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SPORTSADie Cjiatlottt Jpoat
Thursday, February 1, 2007
NBA
Bobcats wounded, winning
Continued from page 1C
December for a right ankle
sprain he suffered after com
ing down on the back of
Emeka Okafor’s foot. He
sprung back from that
injury, just to
be sidelined
this month
with knee
soreness.
“We have
guys banged
^ up," said May.
"(For some
games) 13 or
14 are guys
healthy, then all of a sudden
we have 10. It just happens
like that, a couple of guys get
sick...a couple of guys get
banged up, so it’s tough. But
it’s tough for everybody in
this league, not just us.".
The Bobcats' continued
stroke of bad injury luck is
not theirs alone, but, at least
for this season, they’re win
ning, despite the shortage of
players.
In a three-game road trip,
the Bobcats finished with
two wins, first with an over
time victory against the Los
Angels Lakers, then Denver
with 10 players available.
Wallace had 25 points, 13
rebounds and two blocks
against the Nuggets, includ
ing one which may have
saved the game.
“I feel more comfortable
this year," said Wallace,
“because of the guys. The
way the team is spread out,
and the confidence that our
younger guys have now."
All in all, Wallace seems to
have more pep in his step
this season, despite the nag
ging pain in his shoulder,
because of the versatility the
team has in their line-up and
his role in it, in spite of the
injuries.
"The offense is more com
fortable and we take the
swing position by the mis
matches," explained Wallace.
“I might be out on the wing,
or 1 might be on the post. It’s
a more comfortable set for
me out on the floor now as
opposed to last year where I
was basically at (power for
ward)" he said.
The Bobcats have 16 wins,
more than half of last year’s
total of 26. And they finished
January much more impres
sively than the 1-15'effort at
the same time in 2006. Yet,
in spite of the improve
ments, Charlotte coach
Bernie Bickerstaff comment
ed after the game in L.A. that
it is hard to gauge the team's
improvement.
"They’ve been good but
the barometer isn’t there ■
simply because when we
started to play well the
injuries came up,” said
Bickerstaff. “So we haven’t
really been able to get a good
read because we were play
ing really good basketball
and some of the key guys
went down whether it’s
Brevin, whether it’s Sean. So
it’s hard to assess', but I think
when we have all our com
ponents we’re a pretty good
basketball team.”
For Wallace, the All-Star
Break will be a welcome
respite. He, much like his
coach feels the team has
done a great job adjusting to
the situation, but he can’t
wait until everyone is
healthy again.
“We’re doing good," said
Wallace. "We just hopefully
will get everybody back
healthy and get everybody
playing good and we’ll be
OK."
Hopkins added spice to rivalry
Continued from page 1C
helped McGrady, who now plays for. the
Houston Rockets, skip college and head
straight for the NBA.
Well, somewhere along the way, Hopkins
ticked off a Ipt of people: college coaches
who were hoping to ride the McGrady band
wagon; Mt. Zion because Hopkins was get
ting more press than the school; ordinary
Joes who wanted a handout from McGrady
but couldn’t get past Hopkins; and the white
media. (I say white because there sure aren’t
that many black media around here.)
Hopkins was just a little too uppity for those
overweight and over-aged white males.
And that’s what made his hiring by Shaw so
delicious. Former Shaw President Talbert 0.
Shaw wanted a championship before he
retired - by any means necessary - and
Hopkins was the man for the job.
When Hopkins signed a three-year con
tract, I asked him why not a long-term deal.
He said if he couldn’t win a championship in
three years, he didn’t need to coach. He was
n’t going to be like some coaches who took
16 years to get their first championship - an
obvious dig at a certain coach in Charlotte.
He promptly recruited one of the best play
ers to ever play in the CIAA in Ronald Murray.
Everybody from the janitor on down had the .
Bears penciled in as the champs that year.
Shaw this. Shaw that. You’d have thought
there was only one Raleigh CIAA school. Until
the quarterfinals of the CIAA tournament.
The Falcons had heard and read enough.
They sent the Bears back into hibernation
with a resounding spanking.
But Shaw got its revenge the following year.
Then, before you could say NCAA probation,
Hopkins was gone in a bitter and nasty dis
pute over money and control.
Don’t ya just miss it!
Shaw vs. St. Aug’s will always be one of the
best rivalries around. And with the two
schools dissing each other in football last
season, fans were drooling for basketball
season to begin. They wasted their DNA.
Yes, the crowds still pack it in to watch the
games, but where’s the drama, the intrigue,
the hatred?
Coaches Jacques Curtis and Antonio Davis
are good friends; men’s coaches Thomas
Hargrove and Robert Brickey have no ani
mosity. There was no middle ground with
Hopkins. Before he left the conference,
coaches and game officials hated him as
much as the white media.
Don’t ya just miss it!
BONTTTA BEST is sports editor at The
Triangle Tribune.
Volvo’s C70 convertible: sporty ride at $40,000.
C70 converts into must-have ride
Volvo’s C70 convertible’s
roots go back to the coupe
used in - the
WiKiPRB
B. Cfcs's^
dated the day it hit the
streets.-
Volvo has since dropped
the coupe and revamped
the convertible into some
thing a bit more spectacu
lar. It’s the latest in what’s
becoming a long line of
retractable hardtops.
The car’s looks are much
like its predecessor, only
slightly shorter and wider. It
actually looks more like the
coupe than convertible.
With the top up, the C70 is
twice as stiff as the old con
vertible.
The top is a wonderful
thing, but a tad slow. It
takes about 30 seconds for
the 11 servos, four
hydraulic pumps and glass
and steel panels to fully
retract or rise. That’s eons
in top time, but it’s a nice
show. It all stacks neatly in
the trunk, which means I
hope you don’t have much
luggage or anything else to
go in the there.
Interior space is meant for
four, but two will be the
most comfortable. The rear
seats are serviceable for
most children and a small
percentage of adults. If
nothing else, you could put
more stuff in back.
The interior is much like
that of every current Volvo.
The floating center dash
console is present, as is real
wood and aluminum trim.
Seats with the optional
leather covers are good but
I wonder if a little more
padding is in order.
More horses are certainly
needed. The five-cylinder,
turbocharged 218 horse
power 2.5-liter is hardly a
race-inspired engine. That’s
OK because this car is really
built for more leisurely dri
ving. It’s not that you can’t
drive it fast. The six-speed
manual does inspire you to
get spirited, but 218 horses
on a car that is 318 pounds
heavier - and safer - is just
OK.
That’s not enough to keep
someone away from this
car. Heck, you could just sit
in the thing and listen to the
optional 12-speaker system,
which has two, count ‘em,
two subwoofers.
The C70 has certainly
gone from an afterthought
to a must-have. Looking to
drop $40,000 or so for a
convertible? Take a look at
this all-weather drop top.
Hometown sports.
Community newspaper,
nrije Cfjarlotte
Charlotte’s
ultimate
source for
HBCU
sports.
Call Us
704-376-0496
Nominations are being accepted
for the Charlotte Post’s
Top Senior
scholarship program.
Applications are due by
February 23,2007.
See your counselor
for an application
and
for additional information