg, Va.
32 Malcolm Mackey F 6-10 230 Fr. Chattanooga, Tenn.
44 'Johnny McNeil F-C 6-9 241 Sr. High Point, N.C.
24 "James Munlyn C 6-11 214 Jr. Aiken, S C.
33 Ivano Newbill F 6-9 200 Fr. Macon, Ga.
13 "'Brian Oliver G 6-4 206 Sr. Smyrna, Ga.
4 "Dennis Scott G-F 6-8 225 Jr. Reston, Va.
14 'Greg White G 6-1 175 So. Norcross, Ga.
'Denotes Letters Won
Head Coach
Bobby Cremins (South Carolina, 1970)
Assistsnts
Kevin Cantwell (UNC-Asheville, 1973)
Sherman Dillard (James Madison, 1978)
Jimmy Hebron (UNC-Wilmington, 1971)
man record with 98 treys his first
year and then added 1 16 his sopho
more season. His 11 three-pointers
in a game against Houston last year
is another ACC record.
Oliver, a second-team All-ACC
pick last year, will probably be the
starter at the number two guard. With
the loss of Hammonds, the senior will
definitely have to contribute on the
offensive end, and he will also have
to help the freshmen overcome the
pressures of big-time college hoops.
Oliver has started 79 of his 93
games at Tech, averaging 12.1 points
and 4.4 rebounds per game. His
numbers have improved every year,
and this may be the season for him to
break loose.
Oliver will also need to take up
some of the rebounding effort if the
front line fails. Last year, he led all
ACC guards in boards with 5.6 per
game.
Brown was a disappointment last
year after transferring from Chipola
Junior College. He averaged more
assists per game (3.9) than points (3.2),
and with the addition of Anderson at
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point guard, Brown could see his pine
time rising.
Anderson, of course, is a key to
this team. The question at this point
is whether he can handle the pressure
and responsibility.
If "Yellow Jackets" describes the
back court, then "Ramblin' Wreck"
is a perfect label for the frontcourt.
With Hammonds gone, red-shirt
junior James Munlyn will be called
upon to fill the middle along with
senior Johnny McNeil. Neither player
is an intimidating presence, and even
combined they will probably not do
as well as Hammonds did alone.
Munlyn and McNeil will be joined
by a talented recruiting class. Fresh
men Darryl Barnes, Malcolm Mackey
and Ivano Newbill will probably all
play a large amount, though none of
the freshmen is ready to step in and
dominate.
Barnes (6-7, 210) will share the
small forward spot with Scott. Mackey
(6-10, 230) will probably have the
biggest impact on the frontcourt and
is given an excellent chance at start
ing. Newbill (6-9, 200) only played
two years of high school basketball
but is supposed to become a rebound
ing machine with some development.
One problem for Tech might be
fatigue. Cremins has never been
known for excellent use of his bench,
but he may have to learn fast unless
he wants Anderson, Oliver and Scott
on the floor 40 minutes a night, ev
ery night.
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